Skyrim PC tweak allows for in-game map 'street view'

One of the most impressive Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim mods proves why the PC version is king. It allows players to zoom deep into the in-game world map, much like Google Street View.

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There are a number of outstanding (and even creepy) mods available for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, making it hard for me to recommend any version other than the PC release. One of the most impressive game tweaks is 'Map in Full 3D,' which helps adjust the game's ini file to allow players to zoom all the way down to street level from the in-game world map.

According to the map notes, players will see their surrounding area in high detail, because the game has preloaded that section. Other areas will appear in lower quality. The map also does not work indoors or in towns, something the creator is attempting to fix.

Make sure to keep your eyes on the ultimate source for Skyrim mod discoveries, Skyrim Nexus, for more to enhance your PC experience.

[via PC Gamer]

Xav de Matos was previously a games journalist creating content at Shacknews.

From The Chatty
  • reply
    November 15, 2011 6:30 PM

    Xav de Matos posted a new article, Skyrim PC tweak allows for in-game map 'street view'.

    One of the most impressive Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim mods proves why the PC version is king. It allows players to zoom deep into the in-game world map, much like Google Street View.

    • reply
      November 15, 2011 7:26 PM

      wowowowowowowow

    • reply
      November 15, 2011 7:31 PM

      Hot

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      November 15, 2011 7:38 PM

      the mod scene for this is going to be incredible. I will complete a vanilla playthrough first though!!!!!!

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        November 15, 2011 8:10 PM

        Seriously... I'm going to get it on the 360 after classes (December :( ) and then pick it up for Steam when more mod's get released and I have upgraded

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          November 15, 2011 8:25 PM

          Man, even in December there's going to be a shitload of mods released. Just skip the 360 version.

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            November 16, 2011 12:04 AM

            I wont be able to upgrade my pC til I can afford it.. which probably wont be for a few months after Jan

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          November 16, 2011 11:16 AM

          I may do the same thing, I'm waiting for Christmas/ classes to end as well!

      • rms legacy 10 years legacy 20 years mercury super mega
        reply
        November 16, 2011 8:14 AM

        I want a Morrowrim conversion ala http://morroblivion.com/

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      November 15, 2011 7:46 PM

      wow holy shit

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      November 15, 2011 7:50 PM

      Exactly what I wanted.

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        November 15, 2011 8:05 PM

        best part its not a mod just ini changes, worst part really slow WASD scrolling at least zoom

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      November 15, 2011 7:51 PM

      oh my god

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      November 15, 2011 7:55 PM

      Who would want to zoom into only 6 gigs of assets??? Might as well just smudge your glasses, you'll get the same blurry low-rez effect. :/

      • reply
        November 15, 2011 8:29 PM

        someone who isn't a complete troll, perhaps?

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        November 16, 2011 1:10 AM

        You know, I don't really mind the textures, but they really need to fix those god awful shadows. Setting the shadow distance to 400 from 8000 made it look amazing but the shadow distance becomes all glitchy.

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          November 16, 2011 1:56 AM

          The textures on the whole are pretty damn good looking. But yeah the shadows kind of blow.

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          November 16, 2011 5:11 AM

          people are liking playing with the below to try and mitigate the effect that increasing the shadow distance has.

          iBlurDeferredShadowMask=5 (Higher numbers blur the shadows)
          iShadowMaskQuarter=0 (Lower numbers soften the shadows)

          Video of it in action: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=wEKBVIL6IKs

          Your mileage may vary. My CPU really doesn't like the increased Shadow dist, it drops the framerate by almost half.

          • reply
            November 16, 2011 6:33 AM

            ˃:( I get such low frame rates when I look at that tree. I don't know WTF the deal is with it

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        November 16, 2011 5:18 AM

        At least it's not like TF2 that has WAY too many assets.

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          November 16, 2011 10:38 AM

          Yeah. I remember when it used to be quick to jump into a TF2 game. Now it takes a fucking eternity to load.

    • reply
      November 15, 2011 8:10 PM

      [deleted]

      • reply
        November 15, 2011 11:54 PM

        Sounds like someone's sad they bought the console version

        • reply
          November 16, 2011 6:12 AM

          [deleted]

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            November 16, 2011 6:22 AM

            the console vs pc debate has settled on one defining point on the console side: a comfy couch

            "this pc has 22 gpus and gets infinity fps"

            "oh but comfy couch"

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              November 16, 2011 6:47 AM

              I hook my computer up to my tv screen, then use a bluetooth mouse and wireless kb... comfy couch + pc do i win????

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                November 16, 2011 7:07 AM

                you're upsetting the balance. you will be visited by irate console gamers who will tip over your tv and set your comfy couch on fire

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                November 16, 2011 10:45 AM

                You and me both lingo. Now I just need the money to upgrade it.

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                November 16, 2011 11:10 AM

                This is how I played Portal 2, it was awesome. I still play most games on my monitor though.

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              November 16, 2011 6:53 AM

              If you have a TV to play Xbox on and a gaming capable PC, you can have the best of both worlds for the price of a $15.99 HDMI cable.

              Infinity FPS, mods, 1080p and beyond, couch.

              • reply
                November 16, 2011 9:44 AM

                $16? Yeesh, where do you buy your cables?

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                  November 16, 2011 10:24 AM

                  The internet. I got a 50' HDMI cable for $44.00 that I will bet money looks no different from your $300 retardo-ripoff cables.

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                    November 16, 2011 10:24 AM

                    You read that shit right, 50 FEET.

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                    November 16, 2011 12:21 PM

                    lol, I was making fun of you for spending too much, not too little. But yeah, that actually sounds great for 50'.

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              November 16, 2011 6:57 AM

              But..but.. you can pc from your couch with minimal effort!

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              November 16, 2011 8:16 AM

              I have a leather executive's chair that's more comfortable than 95% of couches I've ever sat in.

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                November 16, 2011 8:34 AM

                IAWTP. I don't know why people always say couch gaming is more comfortable. Being right up on my monitor/sitting in a comfy chair > couch gaming.

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                  November 16, 2011 10:46 AM

                  I have this thing where I would rather psuedo lay-down if possible. It makes things really uncomfortable for guests but whatevs.

                  • reply
                    November 16, 2011 11:54 AM

                    Projector onto a slanted wall above your bed? One of my friends' houses is perfect for this setup, I can't imagine playing games like that for extended periods of time though.

            • reply
              November 16, 2011 10:50 AM

              [deleted]

    • reply
      November 15, 2011 8:22 PM

      This looks awesome, but it would kind of spoil the fun if you could see a place in detail on a map before you discovered it yourself.

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      November 15, 2011 8:28 PM

      I always do my first play through vanilla, so this won't get any use from me yet - but it looks awesome - might be a definite use for later playthroughs.

    • reply
      November 15, 2011 11:19 PM

      words cannot describe....

    • reply
      November 16, 2011 12:49 AM

      [deleted]

      • reply
        November 16, 2011 12:59 AM

        Press J to bring up the quest menu, then click on the quest to make the next step show up on the map/compass.

        Not hard.

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        November 16, 2011 1:39 AM

        If I am in a town/city/dungeon and bring up the map it always shows me the local map on top of the world map. Next time, just don't close the local map before continuing. A minimap would ruin too much, same with an action bar.

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        November 16, 2011 6:55 AM

        I have all floating quest markers AND the compass turned off. Know how I find shit? I look for it! Ask people questions, use deductive reasoning based on the town layout, use landmarks, that type of thing.

        The only thing I use the map for is to determine whether or not I'm heading towards the right mountain.

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        November 16, 2011 9:07 AM

        I haven't had any trouble using a combination of the map and compass... work perfectly for exploration for me. I like the fact that they keep a minimalist attitude on the HUD... like no stat bars if they're full. Besides, if you've played previous Elder Scrolls games, you're already used to this aspect of discovery and exploration.

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        November 16, 2011 9:23 AM

        I could make the argument that this was intentional to keep the immersion factor. Pulling out your map is certainly more real than seeing a minimap all the time(even though I also get frustrated not knowing where I need to go, it's part of the experience).

    • reply
      November 16, 2011 1:48 AM

      had to undo, was getting some freezes at loading screens

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        November 16, 2011 6:55 AM

        Yeah when I put this in last night I couldn't load into the game.

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      November 16, 2011 2:01 AM

      The current map has too many clouds obscuring shit.

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        November 16, 2011 2:05 AM

        [deleted]

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          November 16, 2011 2:39 AM

          yeah its pretty but it could be more practical like showing roads

      • reply
        November 16, 2011 5:32 AM

        It seems to me the clouds clear away after you've explored points of interest in those areas.

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        November 16, 2011 6:56 AM

        There is an INI setting you can set to '0' to turn off all the clouds. It's included in this map mod, but you can just add the line by itself to take out the clouds if you don't want the street-view.

    • reply
      November 16, 2011 2:52 AM

      This looks awesome. Tagged for later!

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      November 16, 2011 3:07 AM

      i didnt want to make a new Skyrim post so.... Wow. have you ever sat back in amazement at a computer generated landscape? neither have i. until today. wjw.

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        November 16, 2011 3:24 AM

        I keep reading that as "what, just what" and it's confusing every time.

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        November 16, 2011 4:33 AM

        yeah I did. First time was comanche (wow voxels lol), another big one was Ultima 9 (holy handcrafted huge ass 3d world, batman!)


        (sorry if this was meant as a circlejerk rhetoric question)

      • reply
        November 16, 2011 5:46 AM

        A couple of times: in WoW and in Bioshock

      • reply
        November 16, 2011 10:52 AM

        [deleted]

    • reply
      November 16, 2011 5:34 AM

      _nomap

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      November 16, 2011 6:16 AM

      awesome. the default map isnt really helpful when trying to navigate around terrain

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        November 16, 2011 10:50 AM

        it's almost completely useless. Why on earth aren't roads mapped out? :(

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          November 16, 2011 11:06 AM

          It's not really a "map". It's an almost entirely unmodified overhead view of the terrain. That looks really cool, but is severely limited from a navigational standpoint. In terms of utility, I liked the map from Oblivion better.

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            November 16, 2011 11:27 AM

            it's not a map, but it's supposed to be a map, and at that task it really fails miserably. :(

            I'm glad I got the paper map with the game, since it actually does show the roads (or at least the main ones).

    • reply
      November 16, 2011 6:21 AM

      Can we please have a daily Minecraft style Skyrim thread with super awesome links in the OP all colored up pretty-like?

      Would also keep these threads to a minimum and would be tons of fun anyway.

    • reply
      November 16, 2011 4:20 PM

      Keep the mods coming. Show these console gamers the error of their ways.

    • reply
      November 16, 2011 4:52 PM

      How about a minimap. It's not like we're still in the stone ages of gaming here.

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