Skyrim launched an age ago on PC and almost as long ago on console, with a remaster last year, ensuring those who missed it the first time could take a visit to the fantastic world. Now it’s Nintendo’s turn and boy, has it been worth the wait.
The Switch seems to be surprising a lot of people with its recent title releases. While Wii U seemed rather doomed from an early point in its life, Switch is getting a very different reaction (unless your name is EA) and Doom just happens to be a good thing, thanks to Bethesda’s other game franchise. Skyrim was announced softly, by being part of the advertising campaign for the console before launch. Since then, we’ve all be dying to see if Nintendo’s portable hybrid could really do the huge open world game justice.
For those new to the game, it’s an open world light RPG game, heavy on action, combat and character building where dragons exist alongside trolls, elves and giant spiders, factions war over land and many are waiting for the prophesied Dragonborn to appear. It’s pretty huge in scope from snow covered mountains to lush forests and built up cities.
Interestingly, this version seems to sit graphically between the original console release and the upgraded remaster, with some of the added effects still present and other paired back to differing degrees. In docked mode, on a TV, this is fairly obvious, though the game manages to still look beautiful, but on the smaller screen it’s a marvel to behold. Skyrim in your hands, on the bus, on the train, at work, anywhere!
That’s not to say you shouldn’t buy this to play it on a big screen. Skyrim on Switch is smooth and works wonderfully well with both a Pro controller and the Joycons in their gamepad form. Switch to motion controls and things become a little more hairy, though it’s certainly good to try out that bow control with the Joycons. it even has all the official add-ons to keep you busy on the couch for many more hours even if you aren’t going portable.
Skyrim, then, is an amazing portable game that just happens to be still pretty amazing at home, despite its years. Even if you’ve played this before on another format, there’s plenty to keep you coming back for more.
The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim Switch Edition
Pros
- It's Skyrim on a handheld
- ...and on the TV at the same time
- Vast open world game
- Hundreds of hours of play time
Cons
- Doesn't have the full graphics overhaul of the remaster
- Back at full price
