The Elder Scrolls 6 Officially Enters Full Development

The Elder Scrolls VI has achieved a huge development milestone. The Elder Scrolls 6 is one of the most anticipated games of all-time, alongside another highly anticipated sixth entry in a big series, Grand Theft Auto 6. Both games came out about two years apart and helped define a generation. They've also both been re-released multiple times and had an absurdly long life where players are continuing to replay them in mass. It's been really quite impressive to see, but players are ready for what comes next. Bethesda announced The Elder Scrolls 6 back in 2018 and there has been next to no updates ever since, something director Todd Howard may regret a bit. Part of the reason for this is because Bethesda is largely a studio that works on one game at a time and has been knee-deep in Starfield for a while.

However, Starfield releases to the public later this week and although there will still be an effort to update the game, release its announced expansion, and so on, the team is setting its eyes on its next project. Bethesda Softworks' Head of Publishing Pete Hines spoke to Vandal (via ResetEra) about what's next for the studio and was asked about when we might hear about The Elder Scrolls 6 and if it's still in pre-production. Hines was very transparent and stated that The Elder Scrolls 6 has transitioned out of pre-production, the earliest stage of a game's development besides the concept phase. It is now in full development, but Hines was keen to note it's "early" development. As for when we might hear more about it, well... it'll be a while.

"We have put all of our studios focused on making [Starfield] the best it can be," said Hines. "And yes, there are people working on The Elder Scrolls VI, but this is what the studio has focused on. So no, you are not going to hear about The Elder Scrolls VI. Starfield is our focus for now, and it's going to remain our priority for a while before we talk about anything else."

The Elder Scrolls 6 Release Date

As of right now, The Elder Scrolls 6 has no release date. Given the game has only just now entered full development, it may be a while. Starfield took about a decade from start to finish, but, it's worth noting COVID played a role, Xbox gave Bethesda much more time to work on it after its acquisition, and it was a brand new IP. The Elder Scrolls is something Bethesda has more familiarity with and may be able to release much sooner than Starfield. Xbox boss Phil Spencer did say he believes the game is at least five years away, meaning The Elder Scrolls 6 may not release until 2028 at the earliest.

Is The Elder Scrolls 6 Xbox Exclusive?

It seems likely that The Elder Scrolls 6 will probably be exclusive to Xbox given Starfield is. Phil Spencer wouldn't make a concrete statement on it since it's so far out and doesn't even know if it will release on Xbox Series X because of that, but Xbox Game Studios head Matt Booty stated to Xbox CFO Tim Stuart that all Bethesda games are going to be exclusive going forward.