Shortly turning into Bethesda Sport Studio’s most profitable launch and one of the best-selling video games of all time, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim has remained a fixture of the corporate’s lineup even years after it hit cabinets, with the studio repackaging and reselling it a number of occasions. From handheld ports and next-gen upgrades to full-on VR recreations, Skyrim is a sport you could play just about anyplace at this level.
However, with so many variations of Skyrim to select from, which do you have to play in 2024? With a number of editions unfold throughout PlayStation, Xbox, PC and even Change, it may be difficult to know which launch of the sport is greatest fitted to the expertise you are looking for. Fortunately, we have got you lined. Under, we have put collectively a full information on all of the variations of Skyrim at the moment accessible and what’s included in every bundle. You ought to have a lot of time to play it earlier than The Elder Scrolls 6 arrives.
How Many Variations of Skyrim Are There?
In whole, there have been seven distinctive releases of Skyrim launched throughout 9 totally different platforms. One of these is a model fully playable via Amazon Alexa often called Skyrim: Very Particular Version, which functioned totally via voice instructions. It was largely launched as a easy, enjoyable nod to the numerous memes about how continuously Skyrim was remastered and, though we will admire Alexa dryly describing your epic showdown with a wandering Mudcrab, we cannot embody it in the checklist.
We’ll even be transferring previous 2013’s Skyrim: Legendary Version, which was a bundle together with the bottom launch of the sport and its three expansions. With the discharge of Particular Version in 2016, Legendary Version was delisted from Steam. Though you may technically nonetheless purchase second-hand bodily copies of this model on Xbox 360 and PS3, it is not a product Bethesda nonetheless sells and so it is one we’ll skip over.
That leaves us with 5 totally different variations of Skyrim to run via. So, with out additional ado, let’s get began.
Every Skyrim Edtion in Order
1. Skyrim – PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 (2011)
The primary model of Skyrim that launched all the best way again in 2011, the usual version is about as vanilla as Skyrim will get. Launching on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC, it laid the muse for the sport’s numerous up to date ports in the years following its launch. Nevertheless, in 2024, it is most likely not price in search of out.
Until you continue to have an Xbox 360 or PS3 handy, this may largely be an choice for PC gamers, and even then, most digital PC storefronts do not even have it seem in their search bars following the discharge of Skyrim: Particular Version. As for why, It comes bundled with none of the expansions or the visible and gameplay updates that had been included in the extra fashionable variations of the sport. Contemplating Particular Version Skrim is sort of continuously discounted on storefronts like Steam and GOG, the Commonplace Version has been made barely redundant in the years since.
That being stated, in the event you’re seeking to faucet into Skyrim’s older modding scene, it might nonetheless be price trying out. On each Steam Workshop and Nexus, you may discover mods for the unique model of the sport, and whereas they will not be as superior because the mods that may be constructed on Particular Version, there is a ton of them to check out.
2. Skyrim: Particular Version – PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Collection X (2016)
Launching 5 years after the usual version, Skyrim: Particular Version is the most typical model of the sport at the moment accessible. Bundled in this model, you may get all three of the sport’s main expansions, Dawnguard, Hearthfire and Dragonborn, in addition to a collection of visible upgrades, together with remastered textures and vastly upgraded lighting.
One of the most important additions is entry to the Creations tab, which lets you obtain free mods made by the neighborhood in addition to paid Creation Membership content material packs licensed by Bethesda. This characteristic is included on console too, that means you may lastly get a style of the sport’s modding scene while not having to play the sport on PC. Skyrim: Particular Version is commonly discounted on console and PC, nevertheless it can be downloaded via Xbox Sport Move and PlayStation Plus Additional, making it one of the simplest variations to get your arms on.
This actually is the core model you may be taking a look at in the event you simply desire a no frills, customary Skyrim expertise with all the standard of life updates that include extra fashionable {hardware}. It is simple to get both via subscription companies or gross sales, and has all of the growth content material included, in addition to the choice to increase your playtime or combine issues up with in-built entry to mods.
3. Skyrim: Particular Version (Nintendo Change) – Change (2017)
Though technically one other port of Skyrim: Particular Version, the Nintendo Change model deserves its personal spot on the checklist for being a full handheld port you could play on the go.
The Change launch additionally has a couple of distinctive options exterior of its portability. Gamers can swap on movement controls, utilizing the JoyCon to assault with a sword or pull again the string of a bow, whereas the sport additionally contains distinctive Zelda-themed gadgets, together with Hyperlink’s tunic, a Hylian Protect and the Grasp Sword. Should you’re seeking to clear a couple of dungeons in your commute to work, that is the model for you.
4. Skyrim VR – PC, PlayStation 4 (2017)
Only a yr after the discharge of Particular Version, Bethesda determined to launch an alternate model of Skyrim that might ramp up its immersion to new heights. This new port was Skyrim VR, which does precisely what it says on the tin. Utilizing a PSVR or Home windows-based headset, gamers can hop into Skyrim’s world recreated in digital actuality, permitting them to discover its icy plains from a brand new perspective.
Skyrim VR contains the total base sport and its expansions whereas implementing movement controls, with gamers utilizing VR controllers to swing swords, draw bows and choose up gadgets. In essence, it is one other model of Particular Version however totally skilled via a VR headset, so if you would like a brand new option to discover Skyrim and have the tech essential to play it, it might be one to check out.
5. Skyrim: Anniversary Version – PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Collection X, Change (2021)
The most recent model of Skyrim, Skyrim: Anniversary Version launched in 2021 to have a good time the sport’s ten-year anniversary. In essence, it is extra of an growth to Particular Version than a full-fledged remaster, bundling collectively an inventory of over 70 Creation Membership mods for a reduced worth. Included are new quests, weapons, armor units, homes, enemies, dungeons, spells and options, alongside much more.
You can purchase Skyrim: Anniversary Version as a full sport, however in the event you already personal Skyrim: Particular Version, you may improve to the Anniversary version for a decrease value as a substitute. Anniversary Version positively is not a necessary add-on to the sport, however in the event you’ve already wandered the world of Skyrim for years at this level and wish to freshen issues up in your subsequent playthrough, it is price a glance.
Callum Williams is a freelance media author with years of expertise as a sport critic, information reporter, guides author and options author.