The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition

For the original game, see The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.

For the Alexa game, see The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Very Special Edition.

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition is a 2016 remastered version of the 2011 game The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, the fifth installment of The Elder Scrolls series. It was released for PC, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4 on October 28th, 2016.^[1] It was also later released for the Nintendo Switch on November 17th, 2017.

Steam users who already owned all of the game's DLC or owned the Legendary Edition received a free digital copy of the remaster.^[3] Like the Legendary Edition, the Special Edition comes with the three DLCs Dawnguard, Hearthfire, and Dragonborn.^[4]

Upgrades

Graphical enhancements

Several graphical features of Skyrim were enhanced with the Special Edition, as follows:^[5]

Remastered art and effects
Volumetric lighting (“God Rays”)
Dynamic Depth of Field
Screen-space reflections
New snow and water shaders

The Special Edition also offers native 4K support for both PC and the PS4 Pro.^[6]

Console mods

In September 2016, Bethesda announced that Sony had blocked user-created mods from coming to the PS4 version of the game.^[7] However, in October 2016, they stated that Sony had rescinded their block and would allow the usage of player-made mods in the game, and explained the process by which players could create mods on console:^[6]

Mods on PlayStation 4 will allow you to modify and create your own content by using our Creation Kit available here. You will not be able to upload external assets with your PlayStation 4 mods, but you will be able to use any assets that come with the game, as most mods do. By creating a Bethesda.net account, you’ll be able to browse and try mods right from within the game.^[6]

Other improvements

Bethesda employee Matt Grandstaff stated on Twitter that the Special Edition would be 64-bit.^[8] The Special Edition is also the first game in the series to offer use of the Creation Club to purchase mods licensed by Bethesda.^[9]

Reception

The Special Edition did indeed offer slight graphical improvements over the original game, as demonstrated by PC Gamer.^[10] As of October 29th, 2016, the game has a 60% ("Mixed") rating on Steam. Many reviewers stated that the game did not perform well on their systems.^[11]

On October 28th, 2016, a post on /r/skyrimmods on reddit indicated that the Special Edition's audio quality was noticeably worse than in the original.^[12] Several online gaming journals also cited this post in articles of their own.^[13]^[14] Bethesda has since confirmed that they are looking to fix this issue by the following week.^[15]

System requirements

The following are the official system requirements for the Skyrim – Special Edition:^[5]

Minimum

Windows 7/8.1/10 (64-bit Version)
Intel i5-750/AMD Phenom II X4-945.
8GB of ram.
12 GB free HDD space
NVIDIA GTX 470 1GB /AMD HD 7870 2GB

Console storage needs

PS4

20 GB (North America)
33 GB (Europe)

Xbox One

17 GB (North America)
25 GB (Europe)

Videos

Skyrim Special Edition – Gameplay Trailer 2

Skyrim Switch – Official E3 Trailer

The Elder Scrolls V Skyrim – PlayStation VR E3 Trailer

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