Skyrim reviews are in: you might never leave home again

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is only a few hours away and being one of the year's most anticipated titles, it's no surprise that the wire is buzzing with launch info. There's so much news, in fact, that we'd be doing you an injustice by focusing on any given topic. Instead, we've compiled a list of noteworthy happenings around the Web that should help keep your eyes off the clock if you've already preordered or help you make a final decision if you're still on the fence.
Podcasts and Videos
Gone are Oblivion's awkwardly rigid character movements. The fourth installment of the Skyrim team diaries podcast was posted this week, offering a look at the development of the game's animation engine. "It was really tough trying to imagine how you kill a dragon. It's pretty much a dinosaur," said  Jangjoon Cha. "How do you kill a dinosaur with, essentially, a toothpick?" The podcast is accompanied by a video clip that showcases various combat animations.

Skyrim Animations Demo 

(more official videos here, comical community videos here)

Developer Interviews
Wired and Joystiq have published two separate, yet equally intriguing interviews with Bethesda. The former reveals that Skyrim can produce an infinite number of quests based on your game status, while the latter covers a smattering of topics, including the challenges that studios face when creating a PC game. "From a technical standpoint, yes, the PC is a headache. It just is. A million different possibilities of hardware, drivers, etc." said VP of Marketing Pete Hines.
Review Roundup
It seems the embargo date on reviews has lifted with more than a dozen sites sharing their perspective on the game. The consensus? It's everything you've been dreaming about and more. Or as Videogamer puts it: "if you have any long term commitments like say, a job or friends or a significant other, we suggest you ring them to make your excuses now..." Here are some review links: GiantBomb, PC Gamer, Joystiq, Game Informer, RPGamer, Eurogamer, Shacknews, Wired.

Preorder Deals & GeForce Beta
If you haven't preordered yet, there's still time to save a few bucks through Direct2Drive, which is offering Skyrim for $53.95. We haven't found any other preorder deals (share them if you have), but it's worth noting that if you purchase the game through non-digital channels, you'll get a free map. If you've already pulled the trigger, you might want to install the GeForce 285.79 Beta (32/64-bit), which has a SLI profile for Skyrim and an "excellent" 3D Vision compatibility rating.