Bethesda working on a Skyrim update for all platforms

By Wesley Yin-Poole Published 15 November, 2011

"We will fix as much as we can."

Bethesda is hard at work on an update for all three versions of epic fantasy game The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim.

In a series of Tweets to fans, Bethesda PR and marketing boss Pete Hines moved to reassure gamers that an update is around the corner - and urged patience.

Responding to one fan, Hines Tweeted: "Patches/updates take a little time. We can't turn it around quite that fast. It's been three days. Calm down, we're working on it."

Then: "We are continuing to work on an update for all platforms to address issues any bugs and perf issues we can."

Skyrim on Xbox 360 suffers from a curious texture problem that sees performance drop when the game is installed to the hard drive.

The issue only seems to occur if you have the Xbox 360 version of Skyrim installed to the hard drive - a process that is entirely optional. In this case, the highest resolution versions of the textures appear to stall and not load, meaning you're not seeing the game at its best. If you remove the install, and run the game directly from the DVD, the best quality artwork returns to the game.

But PlayStation 3 players have also reported texture streaming issues, and PC players have encountered performance issues, and even game freezes.

Hines advised players who have encountered problems to report them using a form on Bethesda's website. "Much better than trying to go thru me," he said.

Picture of Wesley.

About Wesley Yin-Poole

Wesley is Eurogamer's news editor. He likes news, interviews, and more news. He also likes Street Fighter more than anyone can get him to shut up about it.

Read more articles from Wesley by visiting the Wesley Yin-Poole archive page.

You may also like...

Comments (84) Latest comment 6 months ago

Comments for this article are now closed, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • nemesisND1derboy #1 6 months ago

    If they can fix the problem on PS3 where the framerate gets considerably worse the longer you play in one sitting, I'll be delighted.

    Also, my save file is now over 5.5 MB, meaning I get the increased controller lag. :(
    Edited by nemesisND1derboy at 15/11/11 @ 15:12

  • HeNiCiDe1988 #2 6 months ago

    how it is with such large games, would take too long to beta test them all. They must have a nickname for this period in Bethesda when they await all the bugs.

  • torment74 #3 6 months ago

    I am a massive fan of theses RPG's and the company but i think this title sets a new high in LOW when it comes to bugs!
    I dont think they have a QA department for crying out loud. I had a show stopper in the first 5 seconds of starting the game and have seen bugs all over the shop....I still love the game despite the hit and miss bugs and graphics. This could have been so much more.

  • roquey Verified Lead Quality Assurance Tester and Compliance Specialist, Universally Speaking #4 6 months ago

    Ive installed the game to my 250 GB 360S and im having no problems with it. im happy to sacrifice a lil bit o gfx for faster loading speeds. Altho i did climb a mountain then find some missing textures.

  • ubergine #5 6 months ago

    I would have expected Microsoft to have a 30 day exclusivity to any downloadable patch content.

  • butler` #6 6 months ago

    my 360 has crashed 4-5 times at the loading screen inbetween areas ;/

  • Spuzzell #7 6 months ago

    (PC gamer) I'm not touching Skyrim until next year sometime, hopefully by then everything will be silky smooth.

    Though actually Bethesda lost all my faith when they let id release Rage in its ridiculously broken state. Its been over a month now and it still just doesn't work. Its the worst, most frustrating gaming experience I've ever had.

    BAD Bethesda. BAD. Go to your room.

  • funkateer #8 6 months ago

    The unsettling thing is that these bugs are so bloody obvious.

    I mean, they clearly didn't test the 360 install option *at all*. They clearly ignored the save file bug on PS3, which basically affects all PS3 players.
    Those are *not* subtle bugs that can be forgiven given the complexity of the game.

  • Quint2020 #9 6 months ago

    I've had one lock-up and an amusing issue where a bloke on a horse literally came flying past me, yes that's right flying, it was awesome.

  • torment74 #10 6 months ago

    Post deleted at 09:51:17 12-12-2011

  • DirectAim #11 6 months ago

    When I access the menu's it doesn't pick up the input from my controller, I have to then exit the menu and try again.

    This happened 3 times in a row once!

  • gribb #12 6 months ago

    Having previously worked on a QA team, it isn't always fair to blame the testers. Bugs always get reported, but they rarely get fixed.

    I suspect Skyrim's problems are merely down to not having enough time to bugfix due to the 11.11.11 release date.

  • Mellissa #13 6 months ago

    I've experienced ghosting through ceilings while jumping and NPCs telling me "we should stay close together" even though he wouldn't budge from his spot. Not bad for my first 30mins in this 10/10 game. Off to fill in a PS3 form...

    .

  • woundedbear #14 6 months ago

    I don't know what the fan in question said exactly, but Hines's slightly patronising tone and suggestion to "calm down" feels a little rich if you consider that really, such a glaring bug, should have been addressed before the game was published to the consumer. The game is utterly magnificent in my opinion, but it's unfinished. I see the advantages of a patching culture in game development, but sometime it feels kind of rotten too.

  • TeaFiend #15 6 months ago

    As much as people will moan "Who QA'd this shit?" the answer is more likely "why did the dev's not fix this shit?" I imagine Bethesda have a large QA team and the majority of issues users find were reported but not fixed.

    My experience has been fine, a few minor bugs but no crashes or anything I would consider a show stopper.

  • jetsetwillie #16 6 months ago

    @Spuzzell everything is silky smooth. a couple of crashes in the 32 hours i've put in on my PC is hardly reason for concern.

  • Cjail #17 6 months ago

    @gribb
    I agree with you and I really doubt that a bug like this could have slipped unnoticed.

  • GamesProgrammer Verified Games Team Programmer, Eutechnyx Ltd. #18 6 months ago

    This is why i will be waiting for the GOTY edition. Will be cheaper and hopefully out of the testing phase.

  • JJrabbit #19 6 months ago

    I don't think it's either the developer's or the QA team's fault.I'm sure they'd both like to see the bugs fixed, but they don't necessarily dictate when a game is released and what the deadlines are.
    Regardless, there are many issues at hand such as stakeholders who want to see a ROI ASAP. Sometimes the game's bugs are too complex to just dive in and fix without breaking things elsewhere. Of course, they could take time out to create a more robust engine in the first place, but time is money and for a game this size, it's understandably difficult to make it relatively bug-free from the get go. I'm not saying the bugs are fine, but I'm more lenient towards seeing bugs in this sort of game than a more linear, straightforward game. Most important thing now is to patch as quickly as possible.

    /IMO :)
    Edited by JJrabbit at 15/11/11 @ 16:50

  • rob_of_the_robots #20 6 months ago

    I've been playing Skyrim since Friday and haven't encountered any bugs as yet other than the graphics/install thing which I wouldn't have even noticed had I not been on here.

  • KevLFC #21 6 months ago

    People should stop blaming QA. These bugs will almost certainly have been reported. From my experience QA are normally the true gamers on the project and do a great job finding and reporting bugs. As an ex QA tester for not Microsoft or Nintendo I have had many a frustrating bug go unfixed due to outlandish claims by the producers.

    "So the track textures moving AWAY from the F1 car above a certain speed on 1 particular track is a feature now! Funny that it didn't happen in any previous or subsequent F1 titles, or any other racing game i've ever played."

    One time I got accused of falsely inflating the bug database because I was entering too many bugs. Valid bugs I might add. I imagine that the closer they got to 11.11.11 the more they where told "Just fix the class A hangs! JUST FIX THE CLASS A HAAAAAAAAAANGS!!!!!"

    I have many crazy development stories.

  • FuzzyDuck #22 6 months ago

    I'm the end user of the product, i don't care how difficult it is to iron out all the bugs, and Bethesda are developing something of a reputation for releasing bug-ridden games.

    Regardless of the quality, it's a straight up 'no sale' from me.

  • chrisola #23 6 months ago

    mine was acting up on the PC - had random glitches in the GFX with a water splashing noise, and while on the big open plains some of the mammoths would glitch.

    Knocked down AA and AF from 8 to 2, turned FXAA on, knocked shadows from ultra to high -- works fine now at 1080p.

    Frame rate is the same it seems and there no discernable gfx difference (other than when you sometimes caught the AA 'catching up' with you when turning indoors) but it cured the weird issues.

    One issue that needs fixing is that if you open a door and run into a room too fast, the physics go crazy and it sends things bouncing everywhere.

  • revan8 #24 6 months ago

    Playing on xbox, not installed. Twenty hours in, zero glitches, bugs or crashes. Hopefully stays that way. Brilliant game.

  • Spuzzell #25 6 months ago

    @jetsetwillie

    Good times, good times, thanks. It's not that I don't want to play until next year, its that my gaming backlog will prevent it! Haven't even started Deus Ex yet. Or Fable 3. Hell, I haven't finished Dragon Age. The first one.

  • RevanNL #26 6 months ago

    Texture streaming seems to be the least of the problems they need to fix on the PS3 version. I got the 360 version, but from what I've read on the official forums regarding the PS3 version, it's fucked. And it's absolutely outragous that PS3 owners get a game that is that broken.

  • Lamb #27 6 months ago

    "Rise oh mighty beta testers!"

    But dude, I just want to play the game. :(

  • Otis_Inf #28 6 months ago

    @Spuzzell There are 2 companies 'Bethesda' now: the publisher (which published Rage) and the game developer (which made Skyrim ;)).

  • AndyBeans #29 6 months ago

    Reads like an 8/10...

  • TeaFiend #30 6 months ago

    I doubt Bethesda ZeniMax would have liked it if Bethesda Software said "can we get an extra three weeks? Release on 02/12/11 instead?" After the amount spent on 11/11/11 adverts I doubt that would go down well.

  • ZizouFC #31 6 months ago

    I love being told to calm down...

    I'd get in shit if I said that to a client at work.

  • jetsetwillie #32 6 months ago

    @Spuzzell i know that feeling lol.

  • Xardan #33 6 months ago

    So this is what it has come to? We buy a game at launch to test their game for them? So many bugs should not be in a launch product.

  • pauleyc #34 6 months ago

    @Cjail

    That's not a bug, it's a feature - the Giant Space Launch System.

    The UI/inventory on the other hand really needs more attention.

  • PaulBreeze #35 6 months ago

    @DirectAim It's just saving I believe. It does this every 15 minutes by default (in the options menu). I usually have to wait about 8 seconds but it classes as an auto-save. You can switch it off as well.

  • andrewsqual #36 6 months ago

    Relax Bethesda, don't listen to any of the shite like on this forum. Playing it 50 hours now and haven't had any issues yet.

  • Wyrm #37 6 months ago

    In about 25 hours of play, all I've had is one freeze on the PS 3 version

  • ReaIIyBigShrimp #38 6 months ago

    Errrr...I have no face. That's a bug by the way.
    It happens when I wear both the morokai mask and arch-mage robes at the same time. :confused:

  • havoc321 #39 6 months ago

    This is simply lack of respect with customers who pay for an unfinished product. The devs should be apologizing, not saying "calm down". I'm glad I waited. I will probably pick up the PC version from steam when the first discount appears and must of the bugs fixed. I'm sad to say this game does not deserve full price.

  • cellardoor #40 6 months ago

    Just weighing in, 10 hours in on 1st gen xbox360, installed to HD.
    The intro had screen tearing and it occasionally stutters just after loading from a save but otherwise it's a treat to look at and plays faster than the fallout games. I've yet to try it from the disc as i'm petrified of burining out another machine. Could my old xbox handle running a beast like this?

  • byron_hinson #41 6 months ago

    Tends to be what happens when ou set a release date months ahead of finishing the game.

  • PaulieWaulie #42 6 months ago

    Post deleted at 14:23:40 06-01-2012

  • stoopidgreg #43 6 months ago

    I haven't had any issues with the game on PC. I think it's crashed once in about 20 or so hours of play (currently level 21). Runs like butter on a 5870 with details on ultra, 1920x1200 full AA, tree shadows and water detail increased in the config file, looks absolutely mind blowing!

  • handsonhips101 #44 6 months ago

    please dont fix the vase/bucket/bowl on head trick. it makes stealing so much fun.

  • Zaiz #45 6 months ago

    Just from what I've read, the PC version is nearly bug-free compared to the console versions. I've had two crashes that I'm not sure were caused by Skyrim over running a character to level 30. The other glitches I've had were mostly dragons ignoring collision and flying through mountains, and completely ignoring the people below. Oh, and every so often textures don't load in, but that's only happened twice.

    Overall: Less buggy than Red Dead Redemption(which didn't get nailed for piles and piles of gamebreakers) and other "bug free" games.

  • Apaar #46 6 months ago

    Couple of crashes for me, but that's pretty much it. A few graphics glitches in the mix (missing textures a few times, small stuff like that). I'd say it's been a much more bug-free experience than the past Bethesda games - a nice improvement. I play the PC version.

  • Lonewolf2002 #47 6 months ago

    No crashes on my PC so far, 20 odd hours in, couple of minor bugs nothing game breaking more humorous than anything. Alas people do get issues I just seem lucky with these games and them running stable for me. 2 people I know on PC 1 not having too many issues and has had 1 CTD, and freezes for a few seconds (Bethesda already working on that and as far as I know is Win XP sepcific) the other has lots of issues and glitches.

  • knocker #48 6 months ago

    I do wish the terms QA and testing weren't used interchangeably.

    Are these things a failure of testing ? Possible though unlikely.

    Were they a failure in QA. Definitely.

  • Seafort #49 6 months ago

    I think there is a memory leak with nvidia cards as i notice the lag increasing the more i play and the water sometimes glitches.

    I've also had the game just vanish and i end up on the desktop again with no sign of a crash.

  • metallicorphan #50 6 months ago

    360 version here,played 27hrs had one hard lock up

    when i go to Favourites,it can take awhile for me to be able to select/change weapons

    a bit of slow down here and there

    i guess i ought to list the Texture thing,although its not that bad

    and one or two problems with NPCs where i have needed to reload

    no massive problems really,given the size and scope of the game

    I am going to be playing this until well after Chrimbo

  • SheffAl #51 6 months ago

    Coool, I got a score to settle with a giant, I need him in perfect clarity for it to work :)

  • Machetazo #52 6 months ago

    Well done, Bethesda for not putting that feedback/contact form behind an account system.

    http://www.dishonored.com/
    Does anyone else know what this game is, because I've never heard of it before today, but they're advertising it on the bethsoft page, for all platforms.

  • havoc321 #53 6 months ago

    @stoopidgreg I have the same VGA, what's your CPU? I was wondering if I could run it on ultra... I have a C2Q q9600 @ 3.4GHz, 8 gigs of RAM.

  • peppergomez #54 6 months ago

    How about addressing the wretched lack of rebindable keys so that left-handed mouse users can use the numpad keys? Baffling that they don't provide users the ability to remap these keys- FO3 and Oblivion did. PC=leftovers in their mind.

  • SheffAl #55 6 months ago

    Why didn't Eurogamer notice these issues when they reviewed it?

  • uknortherner2000 #56 6 months ago

    30 hours in on the PC version, and tree animations are starting to slow down. Leaves are stuttering and freezing and appear to exhibit the old animation slowdown bug from Oblivion except at the moment, it's just affecting trees. Whereas the Oblivion animation bug kicked in after around 200+ hours of play, here, it has kicked in after a mere 30.

  • kickerconspiracy #57 6 months ago

    It's a Bethesda game, so I was kinda expecting these sort of problems, yet I still bought it release day.

    It's a great game that I'm really enjoying, and I know that a raft of patches official and unofficial will make eventually sort most of the gripes out. This is why I love the pc modding community. Ok, so the games a bit broken, but it's worth sorting out.

  • PaulieWaulie #58 6 months ago

    Post deleted at 14:23:40 06-01-2012

  • jamyskis #59 6 months ago

    I'm really going to miss the skydiving mammoths, having giants score impossible home runs with my lifeless body, watching dead frost trolls breakdance as they fall to their death, watching retreating soldiers dive into a river and seeing Lydia block every entrance I'm trying to walk through.

  • Murton #60 6 months ago

    The PS3 saved game issue will definitely not be fixed as it's not a bug but a massive flaw in the core engine. The exact same issue occurred with both Fallout games. I have no idea what exactly 4J Studios did to make Oblivion such a painless experience and it's pretty clear that Bethesda didn't have the foresight to ask them about how to improve their shitty engine to make it work.

    Expecting it to be broken I passed up my preorder on this and decided on the new PS3 7.1 headset that comes out on Friday instead. Will wait for this to be fixed or perhaps request it as a Christmas present, but after being burned so many times this gen by Bethesda and their broken games and lack of patch support there was simply no way to justify buying Skyrim on release day.

  • Xboxfanuk #61 6 months ago

    hey should have said, "Calm down, we got your money now bitches!"

  • lemonfist #62 6 months ago

    I've had some unfortunate experiences with Fallout 3 on PS3, long after the last patch was released: some framedrops in crowded areas, the occasional freeze or weird graphical glitch.

    But this new save bug that causes massive lag makes the F3 issues seem minor. I'm now glad I recently got a cheap 360, because I don't really trust Bethesda will fix that PS3 version properly. Too bad about the installation issue with textures, but for now I'll take that over bad performance.

  • hume #63 6 months ago

    Bughesda - when will you release proper PC version? With DX11 features and hi-res textures that will not kill most modern rigs due to the lack of optimization?
    Oh. Never you say. I suppose I'll have to get along with your console port then >.<

    (starts up Witcher 2 again... New Vegas even... Mario Kart?)

  • lemonfist #64 6 months ago

    @Murton

    Yeah, it's a damn shame they couldn't just hire those guys to do a proper port, and then release it a little later. But oh no it had to be everywhere at 11/11/11.

  • Jenslyn87 #65 6 months ago

    Sometimes I'm just baffled that developers will compromise their releases because they can't find the time to test properly for bugs. Don't get me wrong, this is a huge and intricate game and you have to cut them some slack, but some of these problems are so obvious and out there that I just can't see how the developers could miss them with any kind of quality testing.

    It's kind of a bad trend in my opinion. Release flawed games with the promise of fixing them in the future, but only after the flaws have been suffered by the entire damn install base.

    This seems to be the case with many games lately. "Patch incoming" from the very day the game is released. BF3 immediately comes to mind. Quality titles that are plagued by so many bugs that they really shouldn't have left the testing stage.

  • apoc_reg #66 6 months ago

    People are unbelievable, no way a game like this can be sim released on 3 platforms without some issues.

    3 days!

  • apoc_reg #67 6 months ago

    @torment74 You can't be serious. You clearly don't play many rpg's at launch!

  • blarty #68 6 months ago

    So is this what devs have to do to get a 10/10 from EG..... great big world, lots of exploration... but also make sure it's pretty buggy ?

  • DirectAim #69 6 months ago

    @PaulieWaulie I blame you then!

  • aidey6 #70 6 months ago

    A so called triple A game should not be getting a score of 10 with this many issues

  • wizbob #71 6 months ago

    this is a huge and intricate game and you have to cut them some slack

    Exactly what I was thinking - this is the most elaborate game I've ever played. I can't even imagine how you'd test the interactions between all the systems; I see unique events and outcomes happening every 5 minutes in the wilderness.

    It has the beautiful graphics of your average corridor shooter but underneath they're not even comparable. Most FPS games are just a bunch of scripts and assets on a third party engine.
    Edited by wizbob at 16/11/11 @ 10:54

  • pigsy2400 #72 6 months ago

    lol @ Calm Down Everyone!!!

    How about I paid Ģ44.99 for game that is essentially broken!!

    I dont have Xbox Live or an internet connection at home (yes I live in a cave) so pray tell, how am I going to update it?

    Reminds me of Fallout, you thought they would have learned from that!!

  • super_monty #73 6 months ago

    I stopped playing Fallout and Oblivion due to bugs, so will wait before buying this.

  • beatwolf #74 6 months ago

    game runs flawlessly om my pc. And looks absolutely stunning with some mods and and alterations to the different ini files.
    Havenīt had a single bug yet, and have been playing for 20+ hours. People really need to stop whining.
    Edited by beatwolf at 16/11/11 @ 11:28

  • Lalaland #75 6 months ago

    "We will fix as much as we can....be bothered to"
    or
    "We will fix as much as we can....but not as much as we should"

    Bethesda have never patched their games completely knowing that the community would take care of most issues for them. Yet I still bought this game on the back of the 10/10 reviews that seem to be ignorant of problems confirmed by multiple members of the Eurogamer team. Seriously did no-one at an editorial conference think to ask "Is this the only Bethesda release ever not to be bugged?".

    10/10 should be reserved for games that are exceptional not merely better than the prior game. But then Oblivion got a free pass despite being even more bugged so I guess it's only par for the course

  • Lalaland #76 6 months ago

    @beatwolf

    Stunning?!? Really? The distance textures look like something made in CorelDraw95 and the interface on PC is an abomination unto man and beast (less so on consoles but 10/10 it ain't). This looks as good as Gothic 3 did a few years ago but with the baffling decision to go with CPU shadow rendering that cripples lower end PCs and is a relic from the late 90s.

  • Lemming81 #77 6 months ago

    It's a Bethesda RPG. Hilarious bugs are part of the fun, for us PC users. Framerate and texture streaming issues however, are a bit more serious so hopefully they get fixed ASAP.

  • thesonglessbird #78 6 months ago

    As has been previously said, as the game approached its production deadline, bugs will have had to have been prioritised by importance. The bugs that they DID fix must've been pretty bad.

  • PoppaZombie #79 6 months ago

    As alot of people are saying, I love the game to bits but am shocked that they can release an unfinished product at full price and expect everyone to act as beta testers. Telling your trusting customers to 'Calm down' is outright disrespectful when you must know that the game wasn't ready for release. So many obvious and unfixed bugs can't just be ignored for a release date and then played down by the manufacturer. I've pre-ordered and queued for an unfinished game then told to chill out about it! Rotten way to do things Bathesda! Pete Hines needs to read his job title as Vice President of Public relations!!?? I could never talk to a complaining client like that without getting a rolicking or the sack.
    Ok, Im done complaining. I'm off to play Skyrim again. I still can't get enough of it and can't deny that.
    PS. Fix my damn weapons racks!

  • beatwolf #80 6 months ago

    Post deleted at 09:51:17 12-12-2011

  • beatwolf #81 6 months ago

    Act as beta testers? people obviously have no idea of what a beta is.

  • PoppaZombie #82 6 months ago

    Im a consumer not a game developer. I guess I thought 'beta testers' would be a sufficient phrase for getting a point across as it seems to be a popular word. I'll put it differently if you didnt get what I meant. game testers? will that do?

  • PoppaZombie #83 6 months ago

    I would ask for you to explain what a beta is as you are obviously itching to tell everyone but I really don't care. I just wanted to have a rant about buying a dodgy game that I'm unsure I will be able to finish due to lag.

  • Cose #84 6 months ago

    @pigsy2400 http://www.xbuc.net/ This is the best page ever to update your Xbox 360 games. The last patch of Skyrim is this one. 2517ABF8 Skyrim TU PAL 11. Nov 11 10:32 2.48 MB CDN | Direct | (697)