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• Adman

  

  • 5 posts
   

  January 26, 2012 3:54 AM EST

  I'm currently on the second book in the epic fantasy A Song of Ice and Fire by George R R Martin and I've noticed heaps of similarities with Skyrim. Particularly in A Game of Thrones with names like Riverrun, Winterfell, The Vale, Dragonstone, dragons!!! etc... I'm loving these books and it goes so well with Skyrim, i was just wondering whether anyone else had noticed this too. And whether the creators of Skyrim were in part influenced by these books???

  On a similar vane, what books/movies do you think have helped influenced this game?

• Chris Yarbrough

  

  • 3 posts
   

  January 26, 2012 6:06 AM EST

  Yeah, the similarities are definitely there. Especially with Skyrim,being a
  More politically charged game. I'm on the fourth book and I can
  Promise it geys waaaay crazier! :). Just a thought, wouldnt it be amazing for george
  R.R. to pen the story for an Elderscrolls game? Food would undoubtedly
  Play a large role in the story ;p
• Guy Corbett

  

  • 426 posts
   

  January 26, 2012 7:45 AM EST

  Yeah I can see the similarities but for me they are seperate worlds. I love game of thrones but it is def more policical and social than Skyrim is. With the difference of races and magic Skyrim is more of a fantasy world.

• Paiea

  

  • 82 posts
   

  January 26, 2012 9:17 AM EST

  There are some interesting cross overs.  It would be strange if a maker of a fantasy game didn't pay attention to what's popular these days.  I remember Oblivion was closer to when Lord of the Rings came out, and the landscape seems very bright and shiny like the movies.  Now fantasy is all about being darker and grudgier because Game of Thrones, and Skyrim seem to follow that as well.

  Plus it doesn't help if your like me and name your Assassin character Jaqen.  

  FYI:  I am also reading the second book right now. 

• Adman

  

  • 5 posts
   

  January 26, 2012 6:37 PM EST

  Haha nice choice of character! He was pretty cool alright.

• Adman

  

  • 5 posts
   

  January 26, 2012 6:39 PM EST

  Yeah that would be pretty cool. I love the political side of things with the five factions battling it out in A Clash of Kings. Tyrion is a great character, he's so crafty!

• Paul

  

  • 773 posts
   

  January 26, 2012 6:55 PM EST

  I remember that they released a 'teaser' for Game of Thrones in the form of the first 15 minutes of the first episode. It was set at the Wall, as the Night Watch patrol was attacked by Wildings. Because of the snowy environment, the fact that Castle Black had a 'look' of Windhelm, and the people seemed to be similar to the Nords, I remember thinking 'Wow, that sure looks like Skyrim' (even though it was long before Skyrim came out)

  Once the series started to unfold, I became immersed in the world, and the differences became more apparent. Frankly the world is richer, more developed and well drawn than Skyrim - as you would expect when comparing a multi-part epic fantasy novel with a computer game/

  But, yeah, there are similarities in the 'vibe' that you get when watching Game of Thrones

  And, of course, I am very much looking forward to Season 2 

• Piper Jo

  

  • 80 posts
   

  January 26, 2012 7:12 PM EST

  Beowulf--not the movie, the Anglo-Saxon epic poem about a Geatish (Southern Sweden) hero who rescues the king of Denmark and his people from a mountain troll and a sea hag and then becomes king and dies in combat with a dragon.  

  And of course, let's not forget the Poetic Eddas: The Poetic Edda is a collection of Old Norse poems primarily preserved in the Icelandic mediaeval manuscript Codex Regius. Along withSnorri Sturluson's Prose Edda, the Poetic Edda is the most important extant source on Norse mythology and Germanic heroic legends, and from the early 19th century onwards has had a powerful influence on later Scandinavian literatures, not merely through the stories it contains but through the visionary force and dramatic quality of many of the poems. (Wikipedia)

  Just saying--all those movies and novels are based on the mythology and cultures described in these ancient sources.

• Adman

  

  • 5 posts
   

  January 27, 2012 1:47 AM EST

  I still havn't watched the first season! My parents recently bought it though so I can't wait to get my hands on it.

  Obviously there are loads of differences like you say, its just that that I was reading Game of Thrones at the same time as playing Skyrim and just felt like they complement each other so well.

• Carrie

  

  • 1 posts
   

  March 26, 2012 5:12 PM EDT

  I definitely noticed the similarities. I haven't read the books yet, but I just recently got caught up on the first season and the whole time I kept thinking this to myself http://imgur.com/J3Nbw Haha :)

• ricardo maia

  

  • 133 posts
   

  March 26, 2012 5:40 PM EDT

  Conventions of fantasy literature, including epic fantasy and sword and sorcery were established by english fantasy literature from the middle of 20 century (Tolkien, Peake, Lewis, L. Alexander) and american pulp fiction of the 20's and 30's (howard, borroughs, etc.). These conventions include stuff like good x evil, the quest, the prophecy hero, the fantasy races (gnomes, elves, orcs, etc.), the rule of magic and the absence of technology, the setting in a medieval/ancient scenery, the creation of a fantasy universe with its own history and lore, etc... Medieval fantasy rpg's from the 80's took those conventions to the world of interative gaming, like D&D, and later to videogames like TES series - that's the source of those simillarities.

  If you liked Song of Ice and Fire style, there are others equally exciting books that you may also like. I reccomend: Tolkien's Lord of The Rings; Melvyn Peake Gormengahst trilogy; Jordan's Wheel of Time; Saberhaghen's Lost Swords books; Gene Wolfe's New Sun books; P J Farmer World of Tiers books; Zelazny's Amber series. They are the best in this gender, that I love, besides Martin's work.

• CR Stokes

  

  • 104 posts
   

  December 20, 2013 5:33 PM EST

  Funny you mention this. I got into ASoIaF back around... 2003? EGM had a Christmas article on gifts and they recommended the series for fans of Morrowind. I got em read em and was excited for the series but dissapoint in the mainstream fans it brought along. (I mean lore wise... Hard to converse w people who have only seen the series)
• CR Stokes

  

  • 104 posts
   

  December 20, 2013 5:36 PM EST

  RA Salvatore ftw. Drizzt Do'Urden. 'Nuff said.
  
  Also Dragonlance (Tanis Half-Elven and Raistlen Majere). I actually cried when a certain character died.
• Tataunka

  

  • 91 posts
   

  December 20, 2013 5:50 PM EST

  I know it probably makes me a pariah around these parts but I honestly don't like the tv show GoT. I've watched 6 episodes and it's just extremely dull and has too much sex. I mean sex can help further a story at times but it seems like they just put waaaaay too many scenes in, most of which could easily be taken out without even bothering the flow of the story in the slightest.

  As for the books I have yet to read them, but if they're anything like the show I'd probably have to take a pass. : /

• CR Stokes

  

  • 104 posts
   

  December 20, 2013 5:54 PM EST

  Honestly, I've read the books and can't get into the show. I loved the books.
  
  The tv show is well and good but... I've only seen the first twelve episodes?
  
  Then again one of my favorite tv shows is Farscape and I don't watch Walking Dead or Breaking Bad.
• Tataunka

  

  • 91 posts
   

  December 20, 2013 6:20 PM EST

  I love the Walking Dead but GoT and Breaking Bad are both really hard for me to get into. Breaking Bad probably because I just can't get into a story about drug dealers, and GoT because it honestly just drags on way too much. I know the same argument could be used against Walking Dead since it has a lot of filler and can drag on a bit at times but for some reason zombies make that ok. Creepy viking sex does not.

• Matt Walker

  

  • 89 posts
   

  December 20, 2013 8:54 PM EST

  There certainly is a lot of sex both in the show and the books. There was also a lot of sex in the Middle Ages. At no point does the sex in ASOIAF get in the way of the story, and it's usually a plot point. I actually felt that they've done it surprisingly well in GOT, even adding a couple moments and characters that have been both plot movers and an occasional laugh.

  And for inspiration, look no further than Whiterun. From the design of the city to the horse sigil on the shields to its location on open plains. It's Edoras from the Lord of the Rings.

• Premier Eden

  

  • 152 posts
   

  December 20, 2013 9:59 PM EST

  Personally, I see similarities if you think of skyrim as the North + the Vale. The Reach is the Vale, and The rest of Skyrim is the North.

  Note: I have read all the books

  SPOILERS RESIDE HERE

  In depth lore BTW

  Who else thinks John Snow is going to be one of the Dragon riders? Seeing as we still have two left to fill... I think the other Targaryan will probably get smashed by the Lannisters, and maybe Tyrion will be the last rider, ironically?

  END SPOILERS

• CR Stokes

  

  • 104 posts
   

  December 21, 2013 8:16 AM EST

  Lol. TWD infuriates me. Every episode ends with a cliffhanger.
• CR Stokes

  

  • 104 posts
   

  December 21, 2013 8:18 AM EST

  I'm on the last book let me get back to you on that. He takes so long to publish it is depressing.
• Shuuiketsu

  

  • 127 posts
   

  December 21, 2013 9:43 AM EST

  Fudge you, you little piece of shirt. I saw your comment on the main page and I just wanted to thank you.

• Mr.

  

  • 763 posts
   

  December 21, 2013 10:05 AM EST

  ASOIAF Spoilers

  I really hope Jon Snow stays that way. I hated him trough all books, and he only got interesting in the fifth one.

  And the other Targaryen is not a Targaryen, but a Blackfyre, I think. And if he and the Golden Company are going to be smashed, it probably won't be by the Lannisters.
  On a side note, concerning the Golden Company, I must say I really like the Griff... It's so sad...

  On another side note: Stannis is the true and logical heir to the Throne. Oh, and I HATE Daenerys Targaryen. (Although Selmy likes her, and I like Selmy...)

• Matt Walker

  

  • 89 posts
   

  December 21, 2013 4:03 PM EST

  Spoilers and also random speculation.

  I think Jon Snow is the son of Lyanna Stark and Rhaegar Targaryen, giving him the dragon blood and allowing him to be one of the heads of the dragon. In answer to his apparent death at the end of Dance with Dragons, I bet, like the wildling warg he killed, Snow is preserved in Ghost's body. Melisandre eventually uses blood magic to put him back in his body. Or I'm totally wrong. Who knows? 

• Kevin

  

  • 36 posts
   

  December 21, 2013 4:06 PM EST

  No this is what we should be thinking about.
• CR Stokes

  

  • 104 posts
   

  December 21, 2013 5:41 PM EST

  http://i2.wp.com/mayuonline.com/eblog/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/george-r-r-margin-meme.jpg