Bethesda fans are known to be very dedicated. Sometimes, however, their love of Bethesda's games and their attention to detail can still be surprising. Case in point, today's Starfield trailer from the Xbox & Bethesda Games Showcase for E3 2021. The two-minute trailer is very rich in detail, something Bethesda's Todd Howard has said was very intentionally done. Yet who would have expected a small scrape on the side of a Starfield terminal to potentially reveal The Elder Scrolls 6's setting, and for fans to spot it with relative ease.
Approximately 78 seconds into Starfield's latest teaser trailer, an astronaut sits down at in the cockpit of their spaceship. For less than two seconds, the side of the pilot's terminal is shown, revealing what appears to be an odd shape in its metal plating. This tiny shape just happens to be identical to the shape of a region within the continent of Tamriel, where The Elder Scrolls is based. It's so identically shaped that its placement within the trailer would be difficult to believe was coincidental.
The location shown in the Starfield trailer is believed to be the western coast of Tamriel, combining the western edges of both the Hammerfell and High Rock provinces. The map would include the city of Daggerfall, which is the setting for The Elder Scrolls 2, as well as Iliac Bell and Hammerfell cities like Helgathe, Sentinel, and Gilane.
There is one issue, however. While the shape is recognizable as the west coast of Tamriel, in detail there are some notable and significant differences from what Elder Scrolls fans might expect. For one, the "map" shown in the Starfield trailer is presented as a singular region, almost like an island. In the known Tamriel map, even across long spans of time, the area is split between both High Rock to the north and Hammerfell below it. But that's not what the "map" shows.
In more specific detail, it also looks like the western tip of Hammerfell where Helgathe is placed is now an island far off the coast. The general shape of the coastline is also much different. Suffice to say, either Bethesda has completely reworked the shape of the region or it takes place in an era far earlier or far later than what players are familiar with.
One other lingering question is whether or not this "map" was placed in the Starfield trailer as a genuine teaser, as a fun Easter egg, or as a joke. It's even possible that an artist slipped it in without oversight. Regardless, fans will run with it. Hammerfall and High Rock were already commonly believed to be locations in The Elder Scrolls 6, so this is likely to be a sort of confirmation in their eyes. Hopefully, they can keep it together for what's likely to be years before The Elder Scrolls 6 is even ready to start being shown.
Starfield releases November 11, 2022, on PC and Xbox Series X/S. The Elder Scrolls 6 has been confirmed by Bethesda.