7 July 2012
I thought I'd pay homage to Skyrim, as it is by far my favourite video game and I hoped others would love it too.
Firstly, I'd like to say I'm really excited about Dawnguard. I don't have it yet, even though Im on Xbox but I will be getting it as soon as I get back from Iceland pretty much.
Secondly I'd like to mention that Skyrim is a great example of the fantasy writer's craft. They steal from all sorts of places to build one brilliant world. Let's think of just the things from Tolkien they stole. Whiterun is Edoras in Rohan, Riften is Laketown near the Lonely Mountain, the entire elf system is basically a development of Tolkien's (which was stolen out of Norse mythology!) and I'm sure I've missed a lot out!
From Norse mythology they've stollen so much! The landscape is very Scandinavian, Hrothagar (as in High Hrothgar) is a Danish king from Beowulf and other epics. And so the list goes on. Nothing about the vampires or werewolves are original, dragons are ancient, and the gods are practically just another great rip-off!
But do we complain? No! It's a great game, and the mythologies of fantasy worlds invariably are stolen, at least in part, from a myth or another fantasy, which in turn probably stole it from a myth or legend. And so it goes on! That is the world of fantasy for you, and the best fantasies take the best bits from the best places and create masterworks!!!
Skyrim • Opuss № I