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If you miss Skyrim, the best next game depends on what you want back: more Elder Scrolls lore, first-person fantasy role-play, aimless discovery, a strong story, or a world to explore with other people. No single pick reproduces all of Skyrim’s strengths. Here are eight alternatives matched to those different tastes, with the trade-offs made clear.
Which part of Skyrim do you want again?
Skyrim combines an open-ended fantasy setting, flexible character-building, exploration, and side quests. Other games tend to share one or two of those qualities rather than the whole package. Use this as a guide to the kind of experience you want, not as a ranking or a claim that these games are interchangeable.
- More Elder Scrolls: Try Oblivion Remastered or Morrowind.
- First-person fantasy role-playing: Look at Enderal: Forgotten Stories.
- Open-world fantasy with a defined lead character: Choose The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.
- Exploration where combat is a bigger test: Consider Elden Ring.
- Historical immersion instead of fantasy: Try Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2.
- Bethesda-style exploration in a different setting: Consider Fallout 4.
- Tamriel with other players: Choose The Elder Scrolls Online.
Games for more Elder Scrolls
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered
This is the most direct choice if what you miss is the Elder Scrolls setting and its worldbuilding. It is another mainline series entry, rather than a continuation of Skyrim’s story. Bethesda’s game catalog lists the remastered game and its platform or storefront options; check the current listing for the edition and platform you intend to use.
The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind
For an older journey into Tamriel, Morrowind offers a different Elder Scrolls world and a focus on character customization. Bethesda describes its “seemingly limitless character customization options and immersive environments, unheralded for its time” on the Bethesda Game Studios site. That description is explicitly framed in its historical context: expect an older game, not a modern remake of Skyrim’s design.
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#1 Best Overall
- Winner of more than 200 Game of the Year Awards, Skyrim Special Edition brings the epic fantasy to life in stunning detail.
- The Special Edition includes the critically acclaimed game and add-ons with all-new features.
- All-new features include remastered art and effects, volumetric god rays, dynamic depth of field, screen-space reflections, and more.
- Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) Content Description: Blood and gore, intense violence, sexual themes, use of alcohol
Games for fantasy role-playing and discovery
Enderal: Forgotten Stories
Enderal is a dark-fantasy total conversion built on Skyrim, making it a distinctive option if you want a first-person fantasy role-playing experience in a new setting. It is not a standalone game in the same sense as the other entries here. The cited listing describes a PC version; check current distribution and any ownership or installation requirements before planning to play.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Choose The Witcher 3 if you want a large fantasy world and a story-led journey. Its approach is more centered on a defined protagonist and narrative than Skyrim’s open-ended character role-play, so it may suit you less if inventing your own character and shaping a personal sandbox are the main attractions.
Rank #2
- EPIC FANTASY REBORN - Skyrim reimagines and revolutionizes the open-world fantasy epic, bringing to life a complete virtual world open for you to explore any way you choose.
- LIVE ANOTHER LIFE, IN ANOTHER WORLD - Play any type of character you can imagine, and do whatever you want; the legendary freedom of choice, storytelling, and adventure of The Elder Scrolls is realized like never before.
- YOU ARE WHAT YOU PLAY - Choose from hundreds of weapons, spells, and abilities. The new character system allows you to play any way you want and define yourself through your actions.
- BATTLE DRAGONS - Battle ancient dragons like you’ve never seen. As Dragonborn, learn their secrets and harness their power for yourself.
- INCLUDED CONTENT - The Anniversary Edition includes the core game, pre-existing and new Creation Club content, plus all three official add-ons: Dawnguard, Hearthfire, and Dragonborn.
Elden Ring
Elden Ring is a fit for players who want to uncover a dangerous world and are comfortable with combat that is more punishing than Skyrim’s usual rhythm. Its discovery-led exploration shares some appeal with wandering off the main path, but the combat challenge and storytelling approach are substantial differences.
Games for immersion outside high fantasy
Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2
If your favorite Skyrim moments were about inhabiting a world and getting absorbed in its journeys, Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 offers a grounded historical setting. It trades dragons, magic, and fantasy races for historical realism, so it is a change of genre rather than a fantasy substitute.
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- ANNIVERSARY EDITION CONTENT — Includes the base game, Dawnguard, Hearthfire, Dragonborn, and hundreds of Creation Club items such as quests, weapons, armor, spells, and dungeons.
- SWITCH 2 ENHANCEMENTS — Explore Skyrim with updated visuals, improved load times, and optimized performance for Nintendo Switch 2.
- SHAPE YOUR ADVENTURE — Choose your character and decide how to play in an open world that responds to your actions.
- BUILD YOUR CHARACTER — Choose from hundreds of weapons, spells, and abilities to define your play style.
- BATTLE DRAGONS — Face ancient dragons as the Dragonborn, learn their secrets, and harness their power.
Fallout 4
Fallout 4 carries a Bethesda-style open-world exploration approach into a post-apocalyptic science-fiction setting. Bethesda says players can “create any kind of character you want and explore the open wastes of Washington, D.C. however you choose” on its studio site. Expect a wasteland and more firearm-focused play, not Skyrim’s high-fantasy atmosphere. Bethesda’s catalog lists current product platform or storefront options; confirm the listing for your region and platform.
Want to explore Tamriel with other people?
The Elder Scrolls Online
The Elder Scrolls Online is the multiplayer, shared-world route into Tamriel. It can work if the setting matters more than having a private, solo campaign, but its online multiplayer structure makes it a different kind of experience from Skyrim.
Rank #4
- Winner of more than 200 game of the year awards, Skyrim special edition brings the epic fantasy to life in stunning detail
- The special edition includes the critically acclaimed game and add-ons with all-new features
- All-new features include remastered art and effects, volumetric god rays, dynamic depth of field, screen-space reflections, and more
- Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) Content Description: Blood and gore, intense violence, sexual themes, use of alcohol
How to choose
| If you want… | Try | Main difference from Skyrim |
|---|---|---|
| Another Elder Scrolls setting | Oblivion Remastered | Another series entry, not a new Skyrim campaign. |
| Older Elder Scrolls worldbuilding and customization | Morrowind | An older game whose design reflects its era. |
| First-person dark fantasy | Enderal: Forgotten Stories | A Skyrim-based conversion; verify current PC distribution and requirements. |
| Narrative-led fantasy | The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | A defined protagonist and more story-centered role-playing. |
| Challenging exploration | Elden Ring | More punishing combat and a different storytelling approach. |
| Grounded historical immersion | Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 | Historical realism instead of fantasy. |
| Bethesda-style open-world exploration in sci-fi | Fallout 4 | Post-apocalyptic setting and firearm-focused play. |
| Tamriel as a shared world | The Elder Scrolls Online | Online multiplayer rather than a solo campaign. |
Before buying, check the current platform and edition listing for the game you choose. Bethesda’s catalog is the primary place to confirm its listed Bethesda titles and storefront options: Bethesda.net catalog.
Quick Recap
Best Value
- Live Another Life, In Another World: Play any type of character you can imagine, and do whatever you want; the freedom of choice, storytelling, and adventure of The Elder Scrolls comes to life in one legendary experience from all three official add-ons.
- Dawnguard: The Vampire Lord Harkon has returned to power. By using the Elder Scrolls, he seeks to do the unthinkable - to end the sun itself. Will you join the ancient order of the Dawnguard and stop him? Or will you become a Vampire Lord?
- Hearthfire: Purchase land and build your own home from the ground up - from a simple one-room cottage to a sprawling compound complete with an armory, alchemy laboratory, and more.
- Dragonborn: Journey off the coast of Morrowind, to the vast island of Solstheim. Traverse the ash wastes and glacial valleys of this new land as you become more powerful with shouts that bend the will of your enemies and even tame dragons.
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