GamesRPGThe Elder ScrollsThe Elder Scrolls V: SkyrimSkyrim mirror mode mod flips the entire game, dealing psychic damage to the RPG’s biggest fans: “Weirding out most anyone that plays has just been an unforeseen bonus"When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
GamesRPGThe Elder ScrollsThe Elder Scrolls V: SkyrimSkyrim mirror mode mod flips the entire game, dealing psychic damage to the RPG’s biggest fans: “Weirding out most anyone that plays has just been an unforeseen bonus"When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: Bethesda Softworks / MontyBellroy)
Reddit user Tempest2903highlighted this modearlier this week, in a post that’s since become a gallery of Skyrim veterans clutching their heads in confusion, and I immediately reached out to Bellroy to ask the age-old modding question: why?
“I’d always spend a ton of time modding the game to try and make the experience different, then get in-game and only play a character for a few hours,” Bellroy tells GamesRadar+ over email. “I’d be exploring the same dungeons and running around in the same world, and just get a little bored. Mirroring the whole game seemed like a fun way to freshen up the game! And let me tell you, getting lost in the wilderness in a game you know like the back of your hand is something special.”
“I wanted to make the game different, make it so that you could get lost again,” he adds. “Then I was watching a friend play and it was extremely funny whenever he would turn left instead of right and groan, so weirding out most anyone that plays has just been an unforeseen bonus.”
(Image credit: Bethesda Softworks)
Bellroy had the idea for the mirror mod a few years ago, but “only recently thought of using post-processing for the mirror, which was the hardest part of the whole thing.” It took about 20 hours to get it up and running; Bellroy tried a few technical solutions and found Reshade to be the best path forward. “There was a lot of trial and error with the UI,” he says. “Did you know that Bethesda games use Actionscript, AKA Flash, for their menus? Well, now you know.”
On his Nexus Mods listing, Bellroy concedes that Mirror Skyrim is “a little scuffed,” but even so “it’s 100% playable and I think it’s pretty neat.” I, too, think it’s pretty neat. You can see it in action in this video – just be sure you “turn your ears around before you start watching,” and maybe keep a brown bag handy in case you start hyperventilating.
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Skyrim but I flipped it around backwards - YouTubeWatch On
Skyrim but I flipped it around backwards - YouTube
Skyrim but I flipped it around backwards - YouTube
As he throws his hat into the ring, Bellroy remains confident in the future of Skyrim modding, even as Bethesda eyes a long tail of support for its latest mega-RPG,Starfield. “Fallout 4 didn’t put a dent in the modding scene for Skyrim, and it looks like Starfield won’t either,” he says. “Despite being 15 years old, we still have powerful frameworks coming out to do insane things in Skyrim, and people are still making very high quality mods even aside from that. The Bethesda modding scene is so entrenched in Skyrim, I don’t see it going away any time soon (and that’s a good thing).
“There are so many genius modders out there that have made Bethesda modding what it is today. PowerOfThree, JohnSkyrim, Meh321, wSkeever, JaySerpa, Felisky384, Crosire, Boris and so many other crazy people who’ve made everything you’re seeing with Skyrim mods possible.”
“Players can explore like they used to in Fallout and Skyrim”: How Shattered Space brings the “bespoke goodness” of past Bethesda RPGs to Starfield.
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1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
1
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2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
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3Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”
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4Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years”
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5Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths”
5Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths”
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2Mufasa: The Lion King review – “It’s no Hakuna Matata but this Disney origin story is a class above the 2019 movie”
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3Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action”
3Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action”
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4The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”
4The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”
4
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5Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”
5Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”
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2Doctor Who 2024 Christmas special review: “Ncuti Gatwa is as magnetic as ever in this delightful festive treat”
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2
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3Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses”
3Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses”
3
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4Skeleton Crew review: “Perfectly captures the vibes of classic Star Wars with a swashbuckling twist”
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4
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5Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”
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Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”