PAX Aus - Hands on with Skyrim for Switch

When Nintendo first debuted the Switch, just over a year ago, a lot of people were excited and disappointed at the inclusion of Skyrim on the platform, even though it was never officially confirmed until January. At PAX Australia, Bethesda and Nintendo teamed up to let players experience the game and experience I did.

Starting out near the small village of Riverwood, not long after the dragon attack and the subsequent fleeing of lives, the game played out the same as I recall. After getting some help from the local blacksmith, my adventures sent me towards Whiterun to inform the Jarl of the Dragons and to send aid back to Riverwood. Of course, being a Skyrim game, I went completely off book for it and did my own thing.

Moving around the world was smooth, without any jankyness that you might expect from a portable version of Skyrim, the controls worked well also, though I did not try any motion options. It took me a few moments to readjust to the options, as the letters still do what they did on PC and Xbox, ie B to open the menu and A for interacting with things, seeing as the Switch has those two buttons in the opposite positions, I was constantly opening the menu when I was trying to interact with a door or item.

Exploring the world still felt great though, as I approached Whiterun, I encountered a band of mercenary’s who were taking down a giant in the middle of a farm, something I knew was that I should not get involved, but being myself, I had to. So, I threw myself into the fight, with a character I did not create, only to have my duel wielded flames, take down the giant, but also attack the mercs, so it was time for a tactical retreat. The problem was they were relentless and my lack of skills, I could not outrun them and thanks to a lack of magic, I could not fight, so I eventually fell in battle.

While I probably only played 15 minutes of the game, it is still Skyrim and I for one am looking forward to more time in that world. I spent nearly 150 hours in the game on Xbox 360 and only a fraction of that on the Xbox One release, but I can see myself on Switch losing just as much time combined, with ease.