"...But all of that was merely a diversion, so that no-one would notice something else. The death of the Light-born has set something into motion. A clockwork, having long stood still, it's gears now once again slowly began to turn..."

What is Enderal: Forgotten Stories and why have I never heard of it you may ask. Short answer - it's a masterpiece. However, judging by your decision to read this review, I suppose you want to hear more than that. Enderal is in fact a total conversion for TES:V Skyrim. In reality, it's much more than that and calling Enderal a mod is an understatement.
What this game offers is it's own unique and rich world full of great beliveable characters, lore and story.
Enderal came out in 2016 under the name of Enderal: Shards of the Order and then, three years later, got it's own DLC and a new name: Forgotten Stories.

I should note that Enderal is free on steam and can be played by anyone owning a legal copy of TES V: Skyrim. (No DLCs are necessary.) It is developed non-commercially by SureAI, the team behind the renowned Oblivion mod "Nehrim: At Fate's Edge"

One thing I noticed when playing is that Enderal is very well aware of Skyrim's biggers flaws such as (frankly) the main storyline. Yet Enderal turn these flaws into it's greatest strengths. The world of Vyn (gaming world) feels so much more alive, characters are well-written and at times, they challenge your beliefs and your attitude toward a situation.
Simply put: Enderal's story feels like reading a book - it doesn't stop being interesting. Almost everything you do is somehow tied to the main story.

The playable world is full of interesting quests to complete, sights to see and characters to interact with. The environment consists of lush green forests, verdant meadows, autumn golden valleys and sunny coasts fit for a solid open world game.
The landscape is crafted in a way to show the player most beautiful sights. There are countless towns, villages, caves and ancient ruins to keep you entertained along the way.

Because Enderal and Skyrim shares the same engine. The gameplay, movement and inventory management is very similar. First off, I should note that this game is quite dialogue heavy, some conversations can take quite some time. That's just something you want to be ready for. I myself do not mind this, but I understand there are some players who don't feel the same way.

When it comes to combat, at first it may seem like a copy-paste from skyrim. You can use sword and shield, magic, bow etc etc. However, don't be fooled by the first impression as you may regret it later. The combat in Enderal is much more difficult and complex than in Skyrim. Got overwhelmed by a pack of wolves? You're done. Early game of Enderal is very challenging and you have to treat your every step with care. At times I got an impression that I'm playing a survival game which may or may not occure to you but for me, it was a big plus. The means of how you can fight an enemy are well designed and there are a lot of ways of how you can approach the target.
Enderal introduces a very different way of leveling and managing your perks. You can combine two or more skill trees together and tailor your own "profession", so to speak. Another welcome addition are unlockable talents - abilities that provides help in a fight by variety of buffs and changes so that you can even base an entire playstyle around one.

You combine all that and you have a solid gameplay. Roleplaying is certainly Enderal's strong suit. Bottom line is - if you enjoyed Skyrim, there's a pretty high change you'll enjoy Enderal too without feeling it like a repetition.

The Gods are dead. Is there a better place for the game to throw you into than a strongly religious country with a Theocratic goverment? I don't think so. Welcome to Enderal, a country ruled by the Holy Order. The Order has shut down most of the trade routes due to the risk of spreading "false" rumors of the Light-born's death over to Enderal. Suffice to say, the country has seen better times for sure. Common folk suffer a disease called the Red Madness, dead rise from their graves... something is brewing.

Allow me to explain why I named this review the way I did. This game doesn't follow your typical storyline of one great good versus one big bad. Enderal offers a dark, thought-through psychological storyline and the main part is that you face an invisible threat, you can't punch your way out of problems and because of this, you often feel powerless, unable to do the good because there is no good you can do. Every choice leaves you asking if you've done the right thing. I can't count how many times I felt like everything has gone to 𝔰𝔥𝔦𝔱 only to find a spark of hope that's ultimately extinguished by even more despair. You basically feel every moment, you dread for every situation, for every character close to you.

Speaking of characters, this game turns another Skyrim's flaw into Enderal's biggest strength. Real beliveable characters with actual character arcs, human flaws and realistic dialogue. As I mentioned before, Enderal's characters are well-writen and often challenge your intentions and choices. This includes both romance options. But out of all characters the game has to offer, two in particular has stuck inside my mind: Jespar Dal'Varek and Grandmaster Tealor Arantheal.

Forgotten Stories DLC:

Enderal's free dlc contains multiple new storylines, all containing new items, soundtracks and locations. The Rhalâta storyline is the beating heart of this DLC and it alone makes this game worth it.

Honestly speaking, I can't get enough of Enderal's soundtrack, calm and battle music alike. The piano motif that appears in most of Enderal's soundtracks really help to capture the soul of this game. Marvin Kopp is a legend.

Now that we're nearing the end of my review, you may wonder that it's too positive to be true and honestly, I don't have any major negative points towards this game simply because there is nothing that could negate all the good stuff to the point of turning the game away. So if you own Legendary copy of Skyrim, I recomend you to play Enderal: Forgotten Stories, you will not regret it as the experience is simply too wonderful.

Enderal: Forgotten Stories is one of few games that has earned a special place in my heart and even bound by the limitation of Bethesda's engine, developer team SureAI has created truly a masterpiece.

+ Compelling story
+ Interesting and beliveable characters
+ Challenging gameplay
+ Incredible soundtrack
------------------------------------------
- Bound by Bethesda's game engine

[h1][b][u]Enderal: Forgotten Stories or - How to make your audience dread[/u][/b][/h1] [i]"...But all of that was merely a diversion, so that no-one would notice something else. The death of the Light-born has set something into motion. A clockwork, having long stood still, it's gears now once again slowly began to turn..."[/i] What is Enderal: Forgotten Stories and why have I never heard of it you may ask. Short answer - it's a [b]masterpiece.[/b] However, judging by your decision to read this review, I suppose you want to hear more than that. Enderal is in fact a total conversion for TES:V Skyrim. In reality, it's much more than that and calling Enderal a mod is an understatement. What this game offers is it's own unique and rich world full of great beliveable characters, lore and story. Enderal came out in 2016 under the name of Enderal: Shards of the Order and then, three years later, got it's own DLC and a new name: Forgotten Stories. I should note that Enderal is [u]free[/u] on steam and can be played by anyone owning a legal copy of TES V: Skyrim. (No DLCs are necessary.) It is developed non-commercially by [u]SureAI[/u], the team behind the renowned Oblivion mod "Nehrim: At Fate's Edge" [h1][b][u]Enderal's world design[/u][/b][/h1] One thing I noticed when playing is that Enderal is very well aware of Skyrim's biggers flaws such as (frankly) the main storyline. Yet Enderal turn these flaws into it's greatest strengths. The world of Vyn (gaming world) feels so much more alive, characters are well-written and at times, they challenge your beliefs and your attitude toward a situation. Simply put: Enderal's story feels like reading a book - it doesn't stop being interesting. Almost everything you do is somehow tied to the main story. The playable world is full of interesting quests to complete, sights to see and characters to interact with. The environment consists of lush green forests, verdant meadows, autumn golden valleys and sunny coasts fit for a solid open world game. The landscape is crafted in a way to show the player most beautiful sights. There are countless towns, villages, caves and ancient ruins to keep you entertained along the way. [h1][b][u]Gameplay[/u][/b][/h1] Because Enderal and Skyrim shares the same engine. The gameplay, movement and inventory management is very similar. First off, I should note that this game is quite dialogue heavy, some conversations can take quite some time. That's just something you want to be ready for. I myself do not mind this, but I understand there are some players who don't feel the same way. When it comes to combat, at first it may seem like a copy-paste from skyrim. You can use sword and shield, magic, bow etc etc. However, don't be fooled by the first impression as you may regret it later. The combat in Enderal is much more difficult and complex than in Skyrim. Got overwhelmed by a pack of wolves? You're done. Early game of Enderal is very challenging and you have to treat your every step with care. At times I got an impression that I'm playing a survival game which may or may not occure to you but for me, it was a big plus. The means of how you can fight an enemy are well designed and there are a lot of ways of how you can approach the target. Enderal introduces a very different way of leveling and managing your perks. You can combine two or more skill trees together and tailor your own "profession", so to speak. Another welcome addition are unlockable [b]talents[/b] - abilities that provides help in a fight by variety of buffs and changes so that you can even base an entire playstyle around one. You combine all that and you have a solid gameplay. Roleplaying is certainly Enderal's strong suit. Bottom line is - if you enjoyed Skyrim, there's a pretty high change you'll enjoy Enderal too without feeling it like a repetition. [h1][b][u]Story and DLC (light spoiler)[/u][/b][/h1] The Gods are dead. Is there a better place for the game to throw you into than a strongly religious country with a Theocratic goverment? I don't think so. Welcome to Enderal, a country ruled by the Holy Order. The Order has shut down most of the trade routes due to the risk of spreading "false" rumors of the Light-born's death over to Enderal. Suffice to say, the country has seen better times for sure. Common folk suffer a disease called the Red Madness, dead rise from their graves... something is brewing. Allow me to explain why I named this review the way I did. This game doesn't follow your typical storyline of one great good versus one big bad. Enderal offers a dark, thought-through psychological storyline and the main part is that you face an invisible threat, you can't punch your way out of problems and because of this, you often feel powerless, unable to do the good because there is no good you can do. Every choice leaves you asking if you've done the right thing. I can't count how many times I felt like everything has gone to 𝔰𝔥𝔦𝔱 only to find a spark of hope that's ultimately extinguished by even more despair. You basically feel every moment, you dread for every situation, for every character close to you. Speaking of characters, this game turns another Skyrim's flaw into Enderal's biggest strength. Real beliveable characters with actual character arcs, human flaws and realistic dialogue. As I mentioned before, Enderal's characters are well-writen and often challenge your intentions and choices. This includes both romance options. But out of all characters the game has to offer, two in particular has stuck inside my mind: Jespar Dal'Varek and Grandmaster Tealor Arantheal. [b][u]Forgotten Stories DLC:[/u][/b] [quote]Enderal's free dlc contains multiple new storylines, all containing new items, soundtracks and locations. The Rhalâta storyline is the beating heart of this DLC and it alone makes this game worth it.[/quote] [h1][b][u]Soundtracks[/u][/b][/h1] Honestly speaking, I can't get enough of Enderal's soundtrack, calm and battle music alike. The piano motif that appears in most of Enderal's soundtracks really help to capture the soul of this game. Marvin Kopp is a legend. [h1][b][u]Summary[/u][/b][/h1] Now that we're nearing the end of my review, you may wonder that it's too positive to be true and honestly, I don't have any major negative points towards this game simply because there is nothing that could negate all the good stuff to the point of turning the game away. So if you own Legendary copy of Skyrim, I recomend you to play Enderal: Forgotten Stories, you will not regret it as the experience is simply too wonderful. Enderal: Forgotten Stories is one of few games that has earned a special place in my heart and even bound by the limitation of Bethesda's engine, developer team SureAI has created truly a [b]masterpiece.[/b] [quote]+ Compelling story + Interesting and beliveable characters + Challenging gameplay + Incredible soundtrack ------------------------------------------ - Bound by Bethesda's game engine[/quote]