Bethesda Wants The Elder Scrolls 6 To Be A "Decade Game"

So it's been 10 years since Skyrim was released, and it will probably be another 3-5 until we get The Elder Scrolls 6, making the gap between the two games over 10 years long. Yet, Skyrim still just got re-released, and people still play the game. You know what that means, right? Bethesda is on some cheddar-ting. Obviously, they've now mastered the milking of cows, and, thus, The Elder Scrolls 6 will follow the same blueprint.

The Elder Scrolls 6 Will Be a "Decade Game"

Todd Howard – the mastermind behind all of Bethesda's latest offerings – sat down with GQ of all people to talk gaming. Weird, I know. The interview was all part of Xbox's underwhelming 20th birthday, and included the typical yadda-yadda: 'Next Elder Scrolls will surpass Skyrim', 'will be worth the wait', 'will be amazing', etc, etc. One thing that was interesting, though, was when he was asked why they're releasing Skyrim over and over. Todd's answer: Because we keep buying it. Straight up. Respect. Hence, TES 6 is going to continue the trend, though Howard admitted that creating a "decade-game" is not easy:

“I think that would drive me crazy to try to say, ‘Okay, [Skyrim] is the thing you have to top. But then you realize, like, The Elder Scrolls VI has got to be a ‘decade game’. How do you make a game where you go into it, like, ‘people have to play it for a decade?’”

So, what do we make of this? Are we excited? Are we already sighing at the prospect of playing The Elder Scrolls 7 in 2040? I think it's a bit of both, but also a sign of the times: If the next Assassin's Creed and the next Far Cry are aiming to be live-service games, what's stopping The Elder Scrolls 6 from having longevity due to constant updates? I think the best way for Bethesda to emulate the success of Skyrim is to modernize their approach to sustaining the newest TES, and, if we're really talking live-service, then, I for one, will happily play the game for a decade.