Okay, big claim. But I do genuinely believe it. I've played Skyrim extensively (few hundred hours) and I consider myself to be a fairly big fan of the TES series.
The reasons I say that Far Cry 3 is a better RPG than Skyrim;
1; The Combat is FAR better.
2; The crafting system functions much nicer and doesn't break the game.
3; The graphical fidelity and aesthetic choices are far and away better.
4; The characters are far and a way better. The way they interact with the player character, the way they are scripted and the way the story is imparted is just leagues ahead of what Skyrim provides.
5; The story - thus far - is way better. It's pacing, its delivery and its content is just better. Skyrim had allot of potential, it had a great pretense and idea, it just fell on its face from a great height with its delivery.
Obviously, this is all pretty much subjective opinion. But it's what I genuinely think, I'm not even sure that Far Cry 3 is considered an RPG, but based on the properties of what both games offer and the fact that Skyrim IS considered an RPG, I feel that the comparison is somewhat valid.
What do you think?