Eight years later, a name
Bethesda has finally given the next Elder Scrolls game its official title: The Elder Scrolls VI: Sentinel.
The name was revealed on Tuesday, November 3, at the end of a video celebrating the 40th anniversary of Bethesda. Narrated by Todd Howard, the video looked back at the studio's beginnings as a small team in Maryland, from early sports games like Gridiron to the RPGs that defined it. Near the end, Howard acknowledged that fans constantly ask about the next Elder Scrolls and said the anniversary felt like the perfect moment to share its name. The Sentinel logo followed.
The reveal comes more than eight years after Bethesda first teased the game at E3 in June 2018 with little more than a title card.
Next stop: Hammerfell
The subtitle points fans toward a long-rumored setting. Sentinel is an existing city in Hammerfell, the desert province of the Redguards on Tamriel's western coast, and Bethesda's follow-up messaging said the reveal shares both the game's name and its location.
A short story teaser after the logo referenced a scroll and Hammerfell, hinting at a story tied to the Elder Scrolls themselves. That lines up with a recent report from The Verge that the game would explore the history and secrets of the scrolls.
The name itself wasn't a total surprise. Fans had long guessed Sentinel from clues in the 2018 teaser and an easter egg in Starfield, and reports last week said Bethesda planned to confirm it.
To mark the moment, The Elder Scrolls Online is running a free event called Alik'r Awaits from November 3 to November 10, rewarding players for exploring the game's version of Hammerfell's Alik'r Desert.
Still no release date
For fans who have waited since Skyrim launched in 2011, the name is welcome news, but plenty is still unknown. Bethesda has not announced:
A release date or window
Which platforms the game will launch on
Gameplay, story details or a full trailer
Bethesda said development is continuing and that it will be some time before it is ready to share more.
Here's what has been shared over the years: the game runs on Bethesda's new Creation Engine 3, builds on technology developed for Starfield, and has become the studio's top priority. Earlier this year, Howard described it as a classic Bethesda RPG in the tradition of Oblivion and Skyrim. Bethesda also said in July that several Fallout projects are in development alongside it.
The anniversary video closed by inviting fans to join Bethesda for the next 40 years.