Since the initial launch of The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim in 2011, the game has been re-released multiple times. The first major re-release came in 2016 with the game's fifth anniversary in the form of The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim - Special Edition, which updated the graphics for modern platforms and bundled the base game together with its post-launch expansions. A year later, Bethesda re-released Skyrim yet again, but this time as a VR game.
The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim VR first debuted on PlayStation VR but has since made its way to other virtual reality platforms. As its name promises, Skyrim VR takes the Skyrim experience and translates it to virtual reality, allowing players to experience all of the quests and content from the base game in VR form. The ability to play Skyrim in VR is enough to convince many fans of the game to try it out, but one viral video is showing an unexpected reason why this version has a leg up over other versions of the game.
A viral video originating from social media app TikTok shows some Skyrim VR gameplay. In the video, the person playing the game reaches their hand up and slaps the signs hanging off poles in various towns across the Skyrim province. This action isn't possible in the other versions of the game, and while it's hyperbole to say it's a truly important advantage in the VR version, it does illustrate how Skyrim VR does offer a different kind of experience.
Anyone interested in playing Skyrim VR for themselves have multiple ways to do so. As previously mentioned, Skyrim VR is available on PlayStation VR, and it's also playable on HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, and Windows Mixed Reality headsets. Those who want a more traditional Skyrim gaming experience have plenty of options available to them as well, with the game readily available to play on all modern platforms. There's even a Skyrim Switch port, so fans can take the beloved open world RPG on the go.
Playing Skyrim VR is definitely one of the more unique ways to experience Bethesda's groundbreaking game, but there's an even weirder way to play it. What initially started out as a joke became a legitimate re-release when Bethesda released Skyrim for Amazon Alexa. This version essentially turns Skyrim into a text-based adventure game that players control with voice commands.
2021 marks the 10th anniversary of Skyrim, and so it will be interesting to see if Bethesda has any big plans for the game up its sleeve. Yet another Skyrim remaster would likely be met with mockery, but on the other hand, it would give fans of the franchise something to do while they settle in for the long wait for Elder Scrolls 6 that they have ahead of them.
Skyrim VR is out now for HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, PlayStation VR, and Windows Mixed Reality headsets.