Get ready to revisit the world of Skyrim, as Bethesda just dropped a bombshell at this year’s E3. In a pre-recorded video shown during Bethesda’s press conference, Executive Producer and Game Director Todd Howard unveiled The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition.
Skyrim Special Edition will be a much more up-to-date looking version that has been optimized for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. Considering that both systems have far more RAM and processing power than their predecessors, it should bring a more PC-like experience to consoles.
The game will lose its grey exterior for warmer colors and a larger color gamut in general. The flat ground textures from 2011 are replaced with far better shaders giving more depth to the world. Volumetric god rays and dynamic depth of field will give the world the fantasy feel it requires.
Not only will graphics and textures be updated, but another key feature PC gamers have enjoyed will be making its way to consoles. Just like in Fallout 4, mods for Skyrim will be available for console gamers. This means that changes to gameplay, graphics, and character models can all be done from a PS4 or Xbox One controller. Making dragons more friendly or adding more spells are just a button press away. There will be a rating system on mods allowing gamers to install the best ones.
Other than graphical upgrades, not much else was announced in regards to how the game will differ from the original. Considering Skyrim Special Edition will also be coming out on PC, there might be some extra content to warrant a second purchase.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition will launch on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC later this year on October 28.
Acer’s Predator Atlas 8 finally has a US release date and price, several months after the company first showed off the handheld in May. The highlight is the Intel Arc G3 Extreme chip inside, which has been adopted by only a couple of other consoles besides the Atlas 8. This version will go on sale exclusively at Best Buy on November 1 for $1,299.99.
Acer originally said the Atlas 8 would arrive in North America in October, but left pricing open at the time. The launch came amid the ongoing DRAM crunch, which has made memory more expensive across the PC industry and complicated pricing for hardware makers.
Google Play is borrowing one of the Nintendo Switch’s most useful little tricks. A new Sidekick tool called Playbacks captures a short clip after something interesting has already happened, sparing players from running a screen recorder throughout an entire game.
Playbacks is part of Google Play Store v53.8 and keeps saved clips on the phone. Google first announced it earlier this month, but the new Play Store update marks its arrival for players. Anyone who has watched a perfect win vanish because the record button came too late already understands the appeal.