The Bethesda Blog announces the release of the promised Creation Kit for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, providing modification support for their RPG sequel. They also announce Steam now features a Skyrim High Resolution Texture Pack as free DLC, confirming indications that such a graphics upgrade was the "surprise" recently hinted at by Bethesda. Here's a tutorial video introducing the creation kit, and here's word:

Modders rejoice! We’re pleased to announce that the Skyrim Creation Kit is now available!

With the Creation Kit’s release, fans can now upload, download, and install custom content through the Skyrim Workshop on Steam. Get a crash course by reading level designer Joel Burgess’ blog post, and be sure to read up on our list of best practices for modding. Need more help? Don’t forget to to check out the official Wiki at www.CreationKit.com. In the coming days and weeks, we’ll be sharing tutorial videos for beginners and experts alike. Check out the first tutorial above, and visit the Bethesda Game Studios YouTube Channel for more.

In addition to releasing the Creation Kit and Skyrim Workshop, today we’re allowing players to experience Skyrim as you’ve never seen it before with the Skyrim High-Resolution Texture Pack. Before downloading it from Steam, make sure your system requirements exceed Skyrim’s recommended specs before attempting to install, including Windows Vista/7, a minimum of 4GB of system RAM, and a DirectX 9.0c compatible NVIDIA or AMD ATI video card with at least 1 GB of RAM and the latest drivers.