The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim it was released fourteen years ago and what a phenomenon the game has become. Years later, it still has a loyal player base, a huge modding community, and fans who fondly remember its first release and how magical it was to step into Skyrim for the first time. Shortly after, it was joined by three DLCs, each of which expanded on a province with sub-locations and added proper house building to the game, making it one of the most robust, modern open-world RPG experiences where players could roam freely and choose their own adventures.
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Of course, Bethesda did everything in its power to try to spread the success Skyrim over the years. These methods have been controversial among fans Skyrim receiving multiple versions and editions, some priced lower than others due to the amount (or lack) of new content included in each. With the game's 15th anniversary in 2026, it will be interesting to see if we get another version or finally some much needed ones The Elder Scrolls 6 news. Until then, it's high time to break some of them down Skyrim version and release, sorted from most added content to least.
Each game's rating is based on how much game content (items, quests, houses, activities, etc.) it added compared to the previous version of the game (so the legendary version's rating is based on the release of the base game). This is not a quality assessment; you can find it here.
Skyrim is one of my top 10 favorite games. My intention is not to knock the game (or praise the practice of multiple releases), but to shed light on what you get in each released version compared to the previous one.
Legendary edition
Contains all three DLCs with the latest patch
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Base game on the latest patch
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All 3 DLCs: Dawnguard, Hearthfire and Dragonborn
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No longer available, replaced by a special edition
It's no surprise that the legendary edition gets the lowest position in this ranking. Two years after the base game was first released, Bethesda bundled all three DLCs into one bundle with the game's latest patch and sold it for $59.99. This version is no longer officially available, and neither is the base game technically, as it doesn't exist on Steam.
Considering the price of each DLC, it was a decent deal for the time, especially for players who still hadn't jumped on the Skyrim bandwagon and were looking to get their hands on all the content at once. Also interesting is that if you grabbed one of these legendary editions at the time, you could get a special edition for free after it was released.
Annual issue
74 Creations
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Remastered Skyrim (Special Edition)
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All 3 DLCs: Dawnguard, Hearthfire, Dragonborn
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74 Creations
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Current price: $49.99 on Steam
The annual edition is controversial, and for good reason. After the special edition, it added quite a few new things to the game, namely 74 Creations, which were basically the paid mods we previously saw in the Creation Club. Some players have almost no qualms with these mods; others argue that they make the game too easy by providing certain armor too early, and that the quests are shallow, which doesn't justify the price of the version.
While I'm inclined to agree, from an outsider's perspective you can't deny the appeal of having all this extra content beyond what the previous Special Edition had (which was only four creations). There are new weapons and armor, quests, housing, farming, explorable locations like dungeons, and things we've already seen in Special Edition like Survival Mode and Fishing. Since the special edition hardly added any new quests and activities in terms of gameplay, as controversial as this version is, it brings more in terms of quantity.
Switch version 2017
Crossover items and four Zelda-themed creations
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Remastered Skyrim (Special Edition)
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All 3 DLCs: Dawnguard, Hearthfire, Dragonborn
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Amiibo reward chest: potentially Master Sword, Hylian Shield and Champion's Tunic
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Current price: $49.99 at the Nintendo Store
The Anniversary Edition and Upgrade are now also available on Switch and Switch 2, but will not be considered here.
When the Nintendo Switch came out, it was only a matter of time before Bethesda released Skyrim on it. At this point, jokes about Skyrim Gameplay on smart fridges has been tossed around for years, given the variety of systems the game was available on. Players on the Switch could get a special edition of the game, which was essentially a remaster of the original base game with a few audio-visual enhancements. It also came with all three DLCs, but what really made the Switch version stand out was the fact that it also added a few Nintendo-themed goodies: namely, Zelda crossover items.
You could use an amiibo as a kind of charm in the game to conjure up a loot chest that depended on which amiibo was used. anything butZelda will bring some regular loot like alchemy ingredients, food or gold but Zelda figures would have a slim chance of dropping crossover items: a sword, a tunic, and a special shield, all in Link's style. Some Zelda figures (depending on the game) even had specific drops they would grant.
It's not an extraordinary amount of new content, but at least it came with something more on top of the Special Edition release for anyone who picked up the game on their Switch.
Special edition
A few creations overshadowed by the visual overhaul
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Engine and graphics fix
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All 3 DLCs: Dawnguard, Hearthfire, Dragonborn
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Four creations
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Creation Club
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Current price: $39.99 on Steam
Roughly five years after the release of the base game Skyrim with the special edition, it received a visual overhaul. It was essentially a Legendary Edition remaster with four creations and the highly controversial Creation Club microtransaction store. The four creations included were Survival Mode, Rare Curios, Fishing, and Saints & Seducers. While Survival Mode was a welcome addition (albeit a bit clunky in a game like Skyrim), Saints & Seducers was a disappointment, a tease Oblivion fans with a possible trip to the Shivering Isles, just to make the quest content somewhat shallow.
While the visual upgrades were nice and gave the game an injection of modernity that probably helped it stay fresh years later, it's undeniably the thinnest version of the game compared to its predecessor, which came with three DLCs. The four creations didn't seem like enough content to warrant a new release, and some argue that a visual overhaul should be given to every owner of the base game. If someone already had the legendary edition when the special edition came out, luckily it was offered as a free upgrade to owners of the previous version.
Skyrim VR
It would be unfair not to mention it Skyrim VR as another point under special edition. There is definitely magic in the experience Skyrim in VR just for laughs, but given the state of the game today and how little content it has added, it's tops for how little gameplay content it has added.
The difference between it and the special edition is that it can be played with a VR headset – that's all. Of course, this means that some gameplay changes have been implemented, and for some it was good enough to swallow Skyrim experience.
- Released
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October 28, 2016
- ESRB
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M For Adults 17+ due to blood and gore, intense violence, language, sexual themes, use of alcohol
- Developers
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Bethesda Game Studios
- Publishers
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Bethesda Softworks
