In fact, this streamlining process, which has ultimately benefitted the series, has been happening since Daggerfall. I still believe it’s the liveliest and most enduring Elder Scrolls, but it’s hard to deny that a fair amount of Morrowind and Oblivion’s more out-of-the-box ideas and systems were either toned down or thrown out the window. However, a main criticism of Skyrim has always been how “restrained” it was when it came to its deeper RPG systems. Bethesda needs to draw from more than just Skyrim to make this a game to remember. Even though Oblivion made the franchise mainstream thanks to its key role as one of Xbox 360’s early must-plays, Skyrim’s shadow is nearly impossible to escape and has shaped the entire open-world genre, RPG or not. And that’s not a mistake, especially if we consider the ridiculous amount of Skyrim re-releases we’ve had in little more than a decade that game is hugely important for Bethesda Game Studios. But what about everything else? More importantly, what about the unavoidable rework of its moment-to-moment gameplay and RPG systems? And beyond those elements, how big can it reasonably be?Īs I discussed in my previous The Elder Scrolls 6 speculation piece, most folks are looking at Skyrim and The Elder Scrolls Online to fantasize about the next game. Of course, we are almost sure at this point about where it’s literally going: either High Rock or Hammerfell, maybe even both.

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