Bethesda director Todd Howard shared an update on the development of The Elder Scrolls 6. Seven years after the game’s release, Howard said it will be “a while” before a Skyrim sequel is released. However, the Bethesda veteran confirmed that the studio is about to hit a “big milestone” internally on the project, saying The Elder Scrolls 6 will be more of a “classic-style” Bethesda game, like Forsaken and Skyrim.
Howard spoke on a range of topics from The Elder Scrolls VI to Starfield on the latest episode of the Kindaunny Games podcast on Wednesday. The studio director reiterated his previous updates on the project, saying development of the game is “going well” and Bethesda is “pleased with it,” but said it will be “a while” before The Elder Scrolls 6 is ready for release.
However, Howard did confirm – without revealing details – that Bethesda is close to hitting a major internal milestone on the project.
“We feel good about the technology moving forward and how the game is coming together. We’re able to play it. We’re about to cross a major milestone internally,” he said.
Howard, who has served as game director on “Starfield”, “Fallout 4” and “The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim”, said that most of the studio’s members and some partners are working on “The Elder Scrolls 6”.
He also said that most of his personal time is spent on the development of The Elder Scrolls 6, although Bethesda is believed to have multiple projects in development. Additionally, he confirmed that most of Skyrim’s developers are still in Bethesda and are working on the next Elder Scrolls game.
“The Elder Scrolls 6” returns to Bethesda’s “classic style”
Bethesda’s recent mainline games are a departure from its legacy. Fallout 76, released in 2018, was a live multiplayer game, while Starfield, released in 2023, comes with features not found in the studio’s older games. Howard confirmed that The Elder Scrolls 6 will mark a return to the studio’s “classic style.”
“In many ways, Fallout 76 and Starfield were a little bit of a creative departure from the classic Elder Scrolls, Fallout – The Elder Scrolls, Fallout 3, Fallout 4, Oblivion – exploring the world in a way. When we go back to what we’re doing now with The Elder Scrolls 6, we’re getting back to that classic style that we’re very, very familiar with that we’ve missed,” Howard said.
The studio director added that Bethesda has spent the past few years updating the in-house Creation Engine 2 used in Starfield to Creation Engine 3, which will serve as the underlying engine for The Elder Scrolls 6 and beyond.
Aside from vague updates on the game’s development progress, Bethesda and Howard have shared little information about The Elder Scrolls 6. Last November, Howard said the game was still “a long way off,” although he admitted it had been “too long” since the last major Elder Scrolls game.
In December, several Bethesda executives shared an update on the project, including Howard, who said the game’s development was “going very well.” Studio director Angela Browder talked about The Elder Scrolls 6’s technological advancements and said the game’s “endless possibilities” are “exciting.” Bethesda design director Emil Pagliarulo added that the studio will spend as much time as possible making the game great.
The Elder Scrolls 6 is Bethesda’s long-awaited sequel to The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, which was announced at E3 in 2018 with a short trailer. In the seven years since, E3 no longer exists, but work on the project continues.
Bethesda is believed to be developing an unannounced Fallout project. Starfield is also getting a major update sometime this year, which will reportedly be released on PS5.