5 of the best things to do in Skyrim

Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim – leave the beaten path

Skyrim’s world is a massive 16 square miles of mountain ranges, great plains, dense wilderness, crumbling ruins, all available for you to saddle up and explore at your leisure. Expect to run into a few fluffy creatures here and there – like the above giant mammoths – all of which you can hunt or run away from, depending on your bravery. Oh, and keep an eye out for those dragons…

Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim – fight a dragon

Being a Dragonborn, you have the soul of a dragon residing within you – an attribute that will come in very handy for when you’re spontaneously attacked by these magnificent death-bringers on wings. Dragon battles are randomly simulated and can occur at any time, resulting in epic clashes of steel, magic, fire and razor sharp talons. Emerge victorious and you can absorb the slain beast’s soul, giving you new dragon shout powers which can be used to dish out destruction in later battles.

Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim – quest… forever

That’s right – forever. Skyrim is a game that can never be completed, thanks to a ground-breaking Radiant quest system which randomly generates new quests, tasks and goals depending on your progress in the game. Whether it’s rescuing an innkeeper’s son from a monster filled cave (that’s some bad parenting right there), or assassinating a target on behalf of the Dark Brotherhood, you’ll never quite be able to say you’ve completed the game. Ever.

Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim – become a vampire

Like its predecessor Oblivion, Skyrim lets you become a vampire – so you can once again show those sissy Twilighters what a real neck-biting badass is capable of. Sure, sunlight will hurt you and people will cross the street after one glance at your terrifyingly gaunt face. But the gains in strength and other abilities – including some devious blood sucking – are worth it. Probably. As for taking a bite out of a raging dragon? We’ll get back to you on that one.

Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim – dual-wielding destruction

Fact: the only thing happier than a warrior with one gigantic sword is a warrior with two gigantic swords. Dual-wielding all manner of weapons in Skyrim will result in devastating attacks, dealing out massive damage while seriously boosting your character’s cool factor. Magic hasn’t been left out either – having the same spell assigned to each hand results in a powerful combined rush of magic that will leave enemies smouldering and you feeling like Harry Potter on steroids.

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