The Elder Scrolls 6 could be the last game Todd Howard makes, as the veteran developer has explained that “speed isn’t the goal” at Bethesda Games Studios.
During an interview with IGN the 52-year-old Bethesda boss admitted that The Elder Scrolls 6 may be the last game he works on due to Bethesda’s slow turnaround with games.
“As we look to an Elder Scrolls 6, that is one where… I probably shouldn’t say this. But if I do the math, I’m not getting any younger,” he said. “How long do people play Elder Scrolls for? That may be the last one I do. I don’t know.”
That’s largely down to Bethesda’s long turnaround time — to put it into perspective, it’s been five years since The Elder Scrolls 6 was first announced.
“I want to be faster, but speed isn’t the goal,” he said.
One of the reasons for this is due to the increasingly long periods of official support for its releases, which include post-launch downloadable content, updates, and expansions.
“So, our ability, like we talked about, to support Starfield… Whereas maybe in the old days, you would put it out and then you’d go on to a sequel, now we can support that game for a much longer period of time, which is what our plan is.”
Bethesda recently gave us a closer look at Starfield which revealed the game’s sci-fi cities, stealth mechanics and alien telepathy; along with the role-playing mechanics that have gone into the upcoming game.
“We obsess over the details,” said Howard in a recent Starfield showcase.
Considering Bethesda’s previous turnarounds, The Elder Scrolls 6 could still be years away at this point. Whether or not Todd Howard will remain at Bethesda by that point remains to be seen — though it looks as though Bethesda won’t be rushing it out.
Meanwhile, it looks as though Starfield will see the return of one of Bethesda’s most irritating characters, and recently got an official release date.
In other gaming news, Final Fantasy 16 just got a new playable demo, which is available now on the PlayStation Store.