The Elder Scrolls 6is one of the most anticipated games of the decade. However, Bethesda has released no information about the game’s story or setting, despite announcing the game all the way back at E3 2018. Now the question of how Bethesda plans to top the immense success and incredible longevity ofSkyrimhas been hanging over the studio’s head for the better part of a decade.
There’s no question thatThe Elder Scrolls 6has some huge hurdles to overcome. The next game will have to stand up to some intense competition from other RPG studios, face some of the ways expectations have changed sinceSkyrim’s release, and perhaps most importantly, it will have to contend withSkyrim’s legacy itself. Here’s a breakdown of the biggest challenges faced byThe Elder Scrolls 6, and just a few of the ways Bethesda may be hoping to take the franchise to new heights.
RELATED:The Elder Scrolls 6: The Case for a Summerset Isles Setting
The Competition Against The Elder Scrolls 6
Skyrim’s successcaused waves across the RPG industry. In the years following its release, fans of the genre saw an increased focus on large open worlds, even in franchises which didn’t have theElder Scrollsseries’ first-person perspective.
Obsidian Entertainment, which developedFallout: New Vegasfor Bethesda, appears to be directly challengingThe Elder Scrollsseries withAvowed. LikeSkyrim, Avowedwill be a first-person fantasy RPG set in an expansive northern frontier where players are able to dual-wield traditional weapons and magic. It’s clear from the trailer thatAvowedis partially capitalizing on the long waitElder Scrollsfans have endured. The studio likely hopes thatAvowedwill be a more familiar take compared to the developer’s critically successfulPillars of Eternityseries.
Obsidian has capitalized on Bethesda’s perceived failings before.The Outer Worlds, a satirical sci-fi game that reminded many ofFallout, released just a year after the reputation of theFalloutfranchise and Bethesda took a considerable hit from the rocky release ofFallout 76. IfAvowedis a hit, there’s a risk that fans will consider Obsidian Entertainment to be Bethesda’s successor studio in both the sci-fi and fantasy genres.
Obsidian isn’t Bethesda’s only competition, however. Fantasy franchises like BioWare’sDragon Agealso adjusted toSkyrim’s success, withDragon Age: Inquisitionset in a large semi-open world unlike previous games. It’s likely thatDragon Age 4will be another fantasy game set in a large open world, one which could set new standards for next-gen RPGs that Bethesda may have to compete with. Regardless of whether or not BioWare’s game succeeds, it could risk causing demand for big-budget fantasy RPGs to plateau, or it could see a shift in the industry towards more character-driven storytelling, which has never beenThe Elder Scrolls’ specific forte.
RELATED:The Elder Scrolls 6 Really Needs to Explain the Franchise’s Sentient Trees
Console Exclusivity for The Elder Scrolls 6
For a while, it seemed likeThe Elder Scrolls 6had one key advantage overAvowed. With the PS4 finding success with fast-selling first-party games likeSpider-ManandGod of War, Microsoft began acquisitions for studios like Obsidian. The fact thatAvowedwill not be available on the PS5 was a major advantage for Bethesda.However, Bethesda was purchased by Microsoft last year. Bethesda developers have also expressed uncertainty about whetherThe Elder Scrolls 6will also be made a Microsoft exclusive, releasing only on PC and the Xbox Series X.
Although many fans consider Bethesda games to have better longevity on PC due to modding communities, only 14% ofSkyrim’s sales in its first two days were on PC. WhileSkyriminitially sold better on the Xbox 360 than the PS3, thePS5 sold twice as well as the Xbox Series Xover its first 2 days. There’s a risk that if Microsoft makesThe Elder Scrolls 6a PC and Xbox exclusive the game could miss out on a considerable portion of its potential market. If nothing else, it likely puts it on a more level playing field with competition likeAvowed.
Skyrim’s Legacy Next To The Elder Scrolls 6
Perhaps the biggest challenge facingThe Elder Scrolls 6isSkyrim’s legacy itself. The game was one of the most influential of the last decade and continues to sustain a strong community to this day. There are, however, some indications as to how Bethesda hopes to top one of its most famous releases.AtBrighton Digital 2020, Todd Howard indicated thatThe Elder Scrolls 6would make greater use of procedural generation to create a larger world than previous installments. The game won’t just be able to rely on size, however.
The Elder Scrolls 6has big decisions to make about the direction of its design going forward. One of the reasonsSkyrimhas enjoyed such long-lasting success is because the game presents the player character as a total blank-slate, excluding their near-execution at Helgen, giving the game a huge amount of replay value. However, this came at a cost.Skyrim’s main questin particular was criticized for its lack of depth or interesting boss battles.
It’s unclear whetherThe Elder Scrolls 6, likeFallout 4, will attempt to tell a more character-driven and personal story in its world. It’s also unclear whether or not this would actually complement the design of the nextElder Scrollsgame, or if expanding the world and the player’s freedom is the way to go.
Either way,The Elder Scrolls 6will have to take a gamble. The game can’t just beSkyrimwith updated graphics, but diverging from theSkyrimformulacomes with its own risks. Fans may be expectingThe Elder Scrolls 6to take both the depth and breadth of the franchise’s roleplaying opportunities to the next level, but expanding one could easily come at the cost of the other.
It’s also possible that after more than a decade of waiting, expectations forThe Elder Scrolls 6will be almost insurmountably high. With Bethesda working on its newStarfieldRPG in the meantime, the upcoming sci-fi game could be a rich vein for experimentation that could helpElder Scrollstake big risks with confidence. Whether or not it can ever live up toSkyrim, however, remains to be seen.
The Elder Scrolls 6is in development by Bethesda.
MORE:Industry Insider Claims The Elder Scrolls 6 Won’t Arrive Until 2026
