The Elder Scrolls 6 fans should pretend it wasn’t announced, says Todd Howard. Check out the director’s thoughts on the game being announced too early and Bethesda’s development approach in using next-gen consoles.
The Elder Scrolls 6 Expectations and Updates
"Just Pretend We Didn’t Announce It," Says Todd Howard
The Elder Scrolls VI (TES6) director, Todd Howard, recently suggested that fans should briefly "forget" the game was ever announced. Since it was first unveiled at E3 2018, Bethesda has yet to give fans any substantial updates on the sequel's development.
Speaking with IGN on March 17, Howard stated, "[It] doesn’t exist. No one’s heard a word," as he reflected on the challenges of sustaining hype over long development cycles and finding the right window for a full reveal.
The director believes the ideal player experience occurs when the gap between a game’s announcement and its release is as small as possible, allowing the initial burst of excitement to carry directly into the first playthrough. "I prefer not to talk about stuff until then. I like to compress that moment where you hear about a game to when you can play it," he said.
However, Howard admits that this compressed timeline isn't always practical, as business interests and shifting industry variables often determine when a game must finally step into the spotlight. "That isn’t necessarily the best thing to do with every game. Sometimes you need to inform people, and [there are] business considerations and et cetera, et cetera," the director noted.
Balancing a Jampacked Timeline
While TES6 remains Bethesda’s most anticipated project, the studio continues to manage an extensive portfolio of franchises through active development and long-term support. Howard looked back at the simultaneous reveals of Fallout 76, Starfield, and TES6, which were specifically intended to inform fans of the studio's long-term roadmap.
Bethesda used those early reveals to reassure players that traditional single-player RPGs remained a core priority. Although Howard personally favors shorter, more secretive marketing cycles, he acknowledges the constant struggle to balance his preference for surprise with the intense, genuine curiosity of a dedicated fanbase eager to know what’s next.
"And, well, we’re working on a lot of stuff. I think if you look at the scale of our studio, we could have 10 times the amount of people to do all this. We’re doing so much, and it’s just finding the right times to tell everybody about it," the director stated.
Bethesda’s Expectations for Next-Gen Consoles
With TES6 in development and Starfield receiving ongoing support, Howard detailed the studio’s evolving approach to hardware utilization, emphasizing a move away from the rigid technical constraints of previous console generations.
"Our approach has always been – and because fortunately we've had such a PC audience and we're doing it more and more going forward – which is to cast a wide net technically, to both take advantage of the very high end, but allow the game to scale down and handle [low-spec]," he said.
Howard also highlighted the popularity of handheld gaming, noting the studio's commitment to supporting these platforms. By moving toward a more flexible development architecture and away from the rigid hardware "constraints" of the Xbox 360 era, Bethesda intends for massive titles like TES6 to scale across a broad spectrum of devices without compromising their ambitious scope.
Despite his November 2025 comment that TES6 is "still a long way off," Howard followed up in December by stating that the game's development is currently "progressing very well." However, Bethesda remains tight-lipped regarding a specific release window, leaving fans to hope for a sooner-than-expected launch—especially given that over a decade has passed since Skyrim first debuted in 2011.
The Elder Scrolls 6 is currently in development and is expected to release on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. To stay up to date with the latest information about the game, check out our article below.
Sources:
The Elder Scrolls VI – Official Announcement Teaser
Todd Howard Talks Elder Scrolls 6 Progress, Starfield's PS5 Port, and Bethesda's Future – IGN Interview
