On November 11th of 2011, the entirety of the gaming world would be changed by the release ofThe Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim. It presented players with an expansive world containing countless stories, quickly becoming the poster boy of the genre. It also presented players with the opportunity to mod the game at unprecedented scales.
One of the most ambitious mods forThe Elder Scrolls 5: SkyrimisSkyblivion. The mod aims to be a recreation ofThe Elder Scroll 4: OblivionusingSkyrimas a sandbox, utilizing its engine and assets, along with newer ones. While its upcoming release is exciting, it means that fans may be playingSkyblivionlong before the next mainline installment of the franchise.
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The Future of the Elder Scrolls
In February 2012, Bethesda released the Creation Kit forSkyrim, which quickly revealed itself to be one of the studio’s best decisions. With it came thousands upon thousands of mods for just about anything, ranging from improving the survival experience to bringing Thomas the Train intoSkyrim. Some mods would aim to be more ambitious, such asthe development ofSkyblivion, which began the same year the Creation Kit released. This decision by Bethesda would keep its game alive and relevant for years to come, withSkyrimmodding still being prominent to this day.
Though it started with a smaller team, arelease dateSkyblivionhas been announced for 2025. That is much sooner than theorized release dates forThe Elder Scrolls 6, which in some ways is a good thing for the franchise. Fans will likely be waiting for many more years, and having an unofficial remake for a beloved installment of anElder Scrollsgame may help satiate that desire.Skyblivionwill also be the chance to experience the game for the first time for many, as the original game will be nearly 2 decades old by the timeSkyblivionreleases.
Gameplay footage ofSkyblivionhas also been shown, which only increased the hype for its eventual release. The game showcases beautiful, modern graphics while still retaining that classic old school RPG charm. Fan projects like these are what make theElder Scrollsfranchise what it is today. The ability for fans to interact with both the world and the modding of the game allows for collaboration on a massive scale. There are few communities that can boast as strong of a bond between the fans and the games as theElder Scrollsfranchise. It also helps with the fact that development of newer installments can take many years, making the wait especially excruciating.
However, there is a certain amount of disappointment on Bethesda’s part in all of this. Becauseambitious mods likeSkyblivionandMorroblivionexist, this makes it unlikely that Bethesda itself will ever return to the games. It has also relied quite strongly on fans fixing issues such as bugs and exploits through unofficial patches. While community involvement has greatly improved the experience of playingElder Scrollsgames, there is still a certain amount of accountability that Bethesda should hold when it comes to the creation and refinement of its own games.
AstheElder Scrollscommunitycontinues to churn out ambitious mods likeSkyblivion, the anticipation forThe Elder Scrolls 6grows. Hopefully Bethesda continues its trend of supporting the modding community, without going too far down the route of paid mods. One thing is for sure: fans will likely be playing with moddedSkyrimfor quite a while beforeThe Elder Scrolls 6finally releases.
The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrimis available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
MORE:Skyblivion Dev Releases New Video Diary Showing Aspects From The Remake
