The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is the best video game ever created by Bethesda, and I think that it’s the greatest video game of all time. It’s the perfect role-playing game with a fantasy world that is jaw-dropping, magical, and absolutely life-changing. And it all starts with the action-packed prologue. In my honest opinion, I think that Skyrim has the greatest video game opening of all time! So, let me explain myself, and give a rundown of why that’s the case? Good! Let’s start!
Time to wake up… You’re in a carriage with a king-killer, a horse-thief, and a sentimental Nord. And in minutes, you’ll be executed.
You slowly wake up. You’re in the back of a carriage, together with three others. One of them, Ralof, is confident, kind and talkative. Another, with panic in his voice, Lokir, sits next to him. And then there’s a mysterious figure sitting next to you, wearing majestic garb, with his mouth bound with a piece of cloth. Who is he? Who are all of them? Where am I headed? As you look down at your hands, they are tied. Then, you hear that you’re headed to the chopping block.
This beginning instantly throws you into the world of Skyrim. It doesn’t dance around, or try to be too informative from the get-go. It actually allows you to experience the game, and find out about it naturally. With only a short carriage ride of about 5 minutes, you are thrown into a character creation. And then shortly thereafter, into the actual gameplay itself.
Ralof, Lokir and Ulfric get established. We find out valuable info on the carriage ride, and when in Helgen.
- Ralof has been to Helgen before. He used to like a girl who lived here, and he knew a man named Vilod who made mead with juniper berries mixed it. He’s a sentimental person, speaking of Sovngarde and that all the captured people are “brothers and sisters in binds”. He respects, and he defends, the name of Ulfric Stormcloak. And he thinks that the Thalmor are behind the Imperial ambush that captured him, Ulfric and the others. He also believes that the Gods sent the dragon to Helgen. Last but not least, he has a sister named Gerdur who lives close to Helgen in a town called Riverwood.
- Lokir is from Rorikstead. He wanted to go to Hammerfell. But he got caught trying to steal a horse. He blames the Stormcloaks for getting caught, as the Empire was lazy before the rebellion. Therefore, Lokir was caught by one of the many Imperial patrols in Skyrim.
- Ulfric Stormcloak is the Jarl of Windhelm. He’s the leader of the rebellion against the Imperials. People fear him. His mouth is covered because he can use the Voice. It’s how he killed King Torygg, whom he considered to be a traitor to the people of Skyrim.
In less than 5 minutes, we’ve established Ralof, Lokir and Ulfric. We get a good understanding of who they are and why they are heading to the chopping block, with all the characters being unique and different. It’s downright impressive, as most games in this day and age, can’t even establish a character in an 8 hour campaign, let alone do it in under 5 minutes time! What this shows us is how Bethesda were on top of their game with Skyrim.
The dragon attack in Helgen is one of the best moments in Skyrim.
Right as your head is about to roll on the chopping block, you see a terrifying black dragon swoop in, and cause a myserious thunderstorm. It causes chaos and it shakes the foundation beneath your feet, making you feel as if the world is about to end. And that’s what makes this moment so jaw-dropping and memorable, as the sheer improbability of a dragon showing up and causing chaos wasn’t predictable. Quite the contrary, it was unexpected. That’s how it was able to be so damn effective.
What’s best about this moment is how the people are scattering around, yelling things, really fighting for their lives. General Tullius is screaming “get the townspeople to safety”, while the mead master Vilod is heard saying “leave me. Save yourself!” In this chaotic situation, your ears are thrown for a rollercoaster ride, just as much as your eyes are. Whether you can keep up with all of these crazy things going on or not, you feel like you’re dying inside, just seeing all of it take place. It’s truly an experience to play through this opening. It sent shivers down my spine, to say the least!
What more poetic way to send us off from the prologue than by seeing the dragon fly away from Helgen, as you make your way to Riverwood? It’s perfect. It’s the cherry on top! 🍒
Hadvar or Ralof? Who will accompany you through the dungeon and cave system before you reach the forest? That’s the question.
When the dragon first appears, the chaos allows you to escape with Ralof. Inside an old castle tower, after meeting Ulfric and a few injurned Stormcloaks, you are urged by Ralof to jump to an old broken tavern in order to flee from Helgen. You do so. But our friend Ralof doesn’t accompany us. There is another man who crosses your path. It’s an Imperial. He’s name is Hadvar. Just a few moments ago sent you to the chopping block. So you follow him in hopes of getting out of the village alive, only to see a confrontation between Hadvar and Ralof. Then, you have to choose one or the other; go with Hadvar or with Ralof?
This decision, so early on in the game, establishes that you’ll be able to make game-changing decisions in Skyrim. While they might not always be different in the outcome, the journey you take will definitely be varied based on your choices. In this moment, you have to make quite a big decision. Depending on who you choose, your way through the castle, dungeon and cave system is very different. But it all ends with you getting out of Helgen, and most likely, to the small village of Riverwood. In it, you come across Gerdur, Ralof’s sister.
Skyrim has an opening worth replaying, time and time again.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim has the greatest video game opening of all time because it doesn’t dilly-dally around with flow-interrupting tutorials, and it builds the characters, and the world of Skyrim, in just a couple of minutes. It establishes several characters from the get-go, while also giving you a good understanding of the ongoing conflict between the Imperials and the Stormcloaks. You even learn that Ulfric started the war by killing a king, with something called “The Voice”. And lastly, you even witness the destruction of a dragon.
While there are many well-written, exciting and interesting, video game openings, very few of them come close to Skyrim’s efficiency, quality and cinematic thrill. Whether you agree or not, I personally think that Skyrim has the greatest video game opening of all time. I just hope that we can all get more innovative, creative, and downright jaw-dropping openings in video game future!
Thank you for reading! Enjoy your gaming experiences to the fullest! May you come across an opening in a video game as good as in Skyrim! ⛰
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