39 replies to this topic

[SiNNeR]

or is that dilemmi? (apparently not, it's dilemmas or dilemmata - google)

 

so on my latest evil playthrough I ran into a quest I'd thusfar only done on my good characters, that being In My Time Of Need. so I figure I'll side with the obviously evil Alik'r agents this time only... wait... so which is the evil option again? I love this quest because it turns out not to be so simple after all. siding with, or even just looking into the Alik'r reveals their side of the story is dramatically different from hers and actually kind of makes more sense. Thalmor using Alik'r mercenaries instead of their own agents who can opperate with Imperial support? Alik'r working for Thalmor? suddenly Saadia's story seems full of holes, but then again the Alik'r don't really offer any proof either...

 

so as much as a good moral choice can be, things are always more complicated (ie: fun) when the answer's not so obvious. so what other not-so-obvious choices are there in Skyrim that I may have missed or that you enjoyed. or maybe that you didn't understand and couldn't be bothered to make your own thread to discuss it

[MidbossVyers]

This game is supposed to be realistic (in an albeit fantasy setting), so there is no such thing as absolute good and absolute evil.  Such falsehoods only exist in fairy tales and biased stories.

[SiNNeR]

mostly true, although sometimes it's far more obvious that one choice is benevolent and helpful while another is selfish and perhaps even destructive. it's hard to consider the dark brotherhood, for example, as anything but evil despite the fact that some of their victims deserve to meet a grisly end

[Lachdonin]

The Civil War is a prime example of the deep grey than is morality in the Eldar Scrolls. Both sides are, ethically, equal, so how do you pick the 'good' guys?

 

The Foresworn are another good example. 

 

That one 'love story' in Iverstead is another quest with no clear good or evil outcome. 

[Georgiegril]

I think the failing of Skyrim is that the supposed dilemmas actually are not--either choice has very little perceptible effect on the world or the storyline of the player.  Even with the Civl war, the only real difference is which basically interchangable beaurocrat sits in the fancy chair and which huddle at the banquet table and insult you.

[Lachdonin]

I think the failing of Skyrim is that the supposed dilemmas actually are not--either choice has very little perceptible effect on the world or the storyline of the player.  Even with the Civl war, the only real difference is which basically interchangable beaurocrat sits in the fancy chair and which huddle at the banquet table and insult you.

 

I see these complaints a lot, and i think people forget exactly how difficult it is to pull off these supposed 'perceptible effects'. Even in Mass Effect, what you do has very little impact beyond a few conversation options, at least until the next game. Even then, you get a spattering of comments, maybe a new side mission, and a few extra points towards your 'saving the galaxy' score. 

 

The act of creating noticeable changes based on player choice is incredibly hard to do, at least given the current technology, which is why game designers are left with the unfortunate reality of falling back on simple stage-setting. They change out a character, or make a few off-handed references to a previous choice and the outcome. There is no game which has actually been able to pull off these unrealistic demands for impact, save for those which are completely 100% scripted (the Final Fantasy games, for instance). Even then, it's usually a "oops, sorry, that city is destroyed, you can't go back there" schtick. 

[eLucifer]

Helping the convict princess is the ''evil'' option actually. Turns out she tried to sell the country to the Thalmor and get away with it. Alik'r agents are simply sent to take her to judgement.

[Georgiegril]

Edit, glitch in the matrix, sorry. Posted on wrong thread.

[Rennn]

Helping the convict princess is the ''evil'' option actually. Turns out she tried to sell the country to the Thalmor and get away with it. Alik'r agents are simply sent to take her to judgement.

 

Where's your source for that?

Edited by Rennn, 23 August 2013 - 08:57 PM.

[TheObstinateNoviceSmith]

The act of creating noticeable changes based on player choice is incredibly hard to do, at least given the current technology, which is why game designers are left with the unfortunate reality of falling back on simple stage-setting.

 

Very true and I agree that what they give us is already difficult and giving us more than that would be even worse. Still, it can be disappointing at times though I don't agree with being too hard on these guys.

 

 

Helping the convict princess is the ''evil'' option actually. Turns out she tried to sell the country to the Thalmor and get away with it. Alik'r agents are simply sent to take her to judgement.

 

This has not been confirmed. We are not sure which side is telling the truth in that matter. It's one of the things that bothers me since I like closure, lol.