10 Things We Want From Elder Scrolls 6
Our next trip to Tamriel could be the best one yet.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim was a genre-defining game, the sort that captured and commanded mainstream attention like few others can. You might argue that Oblivion or Morrowind were the better games in the series, but Skyrim’s popularity and longevity have been pretty much unmatched since it released in 2011.
The Elder Scrolls Online might have tided some fans over, but plenty of others are clamouring for a new single-player Elder Scrolls game, a chance to explore new dungeons, meet new characters, and put new cabbages in new baskets.
Given that Fallout 4 wasn't officially unveiled until a few months before release, it's unlikely that we'll see any concrete announcements regarding The Elder Scrolls VI any time soon. Both the Elder Scrolls and Fallout series tend to operate on 4-5 year development cycles, and while it's already been more than five years since Skyrim was released, Bethesda's Pete Hines has sternly reminded the world that TES VI is not currently in development.
Considering Skyrim sold over 30 million copies across nearly six years though, it's pretty much a given that a new Elder Scrolls game is in the works to some degree. While Skyrim and its remastered versions still hold up well all these years later, there are certain features, locations, characters, and hopefully, bugs we'd rather didn't show up again, and others that we’d love to see realised or refreshed in the next instalment (except the bugs, of course!).
10. A Fresh Setting
Since Morrowind, each Elder Scrolls game has been named for its respective location (Oblivion took place partly in Cyrodiil, and partly on the plains of Oblivion, but The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion sounds a lot cooler than The Elder Scrolls IV: Cyrodiil). If Bethesda chooses to follow this convention once more, it's likely we'll see another instalment that's heavily entrenched in a particular province's history, lore, and political tensions. A lot of the series’ allure lies within its flora & fauna, its architecture, and its diverse species and cultures, so choosing a fresh and enticing setting is crucial.
Having already experienced Skyrim, Cyrodil, Morrowind, and High Rock in standalone games, as well as other provinces in The Elder Scrolls Online and the original Elder Scrolls: Arena, we’re eager to see more fleshed out versions of places like Elsweyr, Valenwood, or the Summerset Isles.
A joint campaign set across Elsweyr and Valenwood would be perfect. Getting the chance to explore dense rainforests and arid desert wastes would make for a nice change from freezing to death in the Nord homeland, and there's plenty more to learn about the Khajiit and Bosmer, two species that took a back seat in The Elder Scrolls V.