MacDirectory Magazine

Jason Seiler

MacDirectory magazine is the premiere creative lifestyle magazine for Apple enthusiasts featuring interviews, in-depth tech reviews, Apple news, insights, latest Apple patents, apps, market analysis, entertainment and more.

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NEW GAME > The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Skyrim Special Edition By Thomas Bender Releasing to critical acclaim five years ago, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim will go down in history as one of the best fantasy role playing games of the modern era.  It is no surprise, therefore, that Skyrim has been updated to run on the PS4 and Xbox One, giving newcomers and returning fans alike a reason to jump into the world of The Elder Scrolls.  The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim - Special Edition packages the core game, it’s 3 expansion packs, a plethora of visual upgrades, and the ability to run PC mods on your console, making this the ultimate edition of the game to own. For gamers interested in fantasy or role playing games who have not already played Skyrim, picking up this year’s re-release is a no brainer.  For returning customers, you probably already know if you want to spend hundreds more hours in the land of Skyrim (though a heads up to console players that your old save games won’t transfer). The now-iconic intro scene brings you immediately into the action, and takes you through the robust character creator, allowing you to craft a character of your liking (even if they end up with a helmet on most of the game).  The play styles available are almost equally as customizable - I was only a few hours into my standard hack’n’slash build before I wanted to re-start as a Khajit thief who could lock pick her way around the world.  Even better, as I put more hours into my original character, my training adapted my character to my play style, allowing me to shift how I approached the game. There is an absolutely massive amount of content to explore in Skyrim.  It is an easy task to sink over 100 hours into this game, and it's easy to understand why after only a few hours in game - the scale and variety of quests is astonishing, be they main quests or optional side-objectives.    For the first time in a long time, I found myself bypassing optional quests in pursuit of my current goal, or simply because the quest was not something my character would do (like delivering love letters); I could rest safely knowing that the precious gold and experience from the ignored opportunity could easily be earned elsewhere in the world.  These quests, along with all of the content in the game, are all fully voice acted, sprouting from what must be a staggering amount of possible dialog in the game. The Special Edition really shines when experiencing the outdoor settings of Skyrim.  All the up-ressed foliage, new textures, dynamic depth of field, and volumetric lighting come together to make wandering the wilderness a visceral and beautiful experience.  Environmental effects, like the day/night cycle and shifting weather

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