GB Feature: The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim – Dawnguard Review and Walkthrough

We continue to churn out content over on our dedicated Skyrim subsite, with tonight’s additions being a full review of the game’s Dawnguard DLC and an extensive annotated walkthrough that leaves no stone unturned in the add-on. A snip from the critique:

The DLC has some nice touches. There are coffins for you to sleep in. There are raging rivers that send you rushing into new zones. There are frost giants that seem to have a fetish for important gems. There are large, intricately designed outdoor areas, including the Soul Cairn, the place where souls captured by soul stones go. There are armored troll pets. There are crossbows. There are new crafting recipes, including a few for dragonbone weapons. There’s a face sculptor who can change your appearance.

These additions, along with a 12-quest campaign, might sound like a lot of nice stuff for a DLC, and perhaps it is, but I felt underwhelmed. The first problem is that almost all of the additions are cosmetic. The Soul Cairn is an interesting place to visit, and Bethesda did a nice job in making it feel bleak and forlorn, but exploring it is no different than exploring anywhere else. Meanwhile, frost giants are the same as regular giants, coffins are the same as beds, crossbows are the same as bows, and so forth.