GameSpot may receive revenue from affiliate and advertising partnerships for sharing this content and from purchases through links.

Elder Scrolls V confirmed as a direct sequel?

European reports indicate Bethesda's next big project will be a "chronological" follow-up to award-winning 2006 fantasy RPG.

867 Comments
No Caption Provided

Source: The Danish arm of game-news site Eurogamer.

What we heard: Ever since The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion was released in April 2006, speculation has run rife about its sequel. The fact that publisher Bethesda Softworks' parent ZeniMax Media has an online division working on a mystery-shrouded massively multiplayer game has led to some rumors that it might be a sequel to the game in the vein that BioWare's Star Wars: The Old Republic is being billed as a sequel to the single-player Knights of the Old Republic games.

Is Bethesda on the verge of opening up on a new Elder Scrolls?
Is Bethesda on the verge of opening up on a new Elder Scrolls?

Now comes word from Eurogamer's Danish division that a follow-up to Oblivion is indeed in the works, and it will be a direct sequel. The site's source "not only confirmed that the game is in current production, but also spoke briefly about the content--with fantasy-sounding phrases like Dragon Lord, something with The Blades--and that voice acting for the characters in the game is currently happening in the weeks to follow." The source did not say if the game was single-player or massively multiplayer.

The official story: "No comment." - Bethesda rep.

Bogus or not bogus?: Likely not bogus. Oblivion's massive storyline left a rich legacy that is ripe for sequelization. And although Bethesda has focused on the wildly popular Fallout games of late, it is unlikely it will let the 16-year-old franchise lay fallow for long. Indeed, the developer-publisher's executive producer Todd Howard told Eurogamer that his company is on the verge of unveiling the game, as it is quite far along in development.

"One thing I can say is that from when you first hear about it to when it's out will be the shortest it's been for us," he said at last year's QuakeCon. "It's pretty far along. When we show it, we want to show a lot, because there's a lot of game there to play right now."

Got a news tip or want to contact us directly? Email news@gamespot.com

Join the conversation
There are 867 comments about this story