Since its release back in 2011, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim has become synonymous to modern fantasy roleplaying video games. Fans of both the fantasy gaming genre and Bethesda games agree that Skyrim changed the landscape, helping to bring RPGs to the modern mainstream audience. And with the game being over 10 years old, it has cemented its place in gaming history. But what does Skyrim on GOG deliver compared to its previous releases on other platforms? Read on for more.
GOG (formerly Good Old Games) is celebrating its 14th anniversary with special releases and discounts. But aside from the usual fare, this 2022 the platform is bringing the legendary The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim to its vast library.
Celebrate GOG’s Anniversary with deals, surprises & more 👉 https://t.co/bY7d0TS7rW 🎂 🎁 Masters of Magic Classic is FREE for the next 72h🐲 The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim SE (–67%) is out DRM-free! Grab a slice of cake & enjoy 💜 pic.twitter.com/rVKdhktdrT — GOG.COM (@GOGcom) September 29, 2022 GOG has had Bethesda games as part of its game library for a number of years. These include the Fallout franchise and The Elder Scrolls. The latest entries from both franchises were Fallout: New Vegas (2010) and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (2006), respectively. But while Skyrim has been long-requested by many fans on GOG’s wishlist forums, most assumed it would never happen. Part of this doubt comes from the fact that GOG releases games DRM-Free. DRM (Digital Rights Management) technology is generally the standard for most modern games. This is used as a form of protection to prevent misuse copyrighted and proprietary products, particularly electronic goods like apps and games online. But DRM also often requires using these products only while the user is online. Platforms like Steam and Epic Games apply DRM more often than not. But this also causes some frustrations with costumers, particularly when they are unable to play games offline or when technical issues with the platforms prevent them from doing so. On the other hand, GOG has a DRM-Free policy as its general standard for the digital goods available on their platform. Aside from not requiring being always online, GOG takes additional steps to ensure their games work on most modern machines and have separate offline installers available. GOG makes the release of Skyrim DRM-Free extra special by timing it with the platform’s 14-year celebrations. As the press release on GOG.com reads: During the period of the anniversary sale, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim will be available at big discounts. The Special Edition version will have a 67% discount ($13.19) and the Anniversary Edition will be at 50% ($24.99). After the duration, they will be priced at $39.99 and $49.99, respectively. Now it is time to celebrate the 14 years of these efforts – by releasing one of the most anticipated games by the community – The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, and launching the Anniversary event full of great deals and other surprises. While the Special Edition has the full game, the Anniversary Edition has additional functionality and customization options, including the Creation Club feature: Skyrim is one of the most popular games in the modding community. According to the GOG Skyrim store pages, these versions of the game are compatible with Nexus Mods Vortex (v1.6.12 and up), compatible with the SKSE (Skyrim Script Extender) mods and can disable game version rollback and automatic updates. While GOG has released more recent games, particularly indie productions and those produced by CD Projekt Red (Cyberpunk 2077), the addition of Skyrim was still a surprise. Could this mean more big franchises coming to the platform in the future? Blizzard’s Diablo 1 (including the expansion Hellfire) and Warcraft 1 and 2 are already in the library. Perhaps Diablo 2 or Warcraft 3 are now within reach? And what about Fallout 4 (2015) also from Bethesda? Perhaps in a few more years. In the meantime, gamers can grab a free giveaway, Master of Magic, (until October 2nd, 10 PM UTC) and check out discounted games during GOG’s 14th anniversary which runs to October 9, 2022.
