A former Bethesda developer who served as Skyrim's lead designer predicts The Elder Scrolls 6's full reveal will mirror Fallout 4's, in the sense that we probably won't hear much else about the RPG until about six months before launch.
Speaking to MinnMax, Bruce Nesmith, who left Bethesda in 2021, shared some insights into the studio's philosophy toward building hype for games ahead of launch. Apparently, director Todd Howard thinks it's wisest to hold off on sharing a whole lot of details until around that six-month mark.
"The company took years of hits for not talking about The Elder Scrolls 6. Years of hits. Because Todd's opinion – one which I share, by the way – is that the video game industry has short memories. Those companies that start touting their games years ahead of time actually screw themselves. The best time to start talking about it is six months before release."
Now, you might be thinking, but Elder Scrolls 6 was revealed five years ago and isn't due out until at least 2026! Well that's an astute observation, dear reader, and thankfully it's one Nesmith was prepared to answer.
"Only the fact that the pitchforks and torches were out is what got Todd to say, 'yes, we're gonna do The Elder Scrolls 6. I promise you! It's for real! It'll happen!' But I'm betting you won't hear much in the way of details until six months before, which is the way it should be. I think that's the best approach. He's proven that works really well for Bethesda."
It's true that we've heard next to nothing about The Elder Scrolls 6 since it was announced way back at E3 2018. A few bits and bobs have surfaced here and there, like Howard revealing the sequel will build on Starfield's engine, and this cryptic tweet that made fans think it'll be set in Hammerfell, but not a whole lot else. Apparently you can expect it to stay that way for a few more years at least.
