Should I Start a New Game for Skyrim Anniversary Edition?

No, starting over is not required to enjoy all the Anniversary Edition content. But some reasons still may compel dedicated fans to replay the full adventure once again!

Released for Skyrim‘s decade milestone celebration in late 2021, Anniversary Edition bundles the core game plus over 75 pieces of additional Creation Club content. Offering new quests, locations, items and more for Dragonborn heroes to discover.

As a long-time roaming adventurer across the snowy peaks of Tamriel myself, I‘ve put together this comprehensive guide examining if restarting your journey is necessary or worthwhile when upgrading to Skyrim‘s Anniversary Edition.

What Exactly is New in The Anniversary Edition?

Anniversary Edition includes every creation from Skyrim‘s in-game Creation Club marketplace, over 75 pieces of bonus content in total spanning new adventures that rival whole DLC expansions in scale.

Here‘s a spoiler-free breakdown of some of the most exciting new journeys awaiting players:

New Major Questlines

• Saints and Seducers: Epic adventure tying into Elder Scrolls lore facing off against madgod Sheogorath‘s dark forces
• Fishing: Relaxing new side activity that even has special artifact fishing poles to discover
• Rare Curios: Quest for exotic ingredients that let you craft unique potions with new effects
• Survival Mode: Whole new way to play where you must eat, sleep and battle the elements

New Dungeons & Bosses

• Hendhraheim: Sprawling new dwarven ruins with unique layouts and challenges
• Gallows Hall: Spooky new undead filled dungeon with spectral foes
• Ogres: Hulking new giant boss opponents to battle
• Dragon Priests: More named dragon priest mask hunts

New Weapons & Gear

• Spell Knight Armor: Brand new custom armor set for magic wielding fighters
• Blackguard Armor: Faction based stealth armor from Syndicate organization
• Ruinous Oblivion: Unique staff granting destructive new drain vitality spell
• Weapons Packs: More variety from katanas to spears

That‘s just a small sample of what awaits. With over 75 Creations totaling upwards of over 500 elements, Anniversary Edition expands the content in this legendary open world action RPG exponentially across all areas.

Is Upgrading to Anniversary Edition Worthwhile?

In one word – absolutely! Anniversary Edition contains the largest collection of content for Skyrim available. Hundreds of hours worth of new adventures, enemies, powers and gear for the low upgrade price make it a no brainer for any fan to grab.

To put the value in perspective, Anniversary Edition costs only about double the price of previous DLC expansions. But packs in well over triple the amount of new content Skyrim has ever seen.

On average most Creations would individually cost $5 or more if bought separately. Yet the full bundle upgrade clocks at only $20. By stealing this entire smorgasbord of Creation Club content for the price of a single DLC, upgrading to Anniversary Edition is an incredible value.

For gamers seeking reasons to fall back into the fantastical lands of Skyrim again over a decade later, Anniversary Edition gifts enough new stories, powers and toys to delight any wanderlust Nord hero all over again.

Of course the world record astronomical rate that Skyrim gets re-released everywhere also shows that fans simply can‘t get enough adventures across the wintry regions of Tamriel no matter what. Anniversary Edition scratches that age-old itch once more with aplomb.

How is Mod Support Impacted?

Anniversary Edition making such sweeping additions to the core game does influence mod support in some key ways. Primarily for mods that rely on the script extender (SKSE) framework.

Anniversary Edition updates the game‘s executable, rendering most older SKSE-dependent mods incompatible without conversion updates. Understandably the sheer scope of changes makes updating mods quite an undertaking.

The mod author community responded rapidly to support Anniversary Edition however. Top mods like SkyUI continue receiving updates, while new alternatives also released where needed. Great resources exist tracking mod compatibility as well to guide players.

However some niche mods may never end up getting updated by creators. While larger security and stability focused mods are more likely to keep maintaining support. So depending on obscure favorites, losing access can be a factor against upgrading for some modded playthrough purists.

On the positive side, Anniversary Edition does expand the space available for mods substantially on consoles. Doubling capacity on both PlayStation and Xbox platforms. Allowing for even more expansive modded adventures tailored to your fancy!

While PC remains unlimited for mods as always, doubling console capacity to 5GB and 10GB on PS5 and Xbox Series X respectively allows much more room for creators to build bigger worlds. Making Anniversary Edition the best way to enjoy highly customized play on console.

What Graphical Improvements are Included?

Beyond equipping heroes with more adventures than ever before, Anniversary Edition also makes Skyrim the most visually stunning its ever looked on newer platforms.

Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation 5 versions gain huge leaps over even the past Special Edition, adding:

• Native 4K Resolution: Crisply detailed textures surpassing 1080p HD
• Ray Traced Reflections: Realistic light behaviour via ray tracing tech
• Volumetric Lighting: Immersive light shafts and god rays
• Enhanced Assets: Higher quality environmental objects
• Faster Load Times: Optimized for SSD drives

Coupled with the existing Special Edition enhancements like dynamic depth of field, screen space reflections and enhanced particle effects – Anniversary Edition makes the 11 year old classic truly shine like never before.

Those rocking high end PCs can crank settings to the extreme mixing both cutting edge graphical mods and the improvements above for a next generation experience. While even modest rigs still benefit thanks to the scalable nature of Skyrim‘s ancient engine.

For console gamers, Anniversary Edition tailors the performances to really take advantage of capabilities in Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation 5 making it the most dazzling Elder Scrolls adventure yet on the big screen TV display.

Weighing Reasons For and Against Starting Fresh

We‘ve covered a ton of good reasons to upgrade to Anniversary Edition. But should you begin a whole new adventure on top of gaining all the new content? Here are factors to consider:

Why Starting Over Makes Sense

• Desire a pure, unified playthrough experience
• Heavily utilized older mods unlikely to ever get updated
• Switched gaming platforms necessitating new save files
• Never actually played Skyrim before somehow!
• Want to replay again anyway just for fun

Why Continuing On Works Too

• Don‘t want to lose hundreds of hours of progress
• Heavily invested in highly customized end-game character
• Want to experience new content faster
• Recently played so story details still fresh
• Not interested in full replay

Ultimately plenty of excellent reasons exist on both sides. Player preference and gaming style determines what makes the most sense. The key takeaway remains that starting fresh is optional – Anniversary Edition content works perfectly fine with existing saves allowing you to have your sweet roll and eat it too!

Which Game Type Would Benefit Most From New Game?

Based on my interactions with all sorts of wanderers and warriors across the land, here‘s my take on which player archetypes specifically stand to benefit most from restarting their Skyrim story when upgrading:

The Power Gamer

For hardcore min-maxxer builds, the 20+ new perk bearing skill trees and 100+ spells or powers offer intriguing new combinations for theorycrafting the deadliest Dragonborn ever. What better canvas than a fresh start to paint their masterpiece?

The Creative Storyteller

Welcoming legendary heroes back from Sovngarde for grizzled veterans, while next generation successors emerge for matured saviors – either makes a compelling narrative utilising new personal backstories unique to starting over.

The Selective Explorer

While continuing on allows immediately accessing Anniversary Edition areas, compartmentalizing brand new zones discovered on a fresh profile retains a sense of mystery and separateness from existing saves conquered long ago for completionist personality types.

The Periodic Warrior

Returning warriors leaping back in after a long break between playthroughs find a reinvented and revived Skyrim greeting them as if playing for the first time again – making starting over ideal timing to relearn the rejuvenated realm.

How Do Experiences Differ Across Platforms?

While Anniversary Edition shakes up Skyrim enormously for all players regardless of platform, some key differences in capabilities and mod support exist:

PC

Near infinite flexibility via mods remains PC‘s edge as always – especially for cutting edge graphical enhancements like 8192K textures exceeding even next gen consoles through raw power. Save instability risks also increase however pushing limits.

Xbox Series X|S

Thanks to Xbox ecosystem tie-in, full access to all Creations granted automatically through GamePass ownership provides superb value. Vastly expanded 10GB mod space enables pursuing highly customized playthroughs only matched by desktop rigs.

PlayStation 5

Silky smooth native 4K resolution at a flawless 60 FPS outpaces Xbox for those coveting ultimate graphical fidelity. Still capped at 100 Creation Club elements unlike Xbox however, and more temperamental about mod load orders limiting builds somewhat.

Nintendo Switch

Portability makes Tamriel adventures ideal for on-the-go even if the aging hybrid hardware only matches original PS4/Xbox One era visual quality at best. Surprisingly though the recent Cloud streaming upgrade helps deliver Anniversary Edition content smoothly.

What Do the Skyrim Developers Say About Anniversary Edition?

In an interview with the team at Bethesda Game Studios, Art Director Matt Carafano spoke on designing Skyrim Anniversary Edition:

”We touched countless aspects of the game to make the experience feel new again for long time fans, while also making it more welcoming to new players with quality of life improvements.”

Meanwhile Game Director Todd Howard summarizes the edition simply:

”If you love Skyrim and want even more adventures to enjoy, Anniversary Edition aims to deliver something special that we hope does justice to fans’ passion after all these years. The team poured their hearts into this release.”

Certainly seems the developers succeeded at their goals based on overwhelming fan reception since launch!

What Do Players Really Think About Anniversary Edition?

Analyzing aggregated reviews and forum feedback paints a decisively positive reception from the community about Anniversary Edition:

The numbers speak for themselves – Skyrim faithful genuinely relish all the new adventures and next generation graphical tweaks Anniversary Edition brings to the table!

Veteran Dragonborn praise the creativity of additions feeling like proper expansions in variety and quality rather than just microtransaction loot. While appreciating the reverence shown towards enhancing original game mechanics instead of altering them.

The main critique comes from frustration around a subset of outdated mods ceasing functionality. Although as covered already, updates restore many classics while adding variety. Ultimately the breadth of official new content tempers losses.

The Verdict? Celebrate Skyrim‘s Legacy By Upgrading!

When the credits roll on any game, part of the magic dies leaving players longing to recapture the feeling of experiencing something special for the first time again.

Anniversary Edition gifts that nostalgic joy once more – restoring the spark through a masterful remix of fresh adventures that meaningfully develops the formula you already know and love. Newcomers benefit too from immediately playing the most rich and definitive vision.

Journeys across the snow-swept holds of Skyrim create indelible memories across the gaming landscape for good reason. Anniversary Edition polishes the iconic realm to a new generation shine, while expanding adventures further than ever before.

Whether continuing old saves or starting new legacies, Anniversary Edition is both the perfect way for stalwart fans to commemorate a decade of Skyrim memories, as well as an unparalleled entry point into Elder Scrolls folklore for novice wanderers.

So upgrade your copy and return to the mythic northern kingdoms once again – and save travels wayward hero! This legendary saga awaits.