If you’re a Skyrim and Elder Scrolls fan, 2013 was an exciting year to be a gamer. A lot of great things happened, including awesome new developments for the Elder Scrolls Online, as well as some great Skyrim video game releases. To celebrate this momentous year, the Skyrim Fansite takes a look back at some of the biggest stories that appeared in 2013 in our Elder Scrolls year in review.
Elder Scrolls Online Beta Signup
Elder Scrolls fans across the globe were invited to become beta testers for the upcoming Elder Scrolls Online. ZeniMax Online Studios, the game’s developer, not only encouraged players to signup for the beta, but they released a promotional video as well featuring the three ESO factions (Aldmeri Dominion, Daggerfall Covenant, and Ebonheart Pact). The video since went on to garner over 5 million hits on youtube.
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Elder Scrolls Online Featured At Pax East
Gamers were given the opportunity to play Elder Scrolls Online for the very first time at Pax East, one of the largest gaming events in North America. Grabrac, the Elder Scrolls Online media expert, was there and wrote extensive articles regarding ESO character creation, combat, and more. Grabrac provided a first hand account of ESO for those unable to go to Boston to try out the game for themselves. His respected work in the Elder Scrolls community is featured on TESOElite.com.
Bethesda Announces No More Skyrim DLC
It came as a shock, but Bethesda announced there would be no more Skyrim DLC expansions released for the game. The release of Dawnguard, Hearthfire, and Dragonborn would prove to be the only addons created for the world’s greatest fantasy RPG.
Skyrim Legendary Released
Shortly after revealing the end of Skyrim DLC, Bethesda announced the release of the Skyrim Legendary edition. This new collection packaged the latest version of Skyrim with all three DLC expansions, as well as a new Legendary skills feature, improved combat cameras, and the ability to fight on horseback. Legendary would prove to be the definitive version of Skyrim.
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Elder Scrolls Online Nominated For Most Wanted Game
The Elder Scrolls Online was nominated for a coveted Golden Joystick award under the “Most Wanted” game category for 2013. While there were several other nominees, ESO was the only MMORPG under consideration. Regrettably, during a Livestream broadcast, Witcher 3: Wild Hunt beat out ESO and was chosen as the most wanted game.
Skyrim Celebrates Its Second Birthday
Hard to believe, but Skyrim turned two-years old in 2013. Our Elder Scrolls year in review wouldn’t be complete without mentioning this special occasion. The Skyrim Fansite helped celebrate by sponsoring a Skyrim birthday giveaway on its website and facebook page. Happy birthday Skyrim!
Skyrim Minecraft Crossover
Bethesda announced that a new Skyrim-themed expansion pack would be available for Minecraft on the Xbox 360. The Skyrim Mash-Up pack would feature a unique Skyrim texture set and skins for the wildly popular Minecraft. With the announcement, Bethesda officially buried the hatchet with the developers of Minecraft and the brouhaha that occurred over copyright infringement of the Scrolls trademark.
The Elder Scrolls Anthology Released
The Elder Scrolls Anthology, a complete collection of all five classic Elder Scrolls games, was released for PC gamers. This collector’s set included Arena, Daggerfall, Morrowind, Oblivion, and Skyrim in an awesome looking boxed set, complete with CD-ROMs, maps, and more. This brilliant collection definitely makes our Elder Scrolls year in review list.
Elder Scrolls Online Subscription Fee Announced
What proved to be very controversial, ZeniMax Online Studios announced that a $14.99 per month subscription fee would be required to play the Elder Scrolls Online. Gamers either felt outrage and disappointment that a subscription fee was being charged, or felt that a fee was necessary to support the game and ensure that only serious players took part in the adventure. Free to Play vs. Pay to Play was all the talk after the news.
Elder Scrolls Online Release Date Revealed
After months of waiting, ZeniMax Online Studios finally revealed the release date for the Elder Scrolls Online. As it turns out, the MMORPG actually has two release dates. PC and Mac gamers will be able to play the game on 4/4/14, while PlayStation 4 and Xbox One gamers will have to wait a few more months until June, 2014 to get their game on.
Final Thoughts
As our Elder Scrolls year in review shows, 2013 was certainly an exciting time for fans of the ES game series. On a personal note, the year also marked a host of changes for the Skyrim Fansite, including a fresh new look, the addition of a Skyrim wallpaper section, and the management of a new Elder Scrolls Online sister site, the Shadowed Mare. It’s hard to believe that in a few short hours from now it’ll be 2014. We’re excited for the future of Elder Scrolls gaming, and we hope you are too!
Year later, and I’m still pissed that they haven’t concluded any of the Story Arcs introduced. Even the Dragons are still rampaging after Alduin’s defeat. How’s that a Conclusion? No High Moot, no continuance of the Thalmor’s influence, no progression of the civil war’s consequences.
While Dawnguard was an excellent DLC, Hearthfire wasn’t anything to consider worth mentioning, and Dragonborn was a lame side-story that had little to no business being part of the game. It didn’t even fit the IN GAME and TES Lore about how Dragonborn were created. Pathetic.
Great points, and I agree with you. When Bethesda first made it known that there would be no more Skyrim DLC I was shocked. After all the time, effort, and money spent to create Skyrim, I still feel they ended things too quickly. The storyline wasn’t wrapped up and we were left with too many loose ends. I get it that Bethesda wanted/needed to move on to another project, but come on man — it’s Skyrim!