Skip to main content
GamesRadar+ GamesRadar+
US EditionUS CA EditionCanada UK EditionUK AU EditionAustralia
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • Games
    • Game Insights
      • Games News
      • Games Features
      • Games Reviews
      • Games Guides
      • Big in 2026
      • The Big Preview
      • On The Radar
      • Indie Spotlight
      • Future Games Show
      • Golden Joystick Awards
    • Genres
      • Action Games
      • RPGs
      • Action RPGs
      • Adventure Games
      • Third Person Shooters
      • FPS Games
    • Platforms
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X
      • PC
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Nintendo Switch 2
      • Tabletop Gaming
    • Franchises
      • Grand Theft Auto
      • Pokemon
      • Assassin's Creed
      • Monster Hunter
      • Fortnite
      • Cyberpunk
      • Red Dead
      • The Elder Scrolls
      • The Sims
  • Entertainment
    • TV Shows
      • TV News
      • TV Reviews
      • Anime Shows
      • Sci-Fi Shows
      • Superhero Shows
      • Animated Shows
      • Marvel TV Shows
      • Star Wars TV Shows
      • DC TV Shows
    • Movies
      • Movie News
      • Movie Reviews
      • Big Screen Spotlight
      • Superhero Movies
      • Action Movies
      • Anime Movies
      • Sci-Fi Movies
      • Horror Movies
      • Marvel Movies
      • DC Movies
    • Streaming
      • Apple TV Plus
      • Disney Plus
      • Netflix
      • HBO
      • Amazon Prime Video
      • Hulu
    • Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • DC Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Lego
    • Dungeons and Dragons
    • Merch
  • Hardware
    • Insights
      • Hardware News
      • Hardware Reviews
      • Hardware Features
    • Computing
      • Desktop PCs
      • Laptops
      • Handhelds
    • Peripherals
      • Headsets & Headphones
      • TVs & Monitors
      • Gaming Mice
      • Gaming Keyboards
      • Gaming Chairs
      • Speakers & Audio
    • Accessories & Tech
      • Gaming Controllers
      • Tech
      • SSDs & Hard Drives
      • VR
      • Accessories
      • Retro
  • Deals
    • Game Deals
    • Tech Deals
    • TV Deals
    • Buying Guides
  • Video
  • Newsletters
    • Quizzes
    • About Us
    • How to pitch to us
    • How we score
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Total Film
  • home
  • Games
    • View Games
      • Games News
      • Games Features
      • Games Reviews
      • Games Guides
      • Big in 2026
      • The Big Preview
      • On The Radar
      • Indie Spotlight
      • Future Games Show
      • Golden Joystick Awards
      • Action Games
      • RPGs
      • Action RPGs
      • Adventure Games
      • Third Person Shooters
      • FPS Games
    • Platforms
      • View Platforms
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X
      • PC
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Nintendo Switch 2
      • Tabletop Gaming
      • Grand Theft Auto
      • Pokemon
      • Assassin's Creed
      • Monster Hunter
      • Fortnite
      • Cyberpunk
      • Red Dead
      • The Elder Scrolls
      • The Sims
  • Entertainment
    • View Entertainment
    • TV Shows
      • View TV Shows
      • TV News
      • TV Reviews
      • Anime Shows
      • Sci-Fi Shows
      • Superhero Shows
      • Animated Shows
      • Marvel TV Shows
      • Star Wars TV Shows
      • DC TV Shows
    • Movies
      • View Movies
      • Movie News
      • Movie Reviews
      • Big Screen Spotlight
      • Superhero Movies
      • Action Movies
      • Anime Movies
      • Sci-Fi Movies
      • Horror Movies
      • Marvel Movies
      • DC Movies
    • Streaming
      • View Streaming
      • Apple TV Plus
      • Disney Plus
      • Netflix
      • HBO
      • Amazon Prime Video
      • Hulu
    • Comics
      • View Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • DC Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Lego
    • Dungeons and Dragons
    • Merch
  • Hardware
    • View Hardware
      • Hardware News
      • Hardware Reviews
      • Hardware Features
      • Desktop PCs
      • Laptops
      • Handhelds
    • Peripherals
      • View Peripherals
      • Headsets & Headphones
      • TVs & Monitors
      • Gaming Mice
      • Gaming Keyboards
      • Gaming Chairs
      • Speakers & Audio
      • Gaming Controllers
      • Tech
      • SSDs & Hard Drives
      • VR
      • Accessories
      • Retro
  • Deals
    • View Deals
    • Game Deals
    • Tech Deals
    • TV Deals
    • Buying Guides
  • Video
  • Newsletters
    • Quizzes
    • About Us
    • How to pitch to us
    • How we score
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Total Film
Trending
  • Pokemon Winds and Waves
  • New Games for 2026
  • GamesRadar+ Replay
  • Mario Day deals
Don't miss these
Elder Scrolls 6
The Elder Scrolls The Elder Scrolls 6: Everything we know so far
games like Resident Evil - Bioshock
Games Ex-Square Enix exec says "every AAA single player game since Bioshock" is the same, while Roblox evolves "like Tiktok"
Fallout 3 screenshot shows a male character walking alongside a dog.
Fallout As Fallout 3 and NV remake hopes persist, Todd Howard says he's "anti-remake" and prefers remasters like Oblivion's
Posing with a rifle in the Fallout 76 Ghoul update
Fallout The Bethesda game Todd Howard is most proud of isn't Skyrim, it's Fallout 76, even though "it didn't launch great"
Elder Scrolls 6
The Elder Scrolls Todd Howard says Elder Scrolls 6 is a return to "classic" Bethesda style "that we've missed, that we know really well"
Starfield screenshot showing a distant man on an alien planet, standing between two massive obsidian-like walls with a ringed world visible in the distance
RPGs Starfield seamless space travel hopium is at a new high as Bethesda boss Todd Howard teases future updates
Todd Howard Starfield reveal
Fallout Todd Howard knows there's "anxiety" about Fallout 5, says "we do like to wait" but "we never stopped developing Fallout"
World of Warcraft: Midnight
World of Warcraft World of Warcraft Midnight composer says Blizzard devs "feel very lucky and happy that we're not using generative AI
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 screenshot of Verso, a man with black hair with white streaks running through his fringe
RPGs Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is "the best of our medium," says former Xbox head, because games are art and human
Marvel Rivals Season 3 Knull pressing a finger on Hela's forehead with a red spiral
Games Marvel Rivals owner Netease says heck no we didn't shut down our AI department or warn devs off it
Skyrim
The Elder Scrolls As Todd Howard distances The Elder Scrolls 6 from Starfield and Fallout 76, it seems Bethesda has learned all the right lessons
Elder Scrolls 6
The Elder Scrolls Todd Howard drops the one Elder Scrolls 6 detail we were all dying to know: it'll "most definitely" have more trees than Skyrim
Dragon Age: The Veilguard screenshot featuring one possible male Rook
Dragon Age Former Dragon Age lead argues AAA games have become "too homogenous," and they might push fans toward accepting Gen AI
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
RPGs Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 director admits Sandfall "tried" AI during the J'RPG's development, but "didn’t like it"
Posing with a rifle in the Fallout 76 Ghoul update
The Elder Scrolls Fallout 5 and Elder Scrolls 6 are in a no-win situation due to fan expectations, former Bethesda lead artist says
  1. Games
  2. RPGs

The AI boom is "certainly not a fad," Elder Scrolls and Fallout boss Todd Howard says, but Bethesda is "being incredibly cautious" and isn't using it to "generate anything"

News
By George Young published 19 February 2026

"Ask me in six months"

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Todd Howard
(Image credit: Xbox)
  • Facebook
  • X
  • Pinterest
  • Flipboard
  • Email
Share this article
1
Join the conversation
Follow us
Add us as a preferred source on Google
Get the GamesRadar+ Newsletter

Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more


By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

You are now subscribed

Your newsletter sign-up was successful


Want to add more newsletters?

GamesRadar+

Every Friday

GamesRadar+

Your weekly update on everything you could ever want to know about the games you already love, games we know you're going to love in the near future, and tales from the communities that surround them.

GTA 6 O'clock

Every Thursday

GTA 6 O'clock

Our special GTA 6 newsletter, with breaking news, insider info, and rumor analysis from the award-winning GTA 6 O'clock experts.

Knowledge

Every Friday

Knowledge

From the creators of Edge: A weekly videogame industry newsletter with analysis from expert writers, guidance from professionals, and insight into what's on the horizon.

The Setup

Every Thursday

The Setup

Hardware nerds unite, sign up to our free tech newsletter for a weekly digest of the hottest new tech, the latest gadgets on the test bench, and much more.

Switch 2 Spotlight

Every Wednesday

Switch 2 Spotlight

Sign up to our new Switch 2 newsletter, where we bring you the latest talking points on Nintendo's new console each week, bring you up to date on the news, and recommend what games to play.

The Watchlist

Every Saturday

The Watchlist

Subscribe for a weekly digest of the movie and TV news that matters, direct to your inbox. From first-look trailers, interviews, reviews and explainers, we've got you covered.

SFX

Once a month

SFX

Get sneak previews, exclusive competitions and details of special events each month!


An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
Subscribe to our newsletter

Bethesda big boy Todd Howard doesn't think the AI boom is a "fad" and, as such, the studio is "not fully ignoring it." However, he says that the team is "not using it to generate anything," and that he values "handcrafted human intention."

In an interview with Kinda Funny on YouTube, Todd Howard explains his and the studio's stance on AI. "It's certainly not a fad," he says. "I think the AI answer now becomes 'ask me in six months,' right? It changes so much what you're seeing out there. For us, we're being incredibly cautious."

Todd Howard Returns! - Kinda Funny Gamescast - YouTube Todd Howard Returns! - Kinda Funny Gamescast - YouTube
Watch On

He goes on to explain how Bethesda is using it, and tracking its advancements for data-led tasks. "[We're] viewing it as a tool, like an analyst [to] look at the data in our games," he explains. "We can't ignore it, in terms of it's coming, it's changing. Every few months there's a new model, particularly on the tech side with code or productivity or other things.

You may like
  • Skyrim Todd Howard likes "to start over" on every Elder Scrolls game, and 15 years after Skyrim the slate sure is clean
  • Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 protagonist sighs into his hand Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 lead says AI "may mean the demise of humanity" but he's "all for it" if it helps "make epic games"
  • Elder Scrolls 6 Todd Howard says Elder Scrolls 6 is a return to "classic" Bethesda style "that we've missed, that we know really well"

"And I would just say we're looking at that stuff," he continues. "We're not fully ignoring it, because where it can help us get better at some big data tasks that just take us a lot of time, that we wish were done now so we can move onto the creative stuff."

However, he emphasizes that the team isn't using it for the creative side of game development, and doesn't intend to. "We're not using it to generate anything," he says. "I think there's such an element of artistic intention that is essential to what we do and others do. And if you look across [at] things outside of AI [...] go back a hundred years [to] this idea of craftsmen, I still think craftsmen, and that handcrafted human intention, is what makes things special, and that's where we want to be."

He ends his answer explaining that it is still "very, very early days" but it seems that that studio is monitoring AI's progress in the future.

Todd Howard says Elder Scrolls 6 is a return to "classic" Bethesda RPGs like Skyrim, Oblivion, and Fallout 4 after the "creative detour" the studio took with Fallout 76 and Starfield: "We do have a certain style that we like"

Sign up to the GamesRadar+ Newsletter

Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more

By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.
CATEGORIES
Fallout The Elder Scrolls PC Gaming PS5 Xbox Series X Nintendo Switch 2 Platforms PlayStation Xbox Nintendo
PRODUCTS
Fallout 76 The Elder Scrolls 6
George Young
George Young
Freelance News Writer

Freelance writer, full-time PlayStation Vita enthusiast, and speaker of some languages. I break up my days by watching people I don't know play Pokemon pretty fast.

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.

Read more
Skyrim
Todd Howard likes "to start over" on every Elder Scrolls game, and 15 years after Skyrim the slate sure is clean
 
 
Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 protagonist sighs into his hand
Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 lead says AI "may mean the demise of humanity" but he's "all for it" if it helps "make epic games"
 
 
Elder Scrolls 6
Todd Howard says Elder Scrolls 6 is a return to "classic" Bethesda style "that we've missed, that we know really well"
 
 
Baldur's Gate 3
Baldur's Gate 3 director isn't "pushing hard" for AI, and "I don't actually think it accelerates things"
 
 
Fallout 4
Bethesda's Todd Howard says "we are doing other things with Fallout that we haven’t announced"
 
 
Divinity trailer screenshot of executioner in gold mask
Larian is using generative AI in development, but CEO Swen Vincke says Divinity won't launch with AI content
 
 
Latest in RPGs
BG3
The future of RPGs is isometric
 
 
Fallout 3 screenshot of someone in power armor standing in front of a rundown version of the Washington Monument
More hopium for Fallout 3 Remastered emerges as the unannounced RPG is named in a product listing for an upcoming figure
 
 
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Gustave winces
"The first track spoils the whole game": Clair Obscur Expedition 33 dev confirms it was filling your ears with spoilers
 
 
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 lead Gustave faces a gommage
Clair Obscur Expedition 33 took inspiration from a surprising anime - Soul Eater creator's Fire Force
 
 
Dragon Age 2
Dragon Age 2 was originally planned to be "much bigger" before EA made other demands, says series lead
 
 
Fallout 4
Fallout 4 was "missing something," but Todd Howard helped confirm "there should be this overriding sense of paranoia"
 
 
Latest in News
Atsu looks out across the surroundings of Mount Yotei in Ghost of Yotei
Ghost of Yotei almost had Breath of the Wild's rock climbing, but found it's not "a core aspect of being a ronin"
 
 
A hand poses Lego Luigi's head
Lego Luigi kit lets you recreate the iconic Mario Kart death stare
 
 
Arc Raiders player in heavy rain with shield shorting out
Arc Raiders turns down storm lightning, and Embark promises compensation for folks impacted by recent server issues
 
 
Yuta getting ready to attack in Jujutsu Kaisen season 3
Jujutsu Kaisen actor offers perfect response to why AI should stay out of anime
 
 
Pickmon
Pokemon fan artist alleges new Palworld clone Pickmon "stole one of my designs"
 
 
Life is Strange
Join Chloe and Max on a "fiery weekend" for a better glimpse into Life is Strange: Reunion at the Future Games Show this week
 
 
LATEST ARTICLES
  1. Arc Raiders player in heavy rain with shield shorting out
    1
    Arc Raiders turns down electromagnetic storm lightning despite some players preferring the chaos, as Embark promises compensation for folks impacted by recent server issues
  2. 2
    Game of Thrones creators' beleaguered, big-budget Netflix sci-fi show reportedly getting a reduced episode count for seasons 2 and 3
  3. 3
    Ghost of Yotei devs tried to add Zelda: Breath of the Wild-style rock climbing, but discovered "rock climbing is not a core aspect of being a wandering ronin"
  4. 4
    The future of RPGs is isometric
  5. 5
    Lego Luigi kit lets you recreate the iconic Mario Kart death stare

GamesRadar+ is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

Add as a preferred source on Google Add as a preferred source on Google
  • Terms and conditions
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Accessibility statement
  • Careers
  • About us
  • Advertise with us
  • Review guidelines
  • Write for us
  • Accessibility Statement

© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...