U.S. publication Game Informer continues to drip-feed us information on The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim this week, with the latest trickle of tidbits focusing on the fantasy sequel’s combat.
According to an interview the mag conducted with Bethesda’s Todd Howard, Skyrim’s twin-handed slicing and dicing allows you to assign any weapon or spell to either of your character’s hands – or alternatively, a two-handed weapon to both. A handy menu allows you to quickly change between any pre-configured set-ups you may have.
As for the weapons themselves, all the usual armaments are back including swords, maces, axes, shields and various two-handed tools of destruction. You’ll also be able to specialise in specific weaponry, allowing you to receive perks with experience. Examples include the bow and arrow, which takes longer to charge up but dishes out more damage, or axe, which slices foes with residual bleeding damage per blow.
Elsewhere, Howard also touched on the game’s spell system, which has apparently been inspired by BioShock’s plasmids. A total of 85 spells will be available, in turn spread across five schools of magic – destruction, restoration, illusion, alteration and conjuration. As previously mentioned, the mysticism school has been given the boot, though any spells attributed to this class have been assimilated within the other five classes.
As to whether or not players will be able to combine their spells, Bethesda’s apparently flirting with the idea, with Howard commenting, “We’d like to,” adding, “It’d be awesome.”
Stealth has received a few minor tweaks, with enemies now going into alert phase when they twig that someone’s there. Furthermore, those with an advanced sneak skill will have a little extra time to get to cover. Once again, sneak attacks will deal a substantial chunk of damage to unsuspecting foes, as Howard elucidates below.
"Now when you sneak up behind guys, the dagger does something like 10x damage. I don’t know if we’re going to keep that, but you feel like you should be killing the guy if you’ve gotten that close and you have a dagger," he said.
Defence has also been ramped up a notch, with meticulous timing required in order to successfully parry a blow. Furthermore, a new block bash move has also been implemented, which leaves your opponent susceptible to counterattack. Hit-and-run tactics won’t work this time around either.
Lastly, Howard also touched on the visual side of combat, saying players can expect some swanky staggering effects and shaky cam work in close quarters. Havok physics will be more apparent on the spell side of things too, while enemies and weapons alike boast their own unique kill animation.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is due out on November 11, 2011.