That was just hypothetical example.
I really don't get what point that you are trying to make besides different games have different approaches.
Yes, it does. It calls the MC Dovahkiin (I'm too tried to confirm it.). No, it doesn't create urgency. It creates a hook which would be great people noticed that or the MC acknowledges it.
When I said "It removes the only deadline that Bethesda would allow.", I meant the ending. I don't know about TES but the reason why FO4 only had Endings: A Male, B Male, A Female, and B Female, instead of a slideshow of what happened in the wasteland is because all the side quest can be completed after finishing the main quest. In FO:NV, certain quests can simply remain unfinished and reveal its natural outcome.
It is needless busywork that is added because mechanics such as leveling up is associated with RPGs. It is like cake with only frosting.
Imagine that for a moment. Playing anything but a Nord or 'human' race would exclude you from playing with the Stormcloacks, and if you decided to work for them as one of the beast races which would require some heavy convincing that you're actually usefull, the story would change in the way that you could never be more but a 'mercenary' for them.
Sometimes you only realize when something is good when it's not there anymore. Call me stupid, but I often feel that some old games had it actually right, like if you compare Resident Evil 1 with the newest Resident Evil game. The fact that the player had to fight the controlls almost as much like the enemies, created some kind of 'awkwardness' that made you always feel uneasy and it really added a lot to the survival horror genre. But in 'modern' games, that's of course not possible anymore, making the player feel unconfortable on purpose? Not giving him controll over the camera angle? Fuck! No! This is AAA gaming, we can't just make turds, they have to be polished turds! And all of a sudden you have a Resident Evil game that plays more like gears of war.
.
Whatever, then.
No, the Courier only became the tiebreaker when he interacts with the crucial third player, Mr. House.
The point that I made with the urgency bit isn't necessarily the lack of it but its inconsistency. If we follow a 3 act format to achieve what is intended with Skyrim, ideally the first act should be engaging enough that it is main focus but not enough to ignore the side content. The second act should lay down the end goal and flesh out the stakes. The final act should provide sense of dread not necessarily with a time limit but maybe a "You only get one shot at this. You better prepare and do all of your unfinished business." thing.
That comes later in the game. But I was thinking of: what if during escaping in Helgen Alduin would notice the player character, forcegreeting a conversation or scene, explaining that he's not killing you now, but he'll return soon. If that's not enough, imagine he says he'll be back with all his power First Seed month next year (roughly 150 days).
What the fuck are you on about?
This is why I think that the game should just end after the main quest. The civil war seems so petty after Ragnarok and the lack of a more permanent third option seems pretty stupid for the savior of the world.
I made a post explaining my feelings on that.
My point was that might be putting the horse before the carriage. Character relative controls were the standard way to control characters in 3D adventure games especially those that use pre-rendered backgrounds because those relied fixed camera angles. Also, it puts more emphasis on interacting with your surroundings like a detective which was the focus of survival horror titles.
The main quest just refer to a quest line that must be completed to finish the game.
That only works before you defeat Alduin. It is beneath the Dragonborn now. One of the cut line from scraped FO:NV post-Hoover Dam section had a NPC refusing to give the Courier a new task despite having a lot to do stating that it is a waste of his talents.
