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If you spent all of Tuesday evening and the earlier hours of the following morning locked into The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered, you might have been among the 180,000-plus concurrent players on Steam alone.
Spruced up by Unreal Engine 5, Bethesda's surprise re-launch of its 2006 RPG currently has swathes of the gaming community in a vice. It's the remaster so many have been aching off the back of countless rumors; Oblivion is considered one of the best RPGs of the Xbox 360 generation, famously beloved for its (often accidental) jank, and it's now playable on modern hardware and capable of going toe-to-toe with the likes of Avowed in terms of visuals. What's not to love?
But as someone unfamiliar with the Elder Scrolls franchise, the thing that interests me is how clever a moment Bethesda has chosen to launch Oblivion Remastered. The game is the latest in a long list of well-timed remakes and remasters we've seen from industry titans in recent years – and I reckon they serve a greater purpose than simply to stoke the flames of nostalgia.
Smoke and mirrors
To be blunt, Oblivion Remastered feels like a clever distraction. The Elder Scrolls 6 is currently in production and set to be the next upcoming Bethesda game ahead of Fallout 5. By giving support studio Virtuos the go ahead to handle this surprise offering, it's effectively bought the in-house developer both time and goodwill in spades.
It's a clever trick, one I've seen emerge countless times in recent years. As a staunch horror nerd, it reminds me of Resident Evil 4 Remake's launch in between Resident Evil Village and the as-yet unannounced follow-up. Much as I loved suplexing ganados in 4k and being able to actually run while aiming, it served as a temporary sleight of hand, pulling focus from the large question mark Capcom left over the series' future. Two years later, there's still no sign of Resident Evil 9, and I won't lie, I'm getting impatient over here.
Though I largely consider the remake renaissance trend most common in the horror genre – Silent Hill 2 and Dead Space, I'm looking at you – it looks like it's catching on elsewhere. I'm here to warn you that Bethesda tiding Elder Scrolls fans over with Oblivion Remastered is both a blessing and a curse. A blessing, because it is a game everyone wanted. A curse, because it could indicate that The Elder Scrolls 6 will be a very, very long way away.
Out with the new
Distraction and placation have become necessary evils if studios are to grow.
Nostalgia sells in 2025, that much is clear. New, original games take longer to make now than they did 20 years ago, so it makes sense for large studios to leverage their legacies (and boost profit margins) through remakes and remasters.
With Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater coming in August, questions arise as to whether Konami is testing the waters for Metal Gear Solid 6 in a post-Kojima era. We're still waiting for more Fallout 5 news, but the Fallout 3 remake rumors are circling again now that the Oblivion whisperings turned out to be true. It's hard enough to get reboots out the door, even for incredibly in-demand games – take the new Fable game for example, recently delayed to 2026.
For the most part, though, remakes and remasters like Oblivion can feel more like consolation prizes. I can't fault them as strategic business moves, helping studios meet financial targets and keep the lights on long enough to make those future franchise instalments possible in an industry so often fraught with layoffs.
Even Cyberpunk 2077's most recent Patch 2.2 (also made by Oblivion Remastered co-developer Virtuos) will no doubt have padded out CD Projekt Red's coffers and freed up the team to work on Project Orion and The Witcher 4 instead. At the same time, it serves a humble peace offering for those lengthy, pricey dev cycles, galvanizing the bond players have with such a popular game and keeping them seated for more. Sound familiar, Elder Scrolls fans?
Distraction and placation have become necessary evils if studios are to grow. But despite understanding why, every time I think about Resident Evil 9, the truth still smarts. Hear ye, medieval RPG fans: I sincerely hope Elder Scrolls 6 doesn't receive the Capcom treatment and get kicked too far down the line. Though, again: between Oblivion Remastered and a Fallout 3 remake, fans will likely have plenty to do before watching the proverbial paint dry.
Check out all the other upcoming Xbox Series X games likely to launch before Elder Scrolls 6...
