Fans ofThe Elder Scrollshave been waiting for years for more news onThe Elder Scrolls 6since Bethesda dropped its initial teaser trailer in 2018. In the years since then, the studio has released a new IP, Starfield, and continues working onThe Elder Scrolls 6, which is likely the studio’s focus until the game’s launch. With Bethesda’s focus onThe Elder Scrolls 6, many players are anticipating news on it at some point in the near future, although it’s unclear when that might be.
While substantial news aboutThe Elder Scrolls 6would be welcomed by players, another beloved series long-anticipated by fans recently launched a trailer that was well-received.The Witcher 4’s cinematic trailershowed no gameplay, yet included plenty of information about the world, story, and player character, and did an incredible job at building hype for its release.The Elder Scrolls 6’s next trailer doesn’t need to show anything more than that, especially as very little information about it has been confirmed by Bethesda.
The Witcher 4’s Trailer is a Masterclass
Rather than being a gameplay trailer or even touching on any of the narrative beats inThe Witcher 4, thetrailer instead focused on thecore themes inThe Witcher 4and Ciri’s presence as a protagonist through telling a short story. This was a clever way to avoid any story spoilers, while still being relevant and building hype for a game that’s still likely a long way off from release. It also doesn’t promise any gameplay mechanics that may be cut during production before launch.
The Elder Scrolls 6is likely in a similar production statetoThe Witcher 4, if not earlier in production. Bethesda doesn’t need to release a trailer forThe Elder Scrolls 6that includes features that may be cut, or show an incomplete game for the sake of hype. However, followingThe Witcher 4’s example and showcasing a self-contained story that still gives players relevant information about a game they’ve been anticipating for years would be a wonderful way to showcase their game.
The Elder Scrolls 6 Needs to Build Hype
Some of the major points ofThe Elder Scrolls 6that need to be confirmedinclude the setting, timeline, protagonist, and themes.The Witcher 4’s cinematic trailer included all of these by telling a short story that’s presumably unrelated to the main narrative of the game. A similar cinematic trailer that showcases the setting and tells a story that features either one of the iconic factions ofThe Elder Scrollsthat players know will go a long way in kicking off hype forThe Elder Scrolls 6after such a long wait for news. It could even introduce a new faction as long as the storytelling is sufficient.
Not only would this ignite hype for yearsuntil Bethesda has the features ofThe Elder Scrolls 6locked down, but it would also give players some much-needed answers about the game. While features such as combat and gameplay are core to the experience ofThe Elder Scrolls, higher level questions such as the setting, timeline, protagonist, and themes need to be answered first, before getting into specifics. A short story would answer these, and keep players going until Bethesda is ready to release more details.
