Since its release back in 2011, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim has garnered both official and fan made modifications. Using the Creation Kit Bethesda created for The Elder Scrolls Community, fans have created new worlds, characters and locations, weapons, and more. The first official modification for Skyrim came from Bethesda and Valve Corporation working jointly to make The Fall of the Space Core, Vol. 1. The mod was merely simple and fun – it was essentially an easter egg referencing a fictional device from Valve’s Portal 2. After this mod, Skyrim’s DLC was released: Dawnguard, Hearthfire, and Dragonborn. Despite Bethesda not releasing any more DLC than the three, many fan made mods have been created and shared freely on file sharing sites like Skyrim Nexus or through Steam Workshop. And according to PCgamer, it seems like one massive Skyrim mod is now going to be released by German developers from SureAI. They’ve been working on their total conversion mod since 2011 and in a Twitter post, SureAI stated they will be releasing their mod sometime this week or next.
Enderal: Shards of Order is a total-conversion mod that uses the same game engine that Skyrim uses, and it was created using the official creation kit Bethesda released for gamers to create their own mods. While this game is still technically a Skyrim mod, Enderal looks to be a standalone, full-sized RPG. Here’s a trailer SureAI has released in German (with English subtitles):
According to CinemaBlend, SureAI describes Enderal as
You, a fugitive from Nehrim, find yourself aboard a ship heading for Edneral, accompanied by strange circumstances, visions and dreams you get involved in a mystical conflict whose roots may be found in Enderal. All too soon this conflict rises to a phenomenon of global impact set rolling by the events on Nehrim. The remains of an ancient civilization long lost and forgotten that vanished mysteriously from the surface of Vyn are to be explored, the memories of the dead to be ventured. Enderals deepest wilderness needs to be roamed in search of salvation.
In the game, players will play alongside two NPC’s who will greatly effect the outcome of the story, depending on your interactions with them. The game runs on the same game engine as Skyrim but developers of Enderal have noted that players shouldn’t expect the exact same experience as playing Skyrim. Developers have stated that they’ve refined the game mechanics. Cinema Blend has noted that SureAI developers stated
Enderal will use Skyrim’s combat system in its basic terms. Other parts, such as the skill system are being changed and rebuilt completely. We will use an experience point system instead of Skyrim’s skill-based leveling system – By using experience points the player can be awarded for many different actions (decisions, exploring, combat, quests). So you really get to feel to the progress your character is making much more, it motivates constantly.
SureAI is the same team of developers that brought gamers the Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion mod, Nehrim: At Fate’s Edge. They’ve been working on this total-conversion mod since 2011 so developers have put in countless of hours honing in on perfecting every small detail about the game. Their website makes it clear that players shouldn’t expect another Skyrim, but rather an entirely new game that isn’t set in the fictional Elder Scrolls world of Nirn with its own lore. The main quest will range between 30 to 150 hours of new gameplay, depending on whether you dawdle around or not. The English version of this mod is set to be released sometime this week or next, and if you already own a version of Skyrim, you’re in for a treat since Enderal will be completely free for download.