The now officially confirmed The Elder Scrolls 6 is a massively anticipated title, with many assuming that the game will be the most expansive installment that the longstanding fantastical RPG franchise has ever seen. Despite being confirmed, very little subsequent information has been revealed by Bethesda regarding the upcoming game, with fans debating over key information such as the potential setting of the title.
Most of this discourse surrounding the locational setting of The Elder Scrolls 6 indicates that the game may likely be set in the province of Hammerfell, which would be a surely fascinating prospect. An interesting element of Hammerfell stems from the unique level of difference that the province holds when compared to the previous franchise setting of Skyrim, with the two provinces potentially offering wildly different aesthetics and gameplay elements.
The Setting of The Elder Scrolls 5
The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim is currently the most popular and successful mainline installment to the TES franchise, originally launching in 2011. With the title still receiving re-releases over a decade later, fans are more than intimately familiar with the eponymous location of Skyrim in which the game is set.
The northernmost province in the continent of Tamriel in which all Elder Scrolls titles are set, Skyrim is one of the most important areas within the franchise's lore geopolitically speaking. Skyrim is home to a battle-hardened humanoid race called Nords, whose resilience has undoubtedly been molded over time by the harsh and unforgiving lands in which they live. The province is renowned for its cold climate, for example, with a constant layer of snow covering a large portion of the region.
The topography of Skyrim is additionally unforgiving, as imposing mountain rages dominate swathes of the province, forcing settlements into rare plains of flat relief for the most part. With how accustomed players have become to these lands, the potential Hammerfell setting for the upcoming Elder Scrolls 6 could prove to be the polar opposite of the setting of Skyrim, both physically and culturally.
The Elder Scrolls 6: Hammerfell
From what little official promotional footage is available of The Elder Scrolls 6, many fans have theorized that the province of Hammerfell is the most likely setting for the hugely anticipated title. With a lot of eyes resultantly being on this area of Tamriel, many are already noticing the overt differences of the province when compared to the familiar landscape and feel of Skyrim.
The climate of Hammerfell is one of the most obvious differences when compared to Skyrim's, with the warm and arid deserts of Hammerfell juxtaposing the frosty tundra of The Elder Scrolls 5's setting. While it is true that smaller mountain ranges do exist within Hammerfell, the massively expansive Alik'r desert provides a huge section of flat topography that is rarely seen within the landscape of Skyrim.
Hammerfell is home to a powerful race known as the Redguard. While possessing the same warrior spirit and geopolitical infighting that Skyrim showcased, the Redguard are more detached from Tamriel and its culture in that they originally hail from the continent of Yokuda, which was mysteriously destroyed in an unidentified but cataclysmic event. It remains that this potential Hammerfell setting is currently just a point of speculation and conjecture, but the inherent massive differences between this relatively unexplored province when compared to that of Skyrim would just be another alluring factor of the upcoming game to long-term fans of the franchise.
The Elder Scrolls 6 is currently in development.