A Skyrim player has pointed out a detail about the game's dungeons that doesn't make much sense. Skyrim's dungeons are scattered all over the game world, giving players an opportunity to explore, gather excellent loot, sometimes gain new abilities, or progress quests.
While plunging into a cave in Skyrim comes with risks, a common sight near the exit of many of the game's dungeons has left one player puzzled. Other gamers have agreed with them, and even shared some similarly odd details about the game.
Over on Reddit, Skyrim player Aware-Manner-5120 shared a screengrab of one of the dungeons near the exit, focusing on an opening in the ceiling. Through it, the player can see the blue light of the sky, but Aware-Manner-5120 pointed out that these holes aren't visible from the outside. Indeed, if a hole near the exit of every dungeon were available, it'd be much easier for the Dragonborn to jump in and gather up loot, but the vast majority of the time this detail isn't reflected on the world map.
Some players pointed out that most open world games are like this, especially at the time of Skyrim's development. Interior details aren't always reflected on the outside, as it would require a great deal of work in order to make sure everything was accurate. Others suggested that realistically in the game, it could just be that the hole is covered by a layer of ice and snow, making it impenetrable and unrecognizable from the outside, but light can still get through when it's bright out.
While there are reasonable explanations for why this discrepancy might exist, there are also some strange things about buildings in the game that can't be as easily explained with in-game logic. For example, one commenter mentioned that buildings in Solitude tend to be much bigger on the inside than they appear on the outside, much like Doctor Who's TARDIS.
Discrepancies like this may be expected in games, but that may not always be the case. Skyrim is over 10 years old now, and Bethesda has since produced open world games like Fallout 76 and the upcoming Starfield. With advancing technology, this kind of thing could become a thing of the past. Of course, if that ever becomes the case, players will need to watch their footing even more carefully, lest they fall into a dungeon full of enemies by complete accident.
The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim is available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.