Bethesda details Skyrim PS3 problem workarounds

In the absence of a proper fix for the terrible stuttering experienced by some PlayStation 3 Skyrim players, Bethesda has released some suggestions on how the situation can be improved.

The two main suggestions are to turn off auto saves and to clear hard drive space on your PlayStation 3. A third suggestion recommends you simply wait for time to pass.

Here’s what Bethesda has to say in full:

Turn off auto saves. This can cause temporary stuttering since the PS3 saves these files in the background. This is most noticeable with large saves when fast travelling to a new area or entering a new area that auto saves.

Clear space on your hard drive. Skyrim makes heavy use of the hard drive, and freeing up space on here seems to help many people. Hard drive speeds also differ in PS3 models. Some users have reported increase performance by upgrading their drives.

Waiting for time to pass. Many things are running in the world depending on what quests you’ve done or places you have visited. Using Wait or Rest options, passing time will clear up some of these. It depends how long you wait, it may take up to 30 days for some items. Saving, resetting, and loading after this will have the largest effect.

All versions of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim are suffering from numerous bugs, but it’s the PlayStation 3 game that seems the worst.

Bethesda recently outlined upcoming updates for all versions of Skyrim, and detailed the Creation Kit for PC users.

Despite the problems, Skyrim is one of the most critically acclaimed games of 2011, scoring a 9/10 in our The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim review.