It's no secret that Skyrim is an old game in 2021 with an intro sequence many gamers have memorized by heart. The story of Skyrim is a bit more on-rails than other Elder Scrolls games from the very beginning, but that all changes with one simple (and extremely popular) addon: Alternate Start - Live Another Life.
Alternate Start has been a mainstay of many Skyrim modders' load orders since its release. Instead of beginning in the cart ride to Helgen, players can wake up in a prison cell in the middle of nowhere, ready to launch their adventure in any direction without having to suffer through Helgen and the dragon attack. And best of all, it's available on consoles too.
What Is The Alternate Start Mod?
Alternate Start does what it says on the tin – after installing, every new Skyrim save file will begin directly at the character creation screen. After customizing and naming a character, players find themselves in a prison (in classic Elder Scrolls fashion) with nothing but a Statue of Mara, a bed, and some ragged furniture. By talking to the Statue of Mara players can customize where their character starts as well as some other basic RPG elements like your character's backstory, which affects things like starting gold, equipment, and more.
Alternate Start effectively gets rid of the entire traditional Skyrim opening by giving players the choice to spawn almost anywhere else in the world including player-owned homes, cities, guilds, strongholds, caravans, or a totally random location. The main quest isn't completely gone, though, as discovering Helgen later on will initiate the quest to warn the Jarl of Whiterun of the Dragon attack. It's a very lightweight mod that fundamentally changes how a player experiences Skyrim from the very start, and it's a must-have for players who like to play multiple characters.
How To Install Alternate Start
Alternate Start is a very convenient mod to install as it is listed in Bethesda's in-game modding platform for Skyrim. When it comes to how to install the Alternate Start mod this way, it's literally as simple as opening Skyrim, navigating to "Mods" in the main menu, and finding Alternate Start in the listings. Download it to your device and ensure it's enabled and in your load order before starting a new game. It's also available through the Nexus Mod Manager, which requires players to download the Alternate Start addon through the manager instead of an internet browser.
To install it manually as a PC user download the mod files via the Skyrim Nexus or other mod-hosting websites. Then, drop the individual files listed in that zip folder into your Skyrim/Data folder (usually located in Steam/Steamapps/Common). Make sure the .esp files are enabled on launch, and you should be good to go! As always, ensure that the version of the mod you download from any source matches your game's version – Anniversary Edition players, for example, have reported game-breaking glitches when trying to load outdated mods.
Skyrim Special Edition is available for Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4 and 5, and Xbox One and Series X|S