I've noticed a recent trend of fantasy games being likened to Skyrim, and I really think we need a new way to describe them. While some games certainly deserve the comparison, the connection seems a lot more tenuous in other circumstances. Having played a lot of it, I have a pretty distinct idea of what a game will be like if someone says it's "like Skyrim." However, as Skyrim starts to become a broader label slapped on any fantasy game, these comparisons are starting to lose all meaning.

The broader the umbrella becomes for comparing games to Skyrim, the less helpful this practice is for actually giving players an idea of what a new game is like. It can also cause players to have unrealistic expectations when starting a new title if they're expecting a game like The Elder Scrolls, and what they purchased doesn't emulate the series' gameplay. This confusion can cause players to unfairly judge new games, and create the false perception that a title didn't live up to expectations simply because it wasn't what that player expected from a Skyrim-like experience.

Skyrim Comparisons Are Starting To Lose Their Meaning

Comparing Any Vaguely Fantasy Or Medieval Themed Game To Skyrim Is Unhelpful

I will start by saying that I don't think all Skyrim comparisons are unfair. While there are plenty of differences between the two games, I can understand why Avowed would be considered a Skyrim-like game. Both are action RPGs set in a fantasy world, and both feature a similar style of combat and the ability to switch between first and third person. While I have some issues with this specific comparison, I do think it is at the very least helpful, and hearing that Obsidian was making their own "Skyrim" was what initially interested me in Avowed.

However, these comparisons start to go downhill when Skyrim is invoked to describe games with only a tenuous connection to it. Perhaps the most egregious example I've seen of this recently was two games, World of Anterra and City Tales - Medieval Era, each being described as "Skyrim meets Stardew Valley." The issue is that, while these games were described in nearly the exact same way, they are incredibly different.

World of Anterra is an RPG whose pixel art seems to be the main inspiration for the Stardew Valley comparison. Given that it's a non-linear open-world RPG, one might be tempted to begrudge the Skyrim comparison, but honestly, I don't think that's a good descriptor either. Though World of Anterra's combat does appear fast-paced in preview materials, it also appears to be turn-based. When someone compares a game to Skyrim, I'm definitely not imagining turn-based party combat.

City Tales - Medieval Era seems even less deserving of the Skyrim label. The game is a city-builder and resource-management game which frankly doesn't bear much resemblance to either Skyrim or Stardew Valley. Here, Skyrim seems to be evoked simply because of the game's medieval setting, which doesn't even appear to have any high-fantasy elements like The Elder Scrolls.

Comparing Games To Skyrim Can Create Unrealistic Expectations

Likening Games To Skyrim Creates A Clear Image Of What That Game Will Deliver

The main problem with making imprecise Skyrim comparisons is that it can create unrealisitc expectations for new games to live up to. While I'm sure most players will, like me, quickly realize that a game like City Tales - Medieval Era has little to nothing in common with Skyrim, were someone to actually put stock into this comparison they would be pretty disappointed when they sat down to play the city-builder. I'm not ing judgment on the quality of the game itself, simply saying that it's not what anyone would expect from a game that is supposed to be like Skyrim.

This problem actually gets worse with games that may have a bit more in common with Skyrim, and whose differences may not be readily apparent. We saw this a bit with Avowed, where the game received some criticism for not being exactly like Skyrim in certain regards. Because Avowed had been endlessly compared to Skyrim, and because the gameplay looked enough like it in previews, players had high expectations about what the game would be, not all of which were met.

Again, this isn't a judgment call on the quality of Avowed - I actually prefer it to Skyrim - rather just to point out how unhelpful it is to compare games like this. Games that are good in their own right may still disappoint players because they were expecting a completely different experience and the game failed to live up to that. This can lead to games being unfairly maligned for not meeting a set of standards that they weren't even trying to meet.

Not All Fantasy Games Are Trying To Be Skyrim, And That's A Good Thing

Wanting All Fantasy Games To Conform To Skyrim's Features Ignores What Other Games Do Better

Skyrim becoming shorthand for any game with a fantasy setting does a disservice to fantasy games that aren't trying to be the next Skyrim. For all their similarities, Avowed clearly made some decisions to set itself apart from Skyrim in meaningful ways. One of the clearest ways Obsidian did this was by not making Avowed's map an open world. Instead, the map is segmented to allow for clearer narrative beats that can be impacted by your choices. This is one of the things I prefer about Avowed, and might not have happened if Obsidian had felt pressured to copy Bethesda's model.

Comparing games like Skyrim and Avowed on specific mechanics that they share, like their similar combat styles, still makes sense. This shouldn't be taken as blanket criticism of any comparisons made between the games.

It's also worth acknowledging that I'm not sure Skyrim deserves to be some gold standard by which to judge other games. While I enjoy elements of Skyrim, it's far from the best fantasy game. For example, the game's story leaves a lot to be desired.

I've been playing Skyrim​​​​​​​ on and off since 2011. I own three versions of the game, and I've logged over 50 hours on Steam, which doesn't for my time on PS4 or Xbox 360, but I've never finished the 25-hour main quest because I always lose interest. The threat of the generically evil Alduin doesn't interest me much, and I find most of the characters to be boring exposition dispensers. In contrast, I've already played through Final Fantasy VII Rebirth​​​​​​​'s 50-hour story twice since it came out last year, because its characters are charming and its story feels relevant.

Skyrim also feels devoid of the meaningful narrative choices that make RPGs an exciting genre. The only distinct choice I making in the game is to the Stormcloaks over the Empire. I criticize the Mass Effect games a lot, but I can still most of the original trilogy's big choices, like how to handle Rachni Queen or the Genophage.

My point isn't that Skyrim is particularly bad. As I've said, I've played the game a lot and I enjoy it for what it is. I just find it strange that it has become a go-to game to judge other fantasy games or RPGs against when it is far from perfect itself. This seems to happen a lot whenever a game reaches mainstream popularity, leading to similarly inaccurate comparisons that can lead to confusion or unmet expectations.

Other Games Suffer From Bad Comparisons

Skyrim Isn't The Only Example Of A Game Used For Shaky Comparisons

While Skyrim has been a recent example, it's not the only game I've seen used to make inaccurate comparisons. Another common example is Stardew Valley, which I will see invoked any time a recent game happens to feature pixel art. When I think of Stardew Valley, I'm not thinking of what it looks like, but how it plays, so if a game is compared to it, I'd be expecting a cozy game with life and or farm-sim elements. The 3D Harvest Moon games are a much better point of comparison than a game like World of Anterra, despite graphical differences.

I understand the basic utility of using a popular game like Skyrim to give players an idea of what an unknown game is like. However, when these types of comparisons are made with only surface-level consideration of the similarities between these games, it ultimately creates more confusion than anything else. Worse, it may even hurt the reputations of games that are good in their own right simply because they didn't meet the expectations these unsolicited comparisons placed on them.