Skyrim Designer Defends Scrapping Class Choice

[Shade184]

Didn't the original Fable also give you a class based on how you played it? Fucking Spellwarrior.

Oh god, the motherfucking Spellwarrior. -_-

I'm not sure, but right now I'm thinking that this one doesn't even call you a class, just lets you do your own thing. Which would be sweet.

 

[VectorZero]

Actually, that only happened in Morrowind. In Oblivion, the smart thing to do was to fill all of your Major skill slots with crap you NEVER planned to use, that way you wouldn't level up as fast (there was no point to leveling up since everything was scaled to your level anyway; only the enemies would outgrow your rate of power after a time).

Oh, christ, this. No game should punish players for playing according to the rules the developers set, especially when they're so easily broken.

 

[Sennz0r]

Ohh I don´t really know... It sounds good and quite original, but I can remember the opening to Oblivion involved a lot of fighting. The first time I see a shield and am short of any real armour I don´t hesitate picking that up. Then I find a key to a door and why would I pick that door if there´s a key available. Also your sneak sucks at the beginning so it´s hardly of use, and the healing spell is used constantly.

What I´m trying to say is that on most of my runs the man suggested I be a fighter/healer or something similar, when I would much rather be a sneaky bastard. I did get that suggestion once or twice, but it required me to play out the intro in such a predetermined way that felt unnatural. I shouldn't have to try to play the intro a certain way to get the class that I want, but seeing as Oblivion's was kind of limiting you in your problem solving possibilities it kind of forced you to (not that it mattered, you could pick every class you wanted regardless of what the man suggested, but if Skyrim doesn't allow this, I hope they have a good intro with problems that can be solved in many different ways, and that these different ways are clear, too.

 

[Wtd]

I like this decision i never liked being strapped into one choice that i cant change later on in an rpg.

We really need to see a new trailer for skyrim.

 

[Optimystic]

Oh him. Yeah i just make my own class as well. An within about 10 minutes you are sucked back in the game again, especially that first moment you exit the sewer and enter the game world. I dont think that first guy even ruins the immersion of the game at all. If anything loading screens when you enter buildings and caves ruin immersion more.

Oh I'm not saying he ruins the experience or anything... but he doesn't add to it either. Having an NPC ask me if I am the wrong class is irritating, but not a dealbreaker. I just don't see what benefit it would have even if he had gotten it right.

ESPECIALLY not in Oblivion, where the very last skills you want as major are the ones your class would be known for. "You're a rogue! you must have Sneak as a Major!" Three dungeons later I've leveled up 5 times and now my ass is getting kicked by goblins.

 

[DustyDrB]

It's not much of a change, though I'm sure some will decry this is simplification and the scrapping of a good system. But classes were just superficial in Oblivion. You made a custom class if you were smart, and no one referred to you as as warrior, mage, or rogue (an exception to any sort of class being mentioned in-game: "You wear the shadows well, fellow thief"). So in this regard, classes were already non-existant. There were no class-specific talents (like in Dragon Age). All that matters is where you allocate your points. And by the end of the game, you're a warrior, rogue, and mage no matter what.

Well, I think that your leveling your major skills leveled you up so indeed choosing your skills did play an important role in the game.

It did, at least early in the game (by the end you're the ultimate jack-of-all-trades). When I think of classes, I think of different playstyles (again, think of the skills in Dragon Age) that go with them. In Oblivion, you could mix and match your skills so much that referring to your character as a certain class wasn't really informative.

So yes, point allocation and picking major skills is important. But class is kind of a meaningless term in the game. It sounds like you'll still be able to specialize your character in Skyrim however you like, so nothing is really lost except for a title.

 

[GonzoGamer]

Or mod the crap out of if you need it that much.

Still back to topic I think this could be interesting. Certainly sounds more fun. Personally I've always felt this game needed some lock on targeting or something. Attack by cross-hairs with a sword is downright inaccurate at times, not to mention frustrating. Also some other way of casting magic but I'm getting off topic again.

If I get this game, I?m definitely getting it for the pc, just to mod it; that and I?m not convinced they can bring a quality product to the ps3.
I never had much trouble with melee but the archery and range spells definitely need a vats type system. Some of those spells are really slow.
I always thought they should call it FATS: Fairy Assisted Targeting System.

 

[fingerbang143]

I can't really make up my mind. In theory it's great but then again I might start getting a hankering to do all sorts of shit and end up with an abortion of a character, part of oblivion's fun was the "being something" but we'll see I guess.

 

[GloatingSwine]

Class Choice? I've been playing a Munchkin since Daggerfall, and I doubt I'll stop for Skyrim.

 

[mythicdawn12]

I don't think this means you can just go do anything. It means if you start out playing sneaky assassin type, you'll get better at it and level up as that. If you switch to heavy fighter type later on, you'll get your shit kicked in. Basically you will level up as the class you want to play without actually being called that class. If you play the game sneak attacking people for the first ten hours with a knife, you'll encounter difficulty picking up a claymore. That's just what I'm getting from this.

 

[Ephixa]

The idea is very good, very good, finally best system to see own mistakes and to see what need to be picked... At least i know what i will choose.