Skyrim: Every Reference To Other Games & Media

Like many of Bethesda’s other games, Skyrim is full of Easter Eggs and references to not only other video game series but also popular media from television and beyond. Some of these are more heavy-handed than others – for example, it’s hard to miss the Headless Horseman from The Legend of Sleepy Hollow while traveling at night – but others require a bit of work to find, and some Skyrim players might not even realize they’re intended to be references at all. Here are all of the best references to other media in Skyrim, as well as where to look for them.

The Elder Scrolls series contains plenty of references to other games in the franchise. It shouldn’t come as much of a surprise to learn that characters from Morrowind and Oblivion return in Skyrim, or that items and plotlines from previous games make re-appearances years later on down the line. The same will likely hold true in The Elder Scrolls 6, which will quite possibly determine a canon victor of Skyrim‘s civil war storyline and even potentially address the survival of Paarthurnax. What’s less well-known, though, is that Bethesda often hides references to other games and media within their RPGs. The Fallout series, for example, contains several references to Skyrim, and Skyrim itself pays homage to iconic fantasy media like D&D podcasts and even Choose Your Own Adventure books.

However, fantasy isn’t the only genre that gets a shout-out in the Elder Scrolls games. Skyrim also contains references to sci-fi movies and series like Star Trek, Galaxy Quest, and Ghostbusters 2 in several lines of dialogue and NPC names. There are even Easter Eggs that call out to some of the developers’ favorite bands. Other references call out to classic stories like The Pied Piper or Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, while some refer instead to more modern media like the Rocky franchise and Game of Thrones. Whether players are hunting for Bethesda staples like the Sweetroll joke or more niche hidden secrets, there’s plenty of fun Easter Eggs to discover throughout Skyrim, especially for those who have already experienced just about everything else the game has to offer.

Skyrim’s Notched Pickaxe Is A Minecraft Reference

One of the unique items that can be found in Skyrim is named the Notched Pickaxe, a reference to the controversial original creator of Minecraft. Although all references to Notch in Minecraft itself have since been removed from the game by Mojang Studios, the pickaxe has not been removed or renamed in subsequent Skyrim patches and re-releases, including the most recent Skyrim Anniversary Edition. To find the Notched Pickaxe, players will have to climb the Throat of the World and search just below the top of the mountain, near a cluster of ore veins. The pickaxe has an enchantment on it that boosts the Smithing ability.

How Star Wars Appears Throughout Skyrim

There are quite a few references to the Star Wars franchise in Skyrim, which might not seem like such a surprise given many Star Wars fans view the series as a tribute to the fantasy genre more than anything. The first reference can be heard in various lines of dialogue throughout the game, as Erik’s father tells him to “stay for just one more season”, a likely reference to Luke Skywalker’s conversation with Uncle Owen in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. Another example of Star Wars-related dialogue comes from the ghost of Lucien Lachance, acquired during Skyrim‘s Dark Brotherhood questline, who will at times say that he feels “a disturbance in the void”, perhaps referring to the disturbances in the Force that many Jedi comment on feeling in the Star Wars movies.

A more direct visual reference can be found in Bleakcoast Cave, located East of the partially-collapsed city of Winterhold. Inside the cave, players can find a skeleton hanging upside-down from the ceiling. A short distance away, on the ground, they can look for a glowing sword. This calls back to Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back and the iconic scene in which Luke Skywalker is caught on Hoth and suspended from the ceiling. The glowing sword, in this case, refers to his Lightsaber. A similar Easter Egg appeared in the Morrowind DLC Bloodmoon, which is perhaps a testament to Star Wars‘ lasting cultural significance.

The Hidden Portal 2 Easter Egg In Skyrim

One of the more difficult references to find is the one calling out to Valve’s puzzle-platforming game Portal 2. To find it, players will need to travel to the ancient Nordic ruin Skuldafn. There, they should search through the fireplaces until they find one containing a potato, and closely examine it.

The potato is adorned with a boiled creme treat and several pieces of charcoal, arranged in such a way that it strongly resembles GLaDOS’ potato battery form from the latter half of Portal 2. Another Portal 2 Easter Egg was provided by Valve for Skyrim‘s World Creator expansion, appearing in the form of a mod that allows the Space Core to crash near Whiterun’s Western Watchtower.

The Legend Of King Arthur Keeps Appearing In Skyrim

Few fantasy stories are as well-known as The Legend of King Arthur, so it’s fitting that the tale reappears several times throughout Skyrim. The first instance is just South of Broken Tower Redoubt, located at Rebel’s Cairn. In front of the cave entrance is a pile of stones, and embedded in the top rock is a Steel Sword, a clear reference to the sword in the stone. Then, just North of Bleakwind Basin, players should look for a small pond with a skeletal arm sticking out of it. The arm is holding a leveled sword, a reference to the Lady in the Lake. It’s possible that the Lady Stone, one of Skyrim‘s many Standing Stones, is another reference to this, given it’s located directly in the middle of a lake as well.

Skyrim Has Several Lord Of The Rings References

Another iconic fantasy story, The Lord of the Rings, makes quite a few appearances in Skyrim too. During the battle of Whiterun in Skyrim‘s civil war questline, either Hadvar or Ralof can be found near the city walls, claiming “I’m pretty sure I killed more than you. I was counting.” in reference to Legolas and Gimli’s competition in the Lord of the Rings movies. Then, during Sanguine’s Daedric artifact quest “A Night to Remember”, players are tasked with retrieving a wedding ring from a Hagraven who will refer to it as “my precious” in her dialogue, a reference to Gollum. It’s possible that the entire city of Whiterun, as well as the Gildergreen tree that grows in the center of the city, are a reference to various cities found in the Lord of the Rings series.

Where To Find Skyrim’s Pac-Man Easter Egg

One of the most well-known Easter Eggs in Skyrim is a reference to the classic arcade game Pac-Man. Endon’s house in Markarth contains a shelf in the back of the house which holds sliced goat cheese, several pieces of garlic, and a bowl of glow dust. It’s arranged in such a way that it mimics a scene right out of Pac-Man. It’s just one example of many that indicate how dedicated Bethesda’s game developers were to paying tribute to iconic games and other forms of media while creating Skyrim.

About The Author

Ky Shinkle
(530 Articles Published)

Ky Shinkle is a Senior Gaming Features Writer for Screen Rant as well as an overall avid gamer and writer. Her prior experience is primarily that of a narrative designer for video games, although her writing has covered all formats from screenplays and novels to stage scripts. A graduate of the Savannah College of Art and Design, when she isn’t writing she works on digital media projects and other types of fiction writing. Ky currently works out of Ohio and enjoys spending her free time either playing RPGs or running with her dog.

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