If you’re like many others, you first played Bethesda Game Studios’ historical role-playing game Skyrim back in 2011. Throughout its nine-year lifespan, Skyrim has grown from a short story-driven indie game to one of the most popular video game franchises of all time. But as beloved as it is, there are bound to be players who are feeling the effects of the final update released for Skyrim at this very moment. With its release on April 14th, The Skyrim 1.21 Update has some significant changes that aren’t necessarily positive for those who play the game but could be negative in certain scenarios depending on your playstyle. Let’s take a look at what this update brings and how it may affect you.
What’s in the Skyrim 1.21 Update?
The biggest change since the release of the 1.21 update is the addition of support for the Xbox One. This means players on Microsoft’s newest console can once again enjoy the full experience of playing an ancient and timeless game, with all its nuances, bugs, and allure. The 1.21 update also brings with it a host of smaller tweaks and bug fixes, as well as the addition of a few new features.
What’s New in the Update?
The biggest change in the 1.21 update is the announcement of Xbox One support, which was first mentioned back in March. The announcement meant the official support announcement, which included details on how the support would work. Now that the dust has settled, it looks like Xbox One players can relive the experience of playing the game with all its imperfections. Beyond that, there are a few smaller tweaks and bug fixes that should help keep the game running smooth, if not a bit more stable. The most notable of these is the removal of the “exclusive” approach to Bethesda’s DLC business. Instead of releasing a few AAA DLC packs at a time, Bethesda is now all-in on releasing new content as soon as possible. This also includes the removal of the “free for all” approach to the game’s economy, as well as a few other tweaks and balance changes.
How to Install the Skyrim 1.21 Update
If you haven’t already, now is the time to back up your save data. You don’t need to do this if you haven’t been playing the game for a while, but it is a good idea to have a backup in case of problems. If you’re updating from a previous version of Skyrim, make sure to back up you save games first. From there, you can either try to update the game manually or use the in-game updater. If you’re updating a save game, there is a chance that the game might overwrite your savegame with a new version. In this case, make sure to back up your savegame first, and then manually overwrite the old version.
Side-Effects of the Skyrim 1.21 Update
As great as the 1.21 update is, it might not be the best thing for everyone. For example, if you play the game on the Xbox One, you might experience frame rate dips, graphical oddities, or performance issues when you try to play the game on a different platform. The obvious way to deal with this is to either use a different gamepad or use an Xbox One controller on the PC. However, there are side-effects to that, such as the fact that some playstyles might be less viable on the Xbox One. Beyond that, some attacks and spells might not work as they should across the board, depending on your playstyle. There are a few side-effects that we think are positive, however, and are mentioned above.
Bottom line
The 1.21 update for Fallout 4 is packed with tweaks and bug fixes and includes the addition of support for the Xbox One. While it doesn’t bring about any major changes to the core gameplay, it does make the game more accessible to a wider audience, along with adding a few new features. Now that the update is out, players should be on the lookout for any performance issues, frame-rate dips, or other issues that might have been present in the game. If you’ve been playing the game for a while, or want to make sure you aren’t missing any crucial progression points, it’s definitely worth installing the 1.21 update.