Skyrim is nearly 14 years old, yet I still find myself reinstalling it again and again. I’ve been playing since 2015 and it keeps drawing me back. Today I will be exploring the reasons why this is.

The World Still Feels Alive

The immersive open world is one that still rivals newer games. There is freedom to roam, explore caves, and stumble into unknown questlines. This sense of discovery never seems to age for me.
To me this is the dark version of Breath of The Wild. As things can happen that you never expect to- I feel like going anywhere has a sense of whimsicalness. The best thing that has happened in game was when Whiterun glitched out and I could see all the NPC’s. To me, this was whimsical as it was a playful bug I’ve never seen again.

Mods: Skyrim’s Secret Weapon

Luckily, there is a huge modding community keeping the game fresh. There’s regular new quests, mechanics, and town/city overhauls. Adding mods when I restart makes Skyrim feel like a new game every time.
My favourite mods to play with are:

• Epic Enhanced Console Graphics V5
• Phenderix Magic Evolved Reloaded Part 1 and Part 2
• Obsidian Weathers
• Anything to do with JK’s town/city overhaul
• Point the way

I would say that these mods are good if you want mods but also the vanilla experience. They add better graphics, weathers, and magic spells. It’s got everything you’d want to add to a near perfect vanilla game.

The Role-Playing Freedom

There’s a wonderous ability to create endless characters: thief, mage, warrior, pacifist, vampire, werewolf. Anything you want to be- you can be it. Player-driven storytelling and choices that keep gameplay unique. That is the appeal of living another life in Tamriel.
You CAN be anything. If you want to be an assassin, you can. If you want to spend your life as a companion, you can. If you want to be a sneak thief stealing all the sweet rolls. You guessed it, you can!

Nostalgia Factor

This is pretty much a given. I’ve been playing since I was around 10 or 11. Skyrim got me through the last year of primary school, all of secondary school and sixth form, and now early adult life. All of these times I knew when life got hard, Skyrim was there for me. It’s comforting going back to a world that is an escape. By this point, Skyrim is home away from home. Nothing will ever take that away from me- not even those damned Stormcloaks.

The TLDR of What Keeps Me Coming Back in 2025

• The mods! Especially the ones that keep the vanilla feel to the game.
• Skyrim isn’t perfect, but it doesn’t need to be—its imperfections are part of the fun.
• Nostalgia and endless replay potential. Even after playing this game for ten years, there’s always ideas for how to play in a new way.

Skyrim has been released on three consoles and yet it still feels relevant today. So my questions for you are:
Do you still play Skyrim in 2025? What keeps you coming back?