Review: The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim--Dawnguard

Vampires, Werewolves, and Elves, Oh My!

    
        So it's been a few months since you've played Skyrim. You've done nearly every major quest and maximized almost all of your skills. What is there left to do? Well, what if I told you there is an expansion for the game, called Dawnguard, that just came out with a pretty substantial amount of content? Is it worth the twenty dollars? That depends on your interest in the game at this point.

        When you start the game up, remember how to play it, and figure out what was going on the last time you played, you'll hear about an organization that calls themselves the Dawnguard and that they are looking for members to help neutralize the vampire threat in Skyrim. When you join, you'll do some work for them, but will soon get the chance to decide between fighting with the Dawnguard against the vampires or helping the vampires destroy the Dawnguard. The story and quests are not very different from each other, but the vampire side will probably show off the largest amount of new content.

       
        Because of my slight prejudice against vampires, I decided to side with the Dawnguard. Doing so gave me access to new weapons, like crossbows, and new spells as well as a perk tree for my werewolf transformation as opposed to the new Vampire Lord transformation and its subsequent perk tree, weapons, and spells. The transformations are given added depth with perk trees, but the draw back of these new forms is actually having to use them. If you've already played as a werewolf, you would have realized that it is kind of a hassle to use. The same goes for the Vampire Lord as you lose your armor and weapons when you transform into your new form leaving you more vulnerable than before. The game also forces you into a third-person perspective which causes problems when trying to land attacks and prevents you from interacting with most objects. You are also left vulnerable to attack when transforming due to having to watch the transformation animation. I came to realize that it is far easier to remain a dark elf.

        This added focus on transforming into big clunky monsters doesn't ruin the experience, though. There is still a wealth of quests to complete, dungeons to explore, and monsters to fight. This expansion may have its sights set on the undead, but its able to branch out to include the rest of the races and creatures. There is an entire section that leaves out vampires in favor of fighting elves, dragons, giants, and trolls. The new characters are brought to life with fine voice acting and the environments are as wonderful as ever.

        When it comes down to it, Dawnguard is an expansion for the more devoted fans. It may not be as ambitious as Oblivion's Shivering Isles or Fallout 3's Point Lookout, nor does the new supernatural beast forms bring out much enjoyment, but it does what The Elder Scrolls series does best. It is more of the great combat, exploration, and creative quests.


Final Verdict: 8.5/10