Is The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim on Steam?

Yes, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is available on Steam. The full platform list: PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Is The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim on PC?

Yes, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is available on PC.

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

18Full Release

What this is

A fantasy sandbox where you shape a character, pursue quests, and wander freely.

What you actually do

You explore, accept quests, fight with weapons or magic, develop your character, and customize the experience with mods. The open-ended structure rewards wandering and supports many different playstyles, though technical issues can interrupt the adventure.

Verdict

Freedom Meets Rough Edges

Skyrim's open world lets you shape a character, follow quests, and wander into unexpected adventures at your own pace. Its atmosphere and freedom remain compelling, but clumsy combat and recurring technical or mod-related problems are meaningful tradeoffs.

User reviews first

Steam recent first

Is it for you?

What shines

Exceptional freedom of choice
Huge amount of explorable content
Flexible character development
Memorable soundtrack and atmosphere
Extensive creative mod community
Strong replay value

What to know

Frequent bugs and crashes
Combat feels clumsy
Repetitive enemy variety
Some areas feel bland

Quick facts

Genre

RPGFantasy

View

First + Third person

Solo

Co-op

PvP

Length

35h

Entry

Can start here

Pricing

Paid

MTX

Account required

Active Support

Crossplay

+Best if

You want to make your own stories through exploration, quests, flexible character building, and modding.

!Skip it if

You need polished combat and consistently reliable technical performance.

Developer

Bethesda Game Studios

Publisher

Bethesda Softworks

Release

Nov 10, 2011

Game DNA

Rhythm

Mixed pace

Depth

Some depth

Mood

AtmosphericImmersiveCreative

Structure

Open worldStory-driven

Also tagged

DragonsModdableMedieval

topic

Your role and how it develops

Your role

You shape a flexible adventurer, choosing where to go, which quests to pursue, and how to fight or develop your character.

Learning and mastery

The basics are approachable, while the open structure leaves you to learn systems and priorities through play.

Replay and variation

High, because different character choices, quest paths, exploration habits, and mods can produce very different playthroughs.

Systems you interact with

What you actually engage with

Open-world exploration

Travel freely through a large fantasy world and discover locations without following a fixed route.

Questing

Take on story and side quests while deciding which leads deserve your attention.

Character development

Build a character around different skills and playstyles.

Combat

Fight with weapons, magic, and stealth from first-person or third-person perspectives.

Magic

Use spells as a core part of your chosen playstyle.

Modding

Use community modifications to customize the experience through Steam Workshop support.

topic

Time investment

How long it takes

HowLongToBeat

Main story

focused run

35h

Main + extras

story and side content

110h

Completionist

full clear

237h

Session fit

What the time commitment feels like

When it clicks

Start with a quest or simply walk toward something interesting, since the game supports both directed and aimless play.

Session constraints

The open-ended structure can make progress feel diffuse, and technical or mod issues can interrupt momentum.

Best session rhythm

It works best when you can settle into exploratory sessions, with natural stopping points between quests and discoveries.

DLC timing

No timing guidance for extra content is available yet.

topic

Review interpretation

Current mood

Recent players remain enthusiastic about Skyrim's freedom, atmosphere, and modding community.

Why it works

Players and critics consistently value Skyrim as an absorbing open-world RPG where exploration, freedom of choice, and abundant content make it easy to get lost.

Critic gap

Players are more glowing than critics about the experience, while critics more often flag dated mechanics, shallow writing, bugs, and limited upgrades in the Special Edition.

What players value

Open-world exploration and freedom

high

Players praise the vast, scenic world and the freedom to choose their own path, while critics highlight its openness and exploration.

Atmosphere and immersion

high

Players repeatedly describe Skyrim's world as atmospheric, magical, alive, and deeply immersive.

Content and replayability

high

Players emphasize the huge range of activities and possibilities, and critics describe it as an absorbing adventure with substantial content.

Modding community

medium

Recent players praise the modding community and the convenience of Steam Workshop modding.

Evidence-backed risks

Bugs and technical glitches

highreviews and critics

Players report persistent glitches affecting the opening sequence and playability, while critics also note recurring bugs and crashes.

Mod support can be disrupted by updates

mediumreviews

Players criticize updates that break mod support and report modification limitations.

Aged mechanics and writing

lowcritics

Critics note that the mechanics and writing feel dated, with combat and some quest writing lacking depth.

topic

Minimum PC

Playable baseline

CPUDual Core 2.0GHz or equivalent processor

RAM2GB System RAM Hard Disk Space: 6GB free HDD Space Video Card: Direct X 9.0c compliant video card with 512 MB of RAM Sound: DirectX compatible sound card

Recommended PC

Better target

CPUQuad-core Intel or AMD CPU

RAM4GB System RAM Video Card: DirectX 9.0c compatible NVIDIA or AMD ATI video card with 1GB of RAM (Nvidia GeForce GTX 260 or higher; ATI Radeon 4890 or higher)

Storage and usability

Disk, language and input

Install6 GB

Download5 GB

Free space6 GB

Languages9 listed

ControllerPartial

topic

Support status

Developer activity

Legacy

Last game updateSep 5, 2024 · 1.9 years ago

Last official postSep 5, 2024 · 1.9 years ago

Updates (12 mo)0

Posts (12 mo)0

CadenceDormant

SourceSteam

Official Steam news