The Elder Scrolls 6 is undoubtedly one of the most highly anticipated video games in development. In 2011, The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim took the gaming world by storm, its popularity barely diminished even after ten years. Along the way, mounting eagerness and speculation have grown around the next major entry in the vaunted franchise.

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Unfortunately for fans, Bethesda has proven to be tight-lipped on the subject of The Elder Scrolls 6. Not nearly enough information has been released yet to satisfy fans. Nevertheless, what morsels do exist has fueled plenty of speculation. Only time will tell whether or not these assumptions are justified in the end.

Updated August 29, 2021: As another summer begins to draw to a close, fans are still very much in the dark when it comes to the major details of The Elder Scrolls 6. By all accounts, the highly anticipated sixth entry in the beloved series has a long way to go before release. Theories will no doubt continue to run wild until more substantiated information becomes available in the coming years. Nevertheless, in the meantime, players can at least start to look forward to Starfield to whet their appetites for those craving more Bethesda RPG action. As far as The Elder Scrolls 6 is concerned, patience is going to have to be a virtue for the time being.

The Elder Scrolls 6 Predicted Release Date

The Elder Scrolls 6 Elsweyr

It Will Be Released After Starfield & Fable

This is really the million-dollar question when it comes to The Elder Scrolls 6. Regrettably, concrete information is hard to come by in this department. There are only a few leads that gamers have to work with when it comes to a release date. Bethesda has stated that The Elder Scrolls 6 won't be released until after the launch of Starfield. The latter is a sci-fi RPG, a setting that Bethesda doesn't experiment with very often.

That information helps a little. E3 2021 shed some much-needed light on the situation by revealing the release date of Starfield as November 11, 2022. That makes any kind of imminent release on the part of The Elder Scrolls 6 highly unlikely.

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More recently, further information on the topic became known through comments made by Xbox head Phil Spencer. In a telling interview, Spencer confirmed that The Elder Scrolls 6 wouldn't be released until after the new Fable game. Unfortunately, no concrete release date yet exists for Fable. By this information, what fans can most likely bank on is that The Elder Scrolls 6 is still many years away from release.

What About Avowed?

avowed

Thrown into the mix is also Avowed, an upcoming fantasy RPG developed by Obsidian Entertainment. The question is still up in the air regarding which game is going to be released first: Fable or Avowed. Yet again, however, no hard-and-fast release date exists for Avowed. Knowing which game drops first could provide a clue concerning The Elder Scrolls 6's own release date. Alas, only time will tell on that particular question.

The Elder Scrolls 6 Teaser Trailer

Teaser trailers, as the name implies, aren't meant to give viewers the whole story upfront. Their purpose is to generate excitement and anticipation before the real details start to trickle out. It would be an understatement to say that the teaser for The Elder Scrolls 6 caused a stir. Currently, the video on YouTube is well over 14 million views. That's a lot of anticipation...

Teasers are meticulously combed through by legions of fans to sniff out any hidden details, especially when it's an Elder Scrolls game. This, once again, has led to a veritable cavalcade of speculation, particularly when it comes to the game's setting...

Predicting The Location Of The Elder Scrolls 6

Elder Scrolls Black Marsh and Elsweyr

Hammerfell, High Rock, Black Marsh, & Elsweyr

The lore of The Elder Scrolls runs very deep. The geographical details of certain regions are known by players, even if they haven't been explored in an official game. The aforementioned teaser trailer offers a brief, 36-second view of an unidentified landscape. Players wasted no time in formulating their theories as to The Elder Scrolls 6's setting.

It's fair to assume that The Elder Scrolls 6 won't focus on a region that's already been given significant attention. That rules out Skyrim, Cyrodiil, and Morrowind. The homelands of the Nords, Imperials, and Dark Elves are unlikely to receive a second treatment. This has led fans to theorize that the homelands of Tamriel's other races are good contenders for the setting of the next entry. These regions include Hammerfell, High Rock, Black Marsh, and Elsweyr.

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The view of the landscape provided in the trailer doesn't offer much. It's rather barren, with a few mountain ranges visible in the background. What appears to be an ocean lies off to the right. Lastly, a small collection of ruins sit towards the left of the frame. The land itself is rugged with some degree of vegetation. These features, scant as they are, conform roughly to the lands belonging to the Redguards, Bretons, Argonians, and Khajiit. The regions previously mentioned all contain some or all of these geographic details. The Summerset Isles, described by the lore as a land of sunshine and beauty, doesn't quite fit the bill. However, like the rest of these theories, it's simply speculation at this point.

The Case For Hammerfell

Map Clue From Twitter Hinting At Hammerfell As Next Setting For Elder Scrolls 6

Out of all these possibilities, the case for Hammerfell is perhaps the strongest. The reasoning behind this stems from a tweet released in December 2020. It depicts a map of Tamriel with a series of candles strategically positioned across its surface. Sharp-eyed fans have speculated that the placement of one particular candle implies that Hammerfell is the game's next destination. Is this a significant, yet subtle clue? Or is it the developers having some fun with their audience? Supposed "clues" of this nature need to be taken with a grain of salt. Check out these arguments for some of the possible settings:

The Potential Name Of The Elder Scrolls 6

Elder scrolls online black marsh

All numeric Elder Scrolls titles have a name associated with them. It's the name that usually gives away the game's setting. So, unsurprisingly, that interesting tidbit isn't common knowledge yet. One of the earliest names floating around the Internet was Argonia, with many fans thinking the new game might take place in Black Marsh.

"Redfall" had also been making the rounds for a while. In 2018, Bethesda trademarked this term. This led many fans to jump to the conclusion that The Elder Scrolls 6 was going to be named Redfall. However, that theory was later debunked, as Redfall is a completely different game entirely.

The Elder Scrolls 6's Possible Gameplay

Elder Scrolls V Skyrim: Combat, third and first person

Will Combat Be Formulaic Or Groundbreaking?

If there's one glaring criticism that can be leveled at an Elder Scrolls game, it's the combat. Even in 2011, the combat mechanics of Skyrim were already starting to feel dated. While it's not a disaster by any stretch of the imagination, the combat simply lacks depth. The core idea behind it can be summed up as "keep swinging the sword until the thing is dead." There's not a whole lot to think about when it comes to slaying enemies in The Elder Scrolls.

RELATED: How Character Creation Has Changed Before The Elder Scrolls 6

This state of affairs begs a rather interesting question. How will The Elder Scrolls 6 handle combat? Will it be more of the same? Or, perhaps, will something more complicated be implemented. Now, it may be a stretch to assume Bethesda would ever add a Dark Souls-level of complexity to the combat. There are less extreme ways to spice things up a bit. Accessibility can still be maintained without going overboard. Until actual gameplay footage is released, it's impossible to say which direction Bethesda is leaning. However, it's practically guaranteed the gameplay is going to be shaken up to a considerable extent.

Procedural Generation

One gameplay mechanic that fans know will be used in The Elder Scrolls 6 is procedural generation. In an interview, Todd Howard stated that both the upcoming Elder Scrolls game and Starfield will utilize procedural generation. Check out this article for more of the nitty-gritty on this topic.

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It should be clarified, however, that it's very unlikely either of these games will implement procedural generation for their maps. Rather, it will probably have more to do with how certain quests are organized and administered to the player.

Will The Elder Scrolls 6 Be A Platform Exclusive?

Xbox Game Pass promo art

To Be Or Not To Be?

By now, gamers have most likely heard of Microsoft's acquisition of ZeniMax Media, the parent company of Bethesda Softworks. Microsoft has made its intentions clear that, by acquiring more game studios, they intend to make certain titles exclusive to their brand. Of course, this is all done in the interest of competing with Sony. Thus, a new caveat has been thrown into the mix when it comes to The Elder Scrolls 6. Will TES6 be exclusive to the Xbox Series X and PC?

RELATED: The Elder Scrolls 6: Todd Howard Talks About Possible Xbox Exclusivity

Currently, at least from an official standpoint, fans are still in the dark on that front. However, people should keep in mind that Starfield has already been confirmed as an Xbox/PC exclusive. Thus, it's not a stretch to assume that The Elder Scrolls 6 will be treated in the same manner.

In addition, it's already been confirmed that The Elder Scrolls 6 will be available on Xbox Game Pass, meaning subscribers of that service won't even need to pay full price for the game upon release.

The Elder Scrolls 6 – Other Interesting Rumors

the elder scrolls 6 cities

With so little concrete information, it's easy to formulate any number of theories concerning various aspects of The Elder Scrolls 6. This collection of articles provides a great, one-stop resource for the various fan theories currently circulating the web:

As the wait continues for more news regarding The Elder Scrolls 6, the discourse around the game will only progressively intensify. In the meantime, here are some pieces concerning Bethesda's upcoming RPG that readers can check out:

NEXT: The Elder Scrolls 6: 5 Rumors We Hope Are True (& 5 We Hope Aren't)