Bethesda to set its sights on The Elder Scrolls VI as Starfield finally arrives

Robert Collins

Elder Scrolls 6 Trailer Still Custom

Following years of anticipation and hype, the release of Starfield is now only days away and the excitement is more palpable than ever. With the impending launch of one of the most eagerly awaited video games ever, some are already beginning to ask what Bethesda will work on next. The most likely answer: The Elder Scrolls VI.

The sixth mainline installment of the iconic RPG series was announced during the same 2018 E3 presentation as Starfield after all. We got a brief teaser trailer that didn’t reveal much other than some Tamriel countryside. And nothing more has really surfaced regarding TES VI in the five long years since.

At the recent Gamescom 2023 Bethesda leader Todd Howard said speaking of TES VI that “We want it to fill that role of the ultimate fantasy world simulator. And there are different ways to accomplish that given the time that has passed.” He also suggested that we won’t be seeing anything of the game for quite some time.

Given Bethesda’s track record, it seems likely that we won’t be playing The Elder Scrolls VI until around 2028—or 2026 at the very earliest, as many think. As for Fallout 5, we’ll be lucky to see that before the decade is out.

Bethesda's Indiana Jones game isn't coming to PlayStation

We know that Bethesda is also working on an Indiana Jones game (see the teaser here) with Howard as executive producer. It seems likely that this will release before TES VI, and hopefully then the company can go full bore on the next chapter of the Elder Scrolls saga.

At this point nearly 12 years have passed since the release of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. And while that game has seen many successful rereleases—and recently became the seventh bestselling video game of all time—no doubt many are anxious for a new installment. Elder Scrolls Online, which released in 2014, is an MMO outside the main series with a focus on multiplayer gameplay.