Exclusive: Phil Spencer Drops Bombshell Announcement for The Elder Scrolls 6 Release Date

Xbox Head Phil Spencer provided insight into the release date of The Elder Scrolls 6 during Microsoft's ongoing legal battle with the Federal Trade Commission regarding the attempted acquisition of Activision Blizzard. This revelation occurred during the second day of a preliminary injunction hearing on the FTC's efforts to block Microsoft's Activision Blizzard buyout.

On June 11, it was the fifth anniversary of the announcement of The Elder Scrolls 6 by Bethesda. The announcement was made at E3 through a CGI teaser, showcasing a mountainous landscape that is widely believed to be either Hammerfell or High Rock, two of the nine provinces within the fictional continent of Tamriel. Despite the passage of time, the game has not made significant progress towards its release since 2018, even though there are fans who have become military veterans during the waiting period.

Spencer reaffirmed the state of affairs during his testimony in a San Francisco court on June 23. When asked about the availability of The Elder Scrolls 6 on PlayStation, the Xbox chief dismissed any discussion about its target platforms as irrelevant, stating that the upcoming RPG is still years away from release. Expanding on this, Spencer referred to the next installment in the franchise as a game that is at least five years down the line. These remarks align with Bethesda's previous confirmation that active development on The Elder Scrolls 6 would only begin after the release of Starfield. Despite several delays, this prerequisite will finally be met on September 6.

It is worth noting that Starfield entered full production in late 2015, following the launch of Fallout 4. Considering the almost eight-year gap between Bethesda's last two games, Spencer's prediction appears optimistic in comparison. This insight from the executive also suggests that the current fan petition to remove Xbox exclusivity from The Elder Scrolls 6 is premature.

Spencer disclosed during the hearing that Microsoft was unsure about bringing Starfield to Xbox until 2020 when it obtained ZeniMax Media, the parent company of the studio. This statement may have been prompted by a report from September 2020, which indicated that Sony was interested in having Starfield as a timed exclusive for the PS5. Nonetheless, the intention behind the remark was to emphasize that decisions regarding platform availability are typically made quite late in the development process of a game. As a result, Spencer declined to speculate on the target platforms for The Elder Scrolls 6. It is worth noting that The Elder Scrolls 6 is currently under development.