This isn’t a review of “Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.” To write a review would mean that I would need to maintain some objectivity. This, instead, is a story about how a young man has fallen in love with a computer game.

I haven’t really been with a video game for quite a while. Sure my friends have set me up with some of theirs, which is fine. I’ll maybe play it for a few weeks and then will get busy and lose track of time, “Mass Effect 2.” I might take things too quickly, finish the game and realize afterwards that it was never meant to last, “Batman: Arkham City.” Then there are games like “Call of Duty” where every once in a while we’ll meet up have a nice night fighting zombies and then go our separate ways. I haven’t had a really good relationship with a game in years.

Hahn

That all changed when I heard about “Skyrim.” It came from a good family, I enjoyed its older sibling “Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion.” From the first time I saw it, “Skyrim” looked great. The more I heard about it, the more I realized there was so much more than great graphics and awesome gameplay. The game had real personality and substance. I realized it had complexity and depth that you don’t see in normal games. This game was special.

Even though I had seen all these cool things and heard great things about it I was still nervous. I didn’t want to commit to a new relationship with a game. I knew a game like this would take time and effort and I’m busy. Plus I had just finished with “Arkham City” it left me a little disappointed. I didn’t know if I was ready for another game.

Then this weekend I talked to a friend of mine. He said I HAD to meet this game, that we would be perfect together. I believed him and took a leap of faith and got the game. Things were a little rocky at first. I was worried that the graphics wouldn’t work well since I have an older computer, I felt like I spent too much time getting past the basic stuff. But we started to get along pretty well. Once we were past the basics we really started to get along. I loved the games openness. I felt that the game wouldn’t judge me for wanting to spend hours on meaningless side missions, or that it if I just wanted to explore it wouldn’t hold it against me. The game really understood me and I love it for that.

Even though I’ve only been playing the game for a few days now I can tell that this isn’t “just another game.” I know that this feeling might fade a little. I will need patience (sometimes the load screens take longer than I would like). But this is a game I will work at; I will put in the time and effort and really learn to appreciate what this game is. Who knows, I might even tell my parents about it?

For a real review, please follow this link from CBS.

Kevin Hahn