When Bethesda announced Skyrim Anniversary Edition at Quakecon 2021, there was some confusion regarding the product. It seemed to be another release of Skyrim with new content, but it soon became clear that the new content was just the Creation Club content that has not been released yet. Creation Club content had stopped suddenly, and it seemed Bethesda was using the remaining content to justify a new version of Skyrim to release.
This has led some to wonder, why? Why do we need a new release of Skyrim just a few years after Special Edition? The Creation Club content was already coming to Special Edition, and some new content is being added for free in the form of fishing after all. It felt like this new release was almost just thrown together just to have something for the tenth anniversary of the game’s first release.
The multiple releases of Skyrim have become a meme at this point, with Bethesda even making jokes about it themselves at conferences, such as with the announcement of Skyrim Very Special Edition. Couldn’t Bethesda just bring the new content to the existing Special Edition, which as mentioned, is getting the fishing content? There is planned to be some form of upgrade fee for Special Edition as well, almost as if one is just buying DLC for the game.
There is a possibility though, that this is due to a recent lawsuit that was filed against Bethesda. The lawsuit alleged false advertising since the season pass for Fallout 4 that claimed the season pass did not actually contain all the content released for the game. This is because the release of Creation Club content is not included in the season pass and therefore is considered to be false advertising according to lawyers..
If the lawsuit is the reason, then Bethesda may have resorted to simply doing a new release to get around the legal matter. That being said though, was there no other way it could be done? It feels almost as if Bethesda took the easy way out with getting a brand-new release instead of just giving the rest of the Creation Club content, in some other way.
If Bethesda must release the content as a new version though, it raises the question of what will set this release apart. Will the Creation Club content be integrated more naturally into the game, or will it remain as content that just shows up when the game starts? There were complaints about how Creation Club content showed up in Special Edition after being purchased, and it would be a missed opportunity if Bethesda didn’t fix the integration issues.
It just feels as if there is a release we do not need, especially when we are waiting patiently for the sixth main entry. Hopefully, this is the last release of Skyrim for a long time, because no more are needed now. Somehow though, it seems the company will find a reason to release it once more soon after.
Disclaimer: The above was the opinion of the author and not necessarily that of Real Otaku Gamer or its staff.