The Elder Scrolls 6 Still ‘Five+ Years Away’, PlayStation Version Undecided

Xbox’s Phil Spencer has confirmed that The Elder Scrolls 6 is still “more than five years away” from launch. The Xbox head also remained cautious about saying on which platforms the Skyrim sequel will be developed, saying it was “difficult for us to be specific at this time.”

Spencer testified during today’s Microsoft FTC trial about the state of The Elder Scrolls 6 while trotting around considering the remoteness of the game’s slated platform. . His hesitation may point to the uncertainty surrounding whether the game will be console exclusive, but he thinks The Elder Scrolls 6 could skip current-gen consoles entirely. It’s not out of the realm of possibility.

As Spencer previously said in an affidavit, “I have publicly stated that The Elder Scrolls 6 will skip the PlayStation,” during the trial, the potential for Elder Scrolls 6 exclusivity was denied. There was some confusion over it, but he now says he doesn’t remember doing anything like that.

Looking back to November 2021, Spencer certainly hinted that The Elder Scrolls 6 would be an Xbox exclusive without explicitly saying so. At the time, Spencer said: “It doesn’t punish other platforms, as I believe basically all platforms can continue to grow. We want to be able to offer the complete package, and that’s true when we think of The Elder Scrolls 6. It’s true when we think of our franchise.”

Now in court, Spencer said the following about The Elder Scrolls 6’s release timeframe and planned platforms:

“Given the maturity of the game, I think there was a little bit of uncertainty about which platforms it would be released on. At this point, it’s difficult to pinpoint exactly which platforms the game will be released on.

“As I said with The Elder Scrolls 6, it’s so far in the future that it’s hard to see what the platform will look like at this point. We’re finishing up Starfield, which launches this September is the same team as

“That means it will likely be five years or more before it happens.”

The Elder Scrolls 6 release date is far and unknown, but it shouldn’t be too surprising. Bethesda Game Studios is currently gearing up to launch Starfield on Xbox Series X and S and PC this September, and we know TheElderScrolls6 is the developer’s next big project. In 2020, Bethesda’s Pete Hines said fans shouldn’t expect details on The Elder Scrolls 6 until “years from now.” As of 2021, the game was still in the design stage.

Based on Spencer’s comments, fans shouldn’t expect The Elder Scrolls 6 to be out until 2028 at the earliest. It’s worth noting that 2028 is the year Microsoft expects to launch its next-gen console.

For more details, read Spencer’s comments about the PlayStation 5 devkit and how Microsoft was concerned about Starfield skipping the Xbox. Also, check out our recap of the first day of the Microsoft FTC trial.

Logan Plant is a freelance writer for IGN covering video game and entertainment news. He has over 7 years of experience in the games industry and has written byline articles for IGN, Nintendo Wire, Switch Player Magazine and Lifewire. Find him on Twitter @LoganJPlant.