What it’s Like to be a Nord: on the Limits of the Experience of Racialisation in Skyrim

Abstract

The argument developed in this paper is that the treatment of race relations in Skyrim creates a paradoxical game experience where race is a defining element in the destiny of NPCs and in the course of events portrayed in the game, but it is a negligible, even cosmetic, aspect in the experience of the character created by the player. We claim that despite a strong racialization of Skyrim's Lore, the main character does not see, nor experience, the mechanics of it. Therefore, the apparent racial "neutrality" of the player experience is in fact the experience of a social position of domination. This has an effect on the consistency of the meta-narrative deployed throughout the game.