Buying a Bethesda game at launch is a risky move.
The studio might be the best in the business at crafting expansive, evocative worlds and building deep, satisfying RPG experiences, but when it comes to gluing it all together its proved itself less than capable on more than a few occasions.
Since its release a few week's ago the developer and publisher's latest effort, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, has been besieged by news of various bugs and glitches.
The first reared its ugly, low-resolution head just two days after release, when it was discovered that installing the game onto the Xbox 360 hard drive triggered an error in which the game was unable to load up high-detail textures, instead offering Vaseline coated visuals.
There have also been some less malicious oddities that have given the game an endearing quality. Our favourites include rocketing into the sky when hit by a giant, flying horses, dragons flying backwards and circumventing the stigma attached to stealing by placing large pots over the heads of anyone nearby so they can't see you do it.
Commenting on Skyrim's performance failings Official PlayStation Magazine UK's editor Tim Clark said although he's "bonkers" about Skyrim, he didn't want the bug-ridden experience to sour the game.
Which got us thinking; how has the bugs, performance and gameplay quirks related, impacted your gameplay experience of Skryim? Are you restarting your PS3's regularly and putting up with muddy textures just so you can satiate your thirst for Skyrim? Or have you put the game aside and are planning to pick it up once it's stable?
Let us know in the comments below.
Comments
50 comments so far...
ste hicky on 4 Dec '11 said:
i had multiple quests broken in the first 12 hours, fed up with watching textures downscale and too many bleedin migraines with the screen tearing on 360.
i was also a bit disappointed in the ui, not a tech problem but still sloppy implementation imo.
haven't played it in nearly 3 weeks, i've got plenty of other gaming options open to me.
they'll sort it eventually and i'll play it then. not before.
griffa94 on 4 Dec '11 said:
They certainly aren't ruining my fun, in fact in some weird way they've prolonged it. Some quests on my first run through I couldn't complete due to bugs and glitches. Which made me create a new save once I was done and I'm now having just as much fun the second time through, attempting those quests I couldn't previously complete
I know it shouldn't be that way but the game is just too damn good for me to worry about these
Willypiggy on 4 Dec '11 said:
About 40 hours and the main story line finished, only issues I noticed were your typical Radiant AI bugs (people walking past talking to you when your trying to listen to a main char talk, someone walking in front of you as you swing your sword all that annoying stuff) and it's a great game (pc this is btw) the interface could of been better but it also could of been worse and the graphics aren't the best but with all the high res packs out there that isn't an issue any more.
radiocat on 4 Dec '11 said:
The only glitches that have bothered me so far on the PC are with the twitchy interface. Clicking on dialogue or inventory options sometimes doesn't do what you you were expecting. It's kind of annoying... but I am content that even if Bethesda don't fix this, the modding community will. I've already downloaded a few mods that fix some blocky facial textures, and there are people working on making some NPCs look a little friendlier by removing the perpetual scowls on everyone's faces. Why do Bethesda insist on making everyone so ugly in all their games?
flash501 on 4 Dec '11 said:
I posted this in the Skyrim thread in General Gaming but I'm gonna post it here too because it's a class glitch!
So I had a contract from the Dark Brotherhood to kill this random guy. He was in a tent out in the middle of nowhere. I snook up behind him, but for some reason I was being detected, even though there was no one else around and the guy I was about to murder had his back to me. I waited around for about a minute to see if I would become hidden but no luck, so I just said f**k it, and offed him. And of course, I was given an instant 1000 gold bounty.
Then, about 10 seconds later, an ice wolf that I had almost killed a few minutes ago but which had fled before I could finish him off, came out of nowhere and attacked me. One swift swing of me mace finished him off good, and then I got a message saying that the last remaining witness to the murder had been killed and that my bounty had been cleared.
A BLOODY ICE WOLF WAS A WITNESS TO THE MURDER!!!
Just as well I killed it before it could squeal on me!
sniper789 on 4 Dec '11 said:
Same here, it was fecking weird.
metallicorphan on 4 Dec '11 said:
past 150 hours now
I have at least half a dozen quests i can't finish because they are glitched,thankfully up to now they are only miscellaneous or side quests,none of the big 5(Main,Thieves,Companions,Mages or Dark Brotherhood),but i still have them in my journal and items related to those quests in my items that i can't drop
I had my first flying backwards Dragon today
and when i press the D-pad for favourites or the B button for the menu,it can sometimes get stuck and not work,which is pretty annoying,same thing with going through your skills and you are trying to press up to go along the skill path and it just wont move arrggh
and i think that's it,so it's certainly not ruining my fun ...i still have a lot of stuff to do however
T12AV15 on 4 Dec '11 said:
Really enjoying skyrim, this is the first elder scrolls game I have ever played and I absolutely love it. I was not into fantasy at all but I love this game. However the amount of bugs and glitches in the game is unreal. 2 separate missions from the brilliant college of winterhold missions have both glitched and completely prevented me from finishing them. This to me is not good enough and the game should not be allowed to be released if I cannot complete quests because of glitches. To me this is game breaking and has spoiled the experience of the game and the hard work I have put in to the point where I am now considering trading the game in for something else.
Flamestrike on 4 Dec '11 said:
Nope.
Apart from a bit of lag on first starting up I didn't experience any major issues. Since the patch it's run perfectly fine.
Bummer for those who have experienced glitches. Everyone who experienced issues should take it back to where they got it from and demand a refund as it's a faulty product. Retailers won't be happy and the last thing Bethesda want to do is have retailers order less stock of future products because of constant returns. Constant returns cost retailers money.
fitterthanmost on 4 Dec '11 said:
How was this game even released? Thank god I wait a long long while to buy my games, just bought arkham asylum, bio shock 2, red dead redemption dirt cheap amazon,,,great games, bargain, skyrim in about 10 mths time I think.
jezza... on 4 Dec '11 said:
Only found two glitches.
For a while I couldnt stop my character from running,a minor glitch because it was just the 3rd person animation affected not gameplay at all. But it was annoying until I got out of it.
And after doing the forsworn thing I can't go into Markarth without people trying to arrest me,I let them and they just draw their swords on me.
DAEDALUS79 on 4 Dec '11 said:
You criticise Skyrim and then openly admit to having not even bought it? um ok.
Anyway Ive played about 60+ hours on the ps3 version. The lag has been the main issue, but it isnt a game killer for me (even if it is worse now after the patch...). I have come across a few more bugs, I couldnt do a mission at a shrine near winterhold because the NPC simply would not interact with me, just kept saying the same intro line over and over and over again. Overall, I dont regret buying at launch, Skyrim is still my favourite game of the year, its kept me away from MW3 and I havent even started Uncharted yet because of it, bugs are a pain but thats just life.
The_KFD_Case on 4 Dec '11 said:
I've encountered numerous crashes-to-desktop on both my desktop and my laptop, however, a very quick reboot of Skyrim has things usually working nice and smooth for many hours on after the fact. There's been two partially bugged quests - one of them has only happened to one character and not to my other characters. The second bugged quest is apparently known to be bugged ("Blood On The Ice" in Windhelm), but not to the point that it can't be completed. So, am I soldiering on? You better believe it! In fact, what am I doing here???.....POOF!
hi0marc on 4 Dec '11 said:
I'll buy it when its fixed.
Or, request it for crimbo if the wait takes me to it.
Grapple on 4 Dec '11 said:
I had trouble with Blood on the Ice aswell but eventually finished it. No major glitches for me, only a couple of misc quests cant complete. Totally love the game. And New Vegas was the same for me , no game breaking glitches. I feel for those people that the game is broken for cos its an awesome game. It might be worth waiting for the GOTY version with all DLC included and bugs fixed.
solamon77 on 4 Dec '11 said:
I'm still enjoying the game. Luckily, I'm playing the game on the PC so if something starts bugging out I can usually fix it via the command console.
Jayseph on 4 Dec '11 said:
Gah! This is so damn frustrating. My girlfriend is getting me this for Christmas but I just can't decide which console to get it for. Really wanted it on PS3 as I fancied getting a platinum on it but these flaws show no signs of being resolved. I'm holding off making a decision but wish they just get it fixed!
HOLLSTARFTW on 4 Dec '11 said:
The main story quest is broken for me.
The quest Diplomatic Immunity requires you to pass your gear over to some elf.
You then meet Delphine who has arranged that you wear party clothes to enter the embassy.
You pass over the reminder of your equipment to her.
She then says good luck and then... the game freezes!
Latest save and autosave are meeting her beside the carriage.
Can't continue main story or get back my good gear!
Thanks Bethesda, you're the best
(playing on PS3 btw. Help needed!)
roll3rtoast3r on 4 Dec '11 said:
I used to be able to cope with glitches, but then i took an arrow to the knee.
.
hicken_t on 4 Dec '11 said:
The only glitch that is peeing me off, is that I cannot complete the companions quest line, I get to a certain point and nowt, no quest activated!
Other than that, the best glitches I've came across in my travels was a floating mammoth near Whiterun. A bloke who must of been asexual, as he performed mitosis in front of me (Think his name was Larias he lives next to the stables in Whiterun), and they say the same thing at the same time! Amazing.
Then the other being the Markarth guard glitch (Those who came across it will know what I mean). After being asked to go to jail, I refused, then peceded to flee the city. Once outside there was about 20 guards so used a specific shout to get some
Found a workaround for that glitch eventually, as my stash house was in Markarth (link has a spoiler for some!):
http://uk.gamespot.com/the-elder-scrolls-v-skyrim/forum/messages/platform/xbox360?topic_id=m-1-61095995&pid=615803
hicken_t on 4 Dec '11 said:
Check the link on my previous post, it worked for me.
Sammy_bham on 4 Dec '11 said:
125 hours in
still no glitches, no crashes and no lag for me (ps3.)
decided to carry on with main story now, after ive explored the area around riften now. still not even visited solitude, winterhold, markarth, etc.
loving the game immensley.
johimself on 4 Dec '11 said:
Not totally ruining. I have been fairly lucky with glitches in quests and stuff. My only real issue has been since the most recent patch I have had a lot of crashes to desktop, mainly around the Whiterun area and especially when fast travelling to Whiterun. Nothing major though really. Playing on PC so it looks stunning by way of compensation.
Typheous on 4 Dec '11 said:
I have been and still am planning on getting Skyrim. I would have already bought it by now, but I am waiting for the main lot of glitches and bugs with quests etc to get sorted before I buy it. By then it will also be cheaper so its a win win situation as far as I can see
Mini-Nev on 4 Dec '11 said:
I've put Skyrim on the back-burner becuase of all the 5-6 MB saving bug. I'm playing through Assassins Creed Revelations and doing my 3rd season on FIFA 12. When the saving bug is fixed I will return to skyrim. I also want to wait to christmas break because I have only about an hour of gaming time a night and I hate palying Skyrim in short bursts. I want to be able to sit down and get lost ni the world for 4 fours and until Christmas break I don't have the time to do this. Hopefully saving bug will be fixed within the next 3 weeks so when I get off for christmas I can sit down and lose myself in Skyrim.
killerkeiron123 on 4 Dec '11 said:
I haven't came across anything to bad in my 21 hours gametime so far, ive installed it on my 360 and it looks better IMO then not installed. The only things ive came across what are a bit annoying is sometimes i will be talking to NPC then they just disappear then reappear and i will have to start the conversation again but TBH apart from that its fine, no worser then Fallout 3. I just recommend having mutiple saves and saving very often just in case something bad does happen.
Grapple on 5 Dec '11 said:
Me too, love Skyrim,best game of all time, havn't even explored all the world.
TheLastDodo on 5 Dec '11 said:
Yes it has ruined my fun because it's not being in my ps3 since the day I bought it and I'm debating whether it's worth keeping in the faint hope they'll fix the slowdown issue.
It's absolutely unacceptable but Bethesda will get away with it because Skyrim is the current internet darling.
After this, Fallout 3, Brink and Rage, it's pretty evident Bethesda don't give a s**t about quality control or testing their products before releasing them to the public so why should I ever hand over my money to them again?
No other industry in the world could get away with this kind of crap.
Imaduck on 5 Dec '11 said:
Personaly, I'm playing New Vegas which is now stable (ish) while they stabilise Skyrim
Luckee on 5 Dec '11 said:
The worst glitch I'm having is that I just married Njada Stonearm and on our honey moon night she had a Sky Forge Steel chastity belt on. How the heck do you get that thing off?
theideal on 5 Dec '11 said:
I've had backwards flying dragons, unlimited magic, fallen through the geometry and lots of other s**t, yet am still loving it so far.
rkpaterson on 5 Dec '11 said:
I have the PS3 version. I'm nearly 70 hours in. I've had one crash and a bit of judder in Whiterun. Apart from that it's run beautifully. I Love it! Amazing game that is all I hoped it would be!
WonkoTheShit on 5 Dec '11 said:
Complaining about Skyrim glitches is like complaining that your Ferrari has got a scratch on the inside of the gloove compartment.
I love the game. I've been playing it for 200+ hours and have so far ignored the main quest. Well, not totally. I learned how to shout properly, but since then, I've just been exploring.
Utterly, utterly, brilliant. It cannot be compared to the likes of Dragon Age, Dragon Age 2 etc. This game gives you a world to interact with. If we were to wait for a bug-free edition then Bethesda would go bust before the game ever got released. Its a huge game and impossible to iron out every bug.
When people say they won't play it until blah de blah, its really their loss. This game is awesome.
kirankara on 5 Dec '11 said:
Took your advice and returned for refund, and will pick up later on when fixed and cheaper. Getting fed up of games being released as a bit of mess. Fifa 12 still messy as hell online months after release
WHERESMYMONKEY on 5 Dec '11 said:
I must be lucky or i just don't notice these things as i haven't had any problems playing skyrim.
Fallout 3 now thats another matter, stupid final mission glitching and robbing me of my achievement. grrr arrr,
richardr on 5 Dec '11 said:
To be honest I fully sympathize with any PS3 owners, as they've been completely done over. However I'm having a very happy gaming experience on my Xbox. The game is all I wanted it to be and more.
I've had one freeze which was an easy reboot and minimal loss, but to be fair I've had that on other games too. And I've had one broken quest, which I imagine will get fixed fairly soon.
Some of the glitches are fun and I haven't seen anything to warrant any anger at Bethesda, but I have friends who own PS3's and frankly it's shocking at how bad it is.
lonewolf2002 on 5 Dec '11 said:
Luckily as I am playing on the PC most of the broken quests can be fixed with a command, getting annoyed with dragons just flying randomly around the map instead of fighting, was ok until latest patch. On the humerous side had a dead Hagraven flying around the map until she got stuck on a wall spiderman style. Still loving the game but they really need to be careful with future patches as making the game worse instead of better will do them no favours.
lonewolf2002 on 5 Dec '11 said:
You maybe lucky as I had no issues in either Oblivion or Fallout 3 where as loads did, having some issues in Skyrim but considering the scope of the game it is understandable, but releasing a patch that makes the game worse is not.
diaryofaledger on 5 Dec '11 said:
I wouldn't say my fun has been completely ruined on PS3, for the most part the framerate issue hasn't crippled the game. The Companions quest line has, however, completely glitched out on me which is a real shame: I'm stuck being a werewolf it would seem until they patch it, not one of them will give me a new quest and the Silverhand's haven't even attacked yet. The backwards flying dragon was fun enough until one of them was quest related (Blades), it wouldn't land or let me and my team kill it. It's disappointing that there are so many problems with a game that, all in all, been a joy to play, but I guess there were so many many ways to play it that not every eventuality could have been spotted.
Fingers crossed the promised updates will resolve the issues. I'm off to kill someone at their wedding.
Axemaniac88 on 5 Dec '11 said:
Surprisingly I've encountered very few glitches. Yes, I've seen the "get hit by a giant" one along with flying mammoths and even the odd Imperial soldier but nothing else aside from that. Fallout New Vegas on the other hand, is a different story
gooner77 on 5 Dec '11 said:
same thing happened to me only it was mud crabs. i managed to get them before they could scuttle off sideways to alert the guards by morse code (presumably)
I have 3 main glitches on my current playthrough.
i'm permanently stuck on 2/3 than of morthal quests with no options to do any more missions anywhere
The stats still have me listed as a werewolf even though I've been cured (was cured on day 43 but i've been a werewolf for 72 days apparently)
I can't do any more companions missions as Vilkas was killed during an active quest and i can't do any missions for the other leaders as they say i already have an active mission
its annoying that this game has not been more rigorously tested but i can cope
Nazsha on 6 Dec '11 said:
Well, 80 hours in, the 1.2 patch got in. My laptop was running the game fine at the highest graphics, but with 1.2 came almost 3x longer load times and a wierd one-second lag every 2-3 seconds, making it unplayable. I deleted it and reinstalled it, thinking it might help. Now, when I load my game, instead of a random object's 3D model, I see a big white "!" in a red balloon, and when it is done loading, it just crashes.
Bethsoft, screw you. I paid 60$ for a game that seems to be barely as polished as Minecraft.
zoltri on 7 Dec '11 said:
YESSSSSSSSSSSSS .... if it wasnt bad enough that i had to restart after my first character was stuck in sneak mode after i tried to mine some ore, i now m stuck with not being able to navigate through any of my items my favorite list or anything u use to hit tab ... i can go into them see them but can go through them with my arrow keys ... this has only been a problem since the 1.2 patch update and this was bethsoft response to my lovely problem is uninstall the game an restart on a fresh slate arghhh seriously thinking about going back to play wow again
Helyx on 7 Dec '11 said:
I am more frustrated when I have finished certain Dungeon levels, or a difficult boss fight, just to have it get stuck when I bring up the options screen (or when I am trying to save that particular game moment). So I re-boot, and have to do the fight - again; sometimes several times because it keeps crashing.
Funny sides are - Dragons that fly backwards? One was stuck in a very funny loop, I couldn't stop laughing because it was so bizarre. Then the Giants get stuck, don't fight back, just stand there and die - as well as several other bears/beasts/ogres?
Then when I was trying to retrieve a shout in the training on the Highest peak in Skyrim, the dragon language just would not appear in the snow. I had to go - in and out of the monastery several times till finally the program recognized what part of the story was happening, then the shout appear. Killed the whole - excitement.
I also have issues of being in a fight, and my weapons will all the sudden change. It's not that I marked these weapons, nor did the other character throw a spell to make them change. So I have to be quick to save my health, reload the weapons/magic and then continue the fight.
I have also lost awesome loot because of the glitches when I have had the dosh to pay for them. When the system crashes in the middle of me trying to buy from a shop, then when it's re-booted other items come up. I have also tried to re-boot even that section manually, but to no avail, the awesome goods are just gone, and my character just ends up not buying anything at all.
It is odd to walk through the creatures (Invisible man - whoa - who did your dental work Mr. Bear?), Do a jig on the mountainside with my hands up in the air *hoping that the whole program will not crash again, then worry if the saved data is not corrupted. I keep getting a PS3 Message that it has to check the system since it was not closed correctly, and could take over 2 hours to restore. Lucky enough, I have not had to wait. It just restores if I turn PS3 off.
If I was playing SKYRIM for a serious completion mode - I would be more upset. I just chose to just enjoy it for what it is for the character I did load, despite all the glitches, explore the SKYRIM world, and see where I will get. I will end up reloading the whole program again on a new PS3 System with more data space, also with Oblivion shortly - then get into more serious game play.
I am relieved I don't have the XBox 360 Glitches with SKYRIM. I have not had a flat image, or shade tones go off - except when I have tried to swim in the water - a glitch I hope they correct since they did a full detailed design of underwater surface that is even better than Oblivion.
I am still very happy with the game, and the fact I bought it on the release date was never considered a risk - I was just too excited about it. SKYRIM was, and will always be an awesome memory to get the Collector's Edition on release date - opening it was like an early Christmas x12 with rocket boosters.
I don't mind Bethesda working hard to correct the glitches because I know they will come through for us. They are reliable. I just think in my mind I am playing a BETA version at the moment - till all the updates come in. I look forward to the surprise new content uploads that will come out for this game, because there are so many teasers about what is going to become available, if you really pay attention to all the clues, books, and character remarks.
So what if a few Dragons need driving lessons- but there is no chuck a brick at them option which would be a great update patch. IF a character/monster/demon/pour soul is just virtually stuck - throw a magic brick at them. hehehe!
Yeah, I also have had Bounty ISSUES - they just appear! That comment about the animal as witness does help explain quite a bit to me now.
stivo79 on 8 Dec '11 said:
There have been few glitches that have ruined my fun. Most just make me laugh. Like going through the "we warned you to not ask so many questions" or whatever at the temple of Talos......twice, and having the one "important" character(never caught his name, but he can't be killed) of the 3 or 4 there still chasing me down even after the break out with the foresworn(all at markarth). there's one, though that ticks me off at the college of winterhold. i had 2 barrels, one i stored all my misc. items in(other than soul gems, but a whole bunch of ingots and ores and about 20 each of dragon bones and scales), the other with all my ingredients, including deathbell nightshade and nirnroot(all of which i was collecting for a quest). well, last night i go to drop some items off, and the misc barrel only had 2 of the dragon claw key things. thats it. the other? 3 carrots. very p%$$#&. my place....in real life....got robbed about 4 months ago, and i don't know which makes me madder. ok, my real place. had a 47 in lg tv stolen. anyways, i refrained from killing all the mages. dunno why. oh, another funny one. i put the 2 color dibella statue on the dresser in the same room at the college and it kept showing up outside my room when ide come back. then a few days later it was gone. later when i was just messing around i found it upstairs. everytime ide put it back, and when ide return i could here the hollow metal sound of it hitting the floor upstairs. i also think it's funny when the mastodons drop from the sky when the area loads. love this game.
PlanesOutcast on 18 Dec '11 said:
It's not glitches, it's how for the second time Bethesda have disrespected thief/archer characters! Firstly no decent arrows in merchants, secondly you cannot enchant arrows, so no fire arrows etc, just mostly useless poisons!
Also, what's the point have the perk for 75% damage using a dagger from behind when bandits and Necromancers, etc all
hang around sitting at tables etc in wide open WELL LIT areas!
They way thief type characters get dissed by Bethesda, I wouldn't be surprised if the bow goes the way of the spear and sneak the way of intelligence!
jarroldharrell on 28 Dec '11 said:
I'm dissapointed in Skyrim. I can not finish the Thieves Guild, Companion Guild, or Main Quest line, because of glitches in the quest lines. And no matter how many times I retry the quests, they won't work. For example....in the Trinity Restored quest, Karliah won't return to open the gate, leaving that quest impossible to complete. In the Totem of Hircine quests, the game will not allow me to enter Hermae's Shame to retrieve the totem. In Unending Season of the main quest, the game is completely stuck. When I go to Ulfric to attend the summit, he will not even talk to me. So the main quest line is impossible to complete!!! What a shame for such a massive game. It seems like Bethesda needs to decrease the content in the game to control the glitches
lonewolf2002 on 28 Dec '11 said:
There is a merchant that sells Daedra Arrows, although I have not played this since before Xmas I have totally forgotten the location. As for fire arrows etc then the actual bow would be enchanted not the arrows so yes you can have fire arrows, along with a host of other enchantments.
wmt9er on 17 Jan '12 said:
truthfully the sale of this item in its current state is criminal as far as I am concerned. Yeah... i can play it... kinda... I can kinda do most things... mostly. I mean it really should be an embarrassment to Bethesda. How could they release something so horribly glitchy, with nearly unplayable lag? No joke, i want my money back. 85 hours into the game(lvl 41)... quests have my PS3 crashing, lag is so bad i can't move at all, game randomly crashes... just whenever. THIS IS RIDICULOUS..
My point is how could they release a game where there is a glitch, of some sort, involved in everything that I do. Weapons not on racks, armor not on racks, NPC wont clear quest after it was completed (liberation of haafingar).... and that is nothing compared to the lag making the game unplayable that i mentioned earlier.
I buy these to complete EVERYTHING... if they sold it counting on people doing 60% then F YOU bethesda.
I feel robbed and there isn't a damn thing i can do about it. messed up...
bbderek on 21 Jan '12 said:
So much potential. So disappointing. Too many other great games out there and too little time to spend it doing QA for Bethesda. Moving on.