TORONTO — Nintendo has maintained its Year One strategy for the Switch platform is to leverage its impressive array of intellectual properties while also creating a competitive platform for third-party development.
Mission accomplished for objective one. Critical and commercial hits like "The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild," "Splatoon 2" and "Super Mario Odyssey" have allowed the Switch to successfully duke it out with the powerful PlayStation 4 in console sales.
While the jury is still out on objective two, steps have been made in the right direction.
The Switch boasts an impressive number of ports of popular indie third-party titles and a couple of current-generation sports games. And now a smattering of aging but popular triple-A titles are being released for Nintendo's console/portable hybrid system.
Arguably the best known of these titles is "Skyrim," the fifth instalment of Bethesda Softworks' "Elder Scrolls" series of massive role-playing games. Despite being six years old, "Skyrim" boasts over 100 hours of content. With a huge, graphically detailed world to explore, it provides a daunting benchmark to see how the Switch can handle resource-intensive games.
The results are encouraging. "Skyrim" runs smoothly on the Switch in both docked and handheld mode, taking an already engrossing game to a dangerously addictive level through the promise of portability.
"Skyrim" takes place in the frigid north of the "Elder Scrolls" world of Tamriel, a place heavily inspired by Norse mythology and custom. You are immediately thrown into a plot involving a civil war and the return of dragons to the region. But expect to be quickly sidetracked.
The greatest strength of "Skyrim" is its openness. You can follow along with the main plot but there are hundreds of side-quests to take on, many more compelling than the main storyline.
Become the leader of a group of honourable warriors, who also happen to be werewolves. Destroy a secret society of vampires, or become one yourself. Or just ride around the countryside, killing bears for their hides and mining ore. The province of Skyrim is a place of exploration and possibility, and the game does as little hand-holding as possible to allow you to get immersed in it.
The depth extends to how you play your character. Like cleaving enemies in twain with a giant sword? Fine. Prefer to sneak around your foes and deal damage from a distance, or fry them with powerful magic? That's all good too. You can also mix and match abilities. Playing a heavily armoured wizard with a honeyed tongue and penchant for picking locks is a perfectly viable option in "Skyrim."
With a game this old, there are, of course, some quibbles to point out. While minor refinements may have been made (I have yet to hear a town guard talk about taking "an arrow to the knee," a phrase so oft-repeated in the original that it started its own cottage industry of meme-making) "Skyrim" is still clunky now where it was clunky before. Melee combat can be awkward, animations can be stiff and many of Skyrim's inhabitants are dull.
But "Elder Scroll" titles succeed through their ambition, and the sheer scope of the game is not lost on the Switch. What's more, all three of the original game's expansion packs are included in the Switch version, adding a ton of content to an already huge game.
It's not the most complete version of "Skyrim," as it lacks the support for fan-created modifications that PC gamers can enjoy. But the Switch does have a couple of exclusive features. This version includes motion controls for melee and ranged combat, and support for Nintendo's collectible amiibo figurines. Using a Zelda-based amiibo generates a treasure chest, which may contain weapons and armour inspired by Zelda protagonist Link.
"Skyrim" is an easy recommendation for Switch owners who have never played it on another system, but is also worthwhile for those looking to take a second tour through the game's huge, beautiful world.
It remains to be seen if the Switch will start getting blockbuster titles at the same time as its competitors, which are better suited to handle the demands of graphically intensive games. But the success of "Skyrim" as a port — it looks good, and more importantly it plays great — shows Nintendo is capable of fulfilling its promise of third-party support for the Switch.
"Skyrim" is rated M for mature games and retails for about $80.
Curtis Withers, The Canadian Press
