A veteranSkyrimmodder has improved the immersion somewhat by making it so animals will basically swim across water, whereas normally they would just run along the bottom. There’s a decent amount ofwildlife and pets inThe Elder Scrolls 5to go along with the human NPCs, breathing life into the world. From stray dogs that roam the streets, to rabbits and foxes that can be hunted, to even a lovable Skeever, this slice of Tamriel wouldn’t be anywhere near as interesting without the furry creatures.
Overall,The Elder Scrollsseries has a ton of lore, and it’s the human and non-human inhabitants that form a key part of that history. While everyone who plays is familiar with the aggressive animals, such as bears and wolves, there are also those innocent creatures that happily frolic across the land without a care in the world. However, there are moments that do break the immersion when it comes to these beasts, particularly when they encounter bodies of water.
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Ordinarily, animals would simply run along the bottom of a river or stream, seemingly oblivious to the lack of oxygen. However,Skyrimmodder JaySerpa has managed to fix this, mostly. Simply titling their mod “Animals Swim (Sort Of),” it makes it so that when a creature happens upon some water, they will swim across instead of sinking to the bottom. However, according to the description, it isn’t exactly swimming. What it does instead is slow the animal down when it’s in water, as well as give it a Waterwalking spell that only works when a third of the body is submerged. In its current state, the mod is compatible with rabbits, deer, elks, foxes, wolves, sabrecats, Skeevers, and bears.
Anyone who’s been involved in the modding community in some form may well recognize the name JaySerpa. Some of the mods they’ve done include makingusing beds inSkyrimmore realistic, making it so NPCs react when they witness Necromancy, the ability to spy through keyholes for anyone who wants a more immersive stealth playthrough, and even expanding the College of Winterhold questline.
As beloved as the vanilla experience is,Skyrimcan always be improved, either through visual upgrades to keep it looking up-to-date, custom quests, bug fixes, or even just tweaking the game for that added does of immersion, such as what this mod does. After 11 years,TES5is starting to show its age, but fortunately there is a dedicated modding community that’s only too keen to keep making improvements.
The Elder Scrolls 5 Skyrim: Anniversary Editionis available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
