Skyrim lag frustrates PS3 players

The latest entry in the storied Elder Scrolls video game franchise has been delighting fans since its launch this week – except, that is, for fans playing it on a PS3.

Since its release, there have been complaints from users who say playing the game on PS3 results in severe lag that cripples gameplay and results in an annoying experience.

Based on posts on the game’s official forums, it appears the problems begin with players progress through the game far enough that their save file size exceeds 6 MB.

The game has an auto-save feature, so what is most likely happening is that as the file grows in size, the constant re-saving has a draining effect on the performance of the game.

Turning off auto-save (which is on by default) seems to alleviate some of the pain, but gamers want a more permanent solution.

Almost preemptively, Bethesda, the company behind the game, announced earlier this week that it was already working on a patch to solve known issues across all versions of the game.

Bethesda has not, however, addressed the PS3 concerns specifically.

Skyrim is without a doubt the most ambitious and impressive title in the Elder Scrolls franchise to date, and arguably one of the most ambitious games in any franchise.

Around 7 million copies of the game were shipped for launch, half of which were snatched up by consumers in the first 48 hours – an impressive feat for a game that is built for only the most hardcore role-playing game crowd out there.