A Case Study

Official Skyrim Trailer

Skyrim - User Review

Skyrim is an action- roleplaying open world game which can be played in either the first person or third person.

It fits into the fantasy genre as it is set on a different planet in pseudo-Medieval times. However, there are many parallels with our own planet.

Due to being open world, players are free to roam the map and engage in tasks which aren’t a part of the main narrative. These types of open games are often referred to as “sandbox” games.

Generic Fantasy location

Skyrim is multi-narrative game with one main quest line of challenges.

Players are free to pick and chose which tasks they would like to engage in and so are free to make their own decisions.

There is a classical ‘good’ and ‘evil’ dimension to the gameplay as the choice lies with the player regarding their character’s nature.

The main part of the narrative is choice: every interaction gives the player a chance to make a decision about the gameplay.

Runes & Path choices

Skyrim takes real life events and fictionalises them. The game contains elements of Ancient Rome, Medieval European life, Viking and Greek myths and classical legends.

Religion is represented within the game with a number of different deities referred to in the game. It is apparent these are based on either the Norse, Greek or Roman myths.

The game also aims to represent ancient Nordic life.

Both genders have freedom of action and many female characters have active roles.

High Quality Graphics

Greek, Roman & Norse influences

The game was developed by Bethesda Game

Studios; a well known games company based in

America. It was produced by Bethesda

Softworks.

The game was many years in production and as a

result is highly detailed. Production started in

2008, after Oblivion was released.

The game had a budget of $85million, and as a

result was a commercial success. In December

2011 10 million copies hold sold making over

$600 million. By June 2012 that had doubled to

20 million sales and $1.3 billion.

Skyrim is the fifth game in the Elder Scrolls

series and follows Elder Scrolls: Oblivion.

The province of Skyrim is set on the

continent of Tamriel and is set 200 years

after the events of Oblivion.

The gameplay is set around the battle

between the native Norse Stormcloaks and

the invading Romanesque Imperial Legion.

The main dilemma of the game is that evil

dragons have returned to Skyrim and the

Dragon Born (you!) have to banish them.

The game was strategically marketed in order to

attract the largest amount of players.

The production company used various viral

methods in order to advertise the game. For

example, pages from the game manual were

released in order to incite excitement about the

game prior to the release date.

A hack version of the game found its way online

nine days prior to the release date and this may

have been an ingenious way to gauge an

audience response and encourage other people

to buy the game.

The target audience for Skyrim is highly diverse and encapsulates several demographics. As the game genre is fantasy, players are attracted to the game by its use of generic conventions such as dragons, magic and mythical creatures such as vampires.

More males than females play the game, however the proportion of females that play the game is higher than for most other games of this genre.

Many of the players fit into the 15-25 category, as game technology is popular amongst younger people. However, older adults do play this game and a larger proportion of them play this game than other games of this genre.

As the game is first person/ third person the

audience have the choice regarding how they

would like to be positioned. Some players

find playing in a certain POV more

comfortable than others.

The audience begin to feel like a part of the

storyline and become deeply enthralled in

the gameplay and narrative. It is easy to get

lost in the world of Skyrim.

First Person PoV

Magic & Fantasy Creatures

Skyrim has received much critical acclaim

since its release in 2011 and has received

many positive reviews.

Players enjoyed the art style change since

earlier games and particularly enjoyed the

new gameplay.

Skyrim received many 10/10 reviews from

various games companies.

Violence in video games has been a growing

concern in the 21st century.

With more children having easier access to

games, they may be affected by the

transmission of certain ideologies than other

users.

Skyrim contains fairly graphic violence and

also offers rewards for the murder of NPCs.

From a moral point of view, some people

may object to this as children are generally

seen as being highly impressionable.