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The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim - Dawnguard (PC)
As the first major content release for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Dawnguard packs in a lot of content at a relatively affordable price ($19.99 USD). Think back to the DLC releases for Fallout 3 and Fallout: New Vegas. Have those in mind? Great! Now realize that Dawnguard offers up a lot more in terms of content than any of those Fallout DLC releases ever contained.
In fact, Dawnguard is closer to the old days where expansions were released for games. I say "closer" and not "exactly" because while there is still a lot of content here, it's not as much as a full-fledged expansion would have contained. Even still, you are guaranteed hours of gameplay, a feat that others releasing bite-sized pieces of mere "downloadable content" could never hope to achieve.
Dawnguard expands upon the already full lands of Skyrim by adding in new locations, new NPC's, new abilities, and even the means to transform into a vampire lord. Sorry Twilight fans, if you want your vampires to sparkle and stare awkwardly then this isn't the game for you. However, if you like it when vampires suck the life force from their foes and violently toss them with the power of their minds, then Dawnguard is ready and waiting for you!
The main story for Dawnguard is accessed once your character hits level 10 or higher. Any number of guards within a city will be able to jumpstart your adventures with vampires, or you can always wait for a courier to deliver a special message to you. A Vampire Lord by the name of Harkon has just one goal and that is to blot out the Sun. Yes, it seems as though he's watched one too many episodes of the Simpsons. The Dawnguard seek to stop him and the vampires, well, think it's a rather swell idea. The beauty of Dawnguard is the fact that even after completing one side of the story, after about eight hours, you can always go back and play through the side you chose not to take near the beginning of the story arch. Naturally, you will want to make sure you have some saves handy from before, but for most players this probably won't be too much of an issue.
One side places you in the shoes of a group of vampire hunters, known simply as the Dawnguard. The Dawnguard comes to be known after a number of vampire attacks started to occur with more frequency throughout Tamriel and specifically, the lands of Skyrim. Side with them and you are granted access to special weapons such as a crossbow and other perks. However, choose to side with the vampires themselves and you are immediately granted access to a special vampire skill tree that literally allows you to suck the life force out of your enemies, turn into bats to travel more quickly across the landscape, and develop a really pale complexion during the day.
Aside from the obvious fact that one side lets you assume the role of a vampire and the other does not, there are just a few other key differences between the two sides. For one thing, the Dawnguard side is actually a bit boring at the start. Explore a few new caves and carry out a few quests that are dotted with a puzzle here and there. The Dawnguard also grants you access to the crossbow class and weapon. Think of it as a more powerful bow and arrow with a slower reload speed. It's actually quite useful, unless you are keener on melee or sword fighting.
As said, things start out slow for the Dawnguard but they do not stay that way! Later story elements feature some rather intense battles. I may even be so inclined as to call a couple of them "epic" in scale. The thing is, a couple of these battles again rely heavily on battles against dragons. That's all well and good when it comes to the core game of Skyrim, but I do wish there was a lesser emphasis placed on dragons for this particular expansion. The Dawnguard will also be allowed to hire a group of Armored Trolls to fight for them. They act as temporary followers and prove useful during difficult battles.
Should you choose to ditch the Dawnguard and side with those who have an unnatural love of the night, you will quickly see the more unique side of the story. Early on, you are given the choice to become a Vampire Lord. If you happen to pass up the opportunity the first time, don't worry because the story will constantly ask you if you're sure about your decision. Just cave in and do it, because this is easily the more enjoyable of the two sides.
The Vampire Lord ability can be toggled on and off at your leisure. This is especially useful when approaching or entering towns as the guards will attack you on sight if you're in your vampire form. A Vampire Lord can use the power of telekinesis to pick up enemies, toss them around causing damage, or bring them close to let you suck the life right out of them. There are two new skill trees added in Dawnguard, with one obviously being dedicated to playing the role of a vampire. Later skill unlocks will allow you to combat the effects of the Sun during the day, summon in a gargoyle to aid in battle, or perks that simply increase your already given abilities. If you are a member of the Dawnguard, you aren't completely left out in the cold, though. There is now a Werewolf perk tree as well, though you will need to have completed a particular quest from The Companions prior to utilizing this tree.
New shouts and new weapons have also been added. The crossbows rely on the archery skill tree. Excel in that and you'll do just fine with crossbows. Dragonbone weapons are a new addition to the game and are better than the Daedric line of weapons. The two new shouts that have been added are Soul Tear, which simply allows you to turn the soul of a fallen foe into a temporary companion.
Perhaps one of the best additions in Dawnguard is an entirely new plane of existence, known simply as the Soul Cairn. This otherworldly location is full of tough enemies, lost souls, purple lands, and even a new mount. That's right, an undead horse can be yours simply by completing a small side-quest within the Soul Cairn. The horse, Arvak, can then be summoned at any time, regardless of whether or not you're questing around in the Soul Cairn or in the world of the living. If there's one insult here it's the fact that the Soul Cairn is perhaps a bit dull. There are a number of side-quests to do here but it often feels like a bunch of aimless wandering around without much to see after the first 30 minutes.
A few odds and ends complete the Dawnguard package of goodies. Legendary Dragons are a new, more difficult level of dragons that have been added courtesy of Dawnguard. Gargoyles, large armored trolls, death hounds, Bonemen, Wrathmen, and Boneyard Keepers are new enemy types that have been included with Dawnguard. There is even a new, undead Dragon, Durnehviir that has been added. A special character makeover has been added to Riften that will allow you to re-pimp your character's look for just 1,000 Septiums.
At $20, I would certainly say that Dawnguard is worth it, even if you have already wrestled hundreds of hours of the core game already. There is enough new here that the price is probably worth your while. It feels as though Dawnguard is really two expansions in one and when you look at it that way, $10 per storyline is an even better deal.
As the expansion has been out for a while on the Xbox 360, there are a few things to note about the PC version. It will play and look just as well as the base Skyrim game does on your system. Toss on the high definition texture pack and crank the settings up to max and it will look absolutely gorgeous. Make it look even more stunning by adding in a few mods from the Steam Workshop and it will easily surpass the visuals and framerate of the Xbox 360 version of the game.
I would be remised if I didn't link back to our original review of Skyrim. All of the positives still apply here and some issues are even fixed given how much time has passed between then and the release of Dawnguard. Unfortunately, there are still just a handful of voice actors kicking around, so repetitive NPC voices are still a bit of an annoyance. Dawnguard guarantees at least eight hours of fresh gameplay. If you play through both stories, you're looking at an easy 16 hour experience. That may even be on the lower end of estimates and the reality may be closer to well over 20 hours of enjoyment here.
Relevant Links
Dawnguard on Steam
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim - Dawnguard was provided to TGN for review purposes. The game was reviewed on the PC and is also available for the Xbox 360 and coming soon* to the PS3. Dawnguard is rated M for Mature.
*A release date has not yet been revealed for the PS3 version.
As the first major content release for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Dawnguard packs in a lot of content at a relatively affordable price ($19.99 USD). Think back to the DLC releases for Fallout 3 and Fallout: New Vegas. Have those in mind? Great! Now realize that Dawnguard offers up a lot more in terms of content than any of those Fallout DLC releases ever contained.
In fact, Dawnguard is closer to the old days where expansions were released for games. I say "closer" and not "exactly" because while there is still a lot of content here, it's not as much as a full-fledged expansion would have contained. Even still, you are guaranteed hours of gameplay, a feat that others releasing bite-sized pieces of mere "downloadable content" could never hope to achieve.
Dawnguard expands upon the already full lands of Skyrim by adding in new locations, new NPC's, new abilities, and even the means to transform into a vampire lord. Sorry Twilight fans, if you want your vampires to sparkle and stare awkwardly then this isn't the game for you. However, if you like it when vampires suck the life force from their foes and violently toss them with the power of their minds, then Dawnguard is ready and waiting for you!
The main story for Dawnguard is accessed once your character hits level 10 or higher. Any number of guards within a city will be able to jumpstart your adventures with vampires, or you can always wait for a courier to deliver a special message to you. A Vampire Lord by the name of Harkon has just one goal and that is to blot out the Sun. Yes, it seems as though he's watched one too many episodes of the Simpsons. The Dawnguard seek to stop him and the vampires, well, think it's a rather swell idea. The beauty of Dawnguard is the fact that even after completing one side of the story, after about eight hours, you can always go back and play through the side you chose not to take near the beginning of the story arch. Naturally, you will want to make sure you have some saves handy from before, but for most players this probably won't be too much of an issue.
One side places you in the shoes of a group of vampire hunters, known simply as the Dawnguard. The Dawnguard comes to be known after a number of vampire attacks started to occur with more frequency throughout Tamriel and specifically, the lands of Skyrim. Side with them and you are granted access to special weapons such as a crossbow and other perks. However, choose to side with the vampires themselves and you are immediately granted access to a special vampire skill tree that literally allows you to suck the life force out of your enemies, turn into bats to travel more quickly across the landscape, and develop a really pale complexion during the day.
Aside from the obvious fact that one side lets you assume the role of a vampire and the other does not, there are just a few other key differences between the two sides. For one thing, the Dawnguard side is actually a bit boring at the start. Explore a few new caves and carry out a few quests that are dotted with a puzzle here and there. The Dawnguard also grants you access to the crossbow class and weapon. Think of it as a more powerful bow and arrow with a slower reload speed. It's actually quite useful, unless you are keener on melee or sword fighting.
As said, things start out slow for the Dawnguard but they do not stay that way! Later story elements feature some rather intense battles. I may even be so inclined as to call a couple of them "epic" in scale. The thing is, a couple of these battles again rely heavily on battles against dragons. That's all well and good when it comes to the core game of Skyrim, but I do wish there was a lesser emphasis placed on dragons for this particular expansion. The Dawnguard will also be allowed to hire a group of Armored Trolls to fight for them. They act as temporary followers and prove useful during difficult battles.
Should you choose to ditch the Dawnguard and side with those who have an unnatural love of the night, you will quickly see the more unique side of the story. Early on, you are given the choice to become a Vampire Lord. If you happen to pass up the opportunity the first time, don't worry because the story will constantly ask you if you're sure about your decision. Just cave in and do it, because this is easily the more enjoyable of the two sides.
The Vampire Lord ability can be toggled on and off at your leisure. This is especially useful when approaching or entering towns as the guards will attack you on sight if you're in your vampire form. A Vampire Lord can use the power of telekinesis to pick up enemies, toss them around causing damage, or bring them close to let you suck the life right out of them. There are two new skill trees added in Dawnguard, with one obviously being dedicated to playing the role of a vampire. Later skill unlocks will allow you to combat the effects of the Sun during the day, summon in a gargoyle to aid in battle, or perks that simply increase your already given abilities. If you are a member of the Dawnguard, you aren't completely left out in the cold, though. There is now a Werewolf perk tree as well, though you will need to have completed a particular quest from The Companions prior to utilizing this tree.
New shouts and new weapons have also been added. The crossbows rely on the archery skill tree. Excel in that and you'll do just fine with crossbows. Dragonbone weapons are a new addition to the game and are better than the Daedric line of weapons. The two new shouts that have been added are Soul Tear, which simply allows you to turn the soul of a fallen foe into a temporary companion.
Perhaps one of the best additions in Dawnguard is an entirely new plane of existence, known simply as the Soul Cairn. This otherworldly location is full of tough enemies, lost souls, purple lands, and even a new mount. That's right, an undead horse can be yours simply by completing a small side-quest within the Soul Cairn. The horse, Arvak, can then be summoned at any time, regardless of whether or not you're questing around in the Soul Cairn or in the world of the living. If there's one insult here it's the fact that the Soul Cairn is perhaps a bit dull. There are a number of side-quests to do here but it often feels like a bunch of aimless wandering around without much to see after the first 30 minutes.
A few odds and ends complete the Dawnguard package of goodies. Legendary Dragons are a new, more difficult level of dragons that have been added courtesy of Dawnguard. Gargoyles, large armored trolls, death hounds, Bonemen, Wrathmen, and Boneyard Keepers are new enemy types that have been included with Dawnguard. There is even a new, undead Dragon, Durnehviir that has been added. A special character makeover has been added to Riften that will allow you to re-pimp your character's look for just 1,000 Septiums.
At $20, I would certainly say that Dawnguard is worth it, even if you have already wrestled hundreds of hours of the core game already. There is enough new here that the price is probably worth your while. It feels as though Dawnguard is really two expansions in one and when you look at it that way, $10 per storyline is an even better deal.
As the expansion has been out for a while on the Xbox 360, there are a few things to note about the PC version. It will play and look just as well as the base Skyrim game does on your system. Toss on the high definition texture pack and crank the settings up to max and it will look absolutely gorgeous. Make it look even more stunning by adding in a few mods from the Steam Workshop and it will easily surpass the visuals and framerate of the Xbox 360 version of the game.
I would be remised if I didn't link back to our original review of Skyrim. All of the positives still apply here and some issues are even fixed given how much time has passed between then and the release of Dawnguard. Unfortunately, there are still just a handful of voice actors kicking around, so repetitive NPC voices are still a bit of an annoyance. Dawnguard guarantees at least eight hours of fresh gameplay. If you play through both stories, you're looking at an easy 16 hour experience. That may even be on the lower end of estimates and the reality may be closer to well over 20 hours of enjoyment here.
Overall: 8/10
Gameplay: 8/10
Audio: 8.5/10
Visuals: 8/10
Value: 8/10
Gameplay: 8/10
Audio: 8.5/10
Visuals: 8/10
Value: 8/10
Relevant Links
Dawnguard on Steam
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim - Dawnguard was provided to TGN for review purposes. The game was reviewed on the PC and is also available for the Xbox 360 and coming soon* to the PS3. Dawnguard is rated M for Mature.
*A release date has not yet been revealed for the PS3 version.