Even though you can explore its entirety from the comfort of a living room beanbag, the world of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (commonly just referred to as 'Skyrim') is vast. The video game contains cities, villages, high waterfalls that cascade into deep pools, and packs of wolves that roam the edges of misty alpine forests. Skyrim is celebrated for the intricacy of its environment and is one of the top-selling video games of all time.

But if you spend enough time in a fantasy, it might change how you relate to the real world.

In this favorite Outside/In episode, first released at the start of the pandemic, producer Justine Paradis speaks with the environmental artist tasked with creating one of the video game world’s most iconic landscapes, the limits of environmental design, and how Skyrim shaped his view of the actual outdoors.

Featuring Megan Sawyer, Ana Diaz, and Noah Berry.

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CREDITS

Host: Nate Hegyi

Reported, produced, and mixed by Justine Paradis

Editing help from Taylor Quimby, Erika Janik, Sam Evans-Brown, and Felix Poon

NHPR’s Director of On-Demand Audio is Rebecca Lavoie

Music by Blue Dot Sessions

Our theme music is by Breakmaster Cylinder.

Outside/In is a production of New Hampshire Public Radio