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What's The New Setting For 'The Elder Scrolls 6'?
Microsoft is getting ready for the next Xbox vs. PlayStation console war
E3 2018: Fallout Shelter For Nintendo Switch And PS4 Announced, Out Now

What's The New Setting For 'The Elder Scrolls 6'?

Posted: 11 Jun 2018 06:41 AM PDT

Credit: Bethesda

The Elder Scrolls 6.

Here's what we know about The Elder Scrolls 6. First, the name. No, not the interesting part of the name, the part where it tells us where the new game will be set, just the uninteresting part, the part that tells us it comes after The Elder Scrolls 5 and before The Elder Scrolls 7. And we have essentially one, single image depicting what we assume is the setting for the new game, albeit one in very broad strokes. This is the internet, however, and that image is more than enough to sent Reddit into a speculative whirlwind. Here are some of the absolute earliest guesses about where this game will take place.

Here's some work by Reddit user Dunmer, who suspects the game might take in the Redguard home of Hammerfell:

Credit: Dunmer

Some wild speculation on the setting for The Elder Scrolls 6.

Dunmer uses the snow-capped peaks in the distance as an orienting point, guessing that they belong to the Skyrim of The Elder Scrolls 5. After that, we're thinking about the relative shape and placement of the coastline. We can also see a city there on the coast, as well as a fortress more inland. I'm skeptical about this one, mostly because we've seen Hammerfell in The Elder Scrolls Online and it looked a lot more like a desert than this. It's a little unclear, however, how much TESO can predict new locations in the mainline games: I can't imagine Bethesda Softworks wants to be written into a corner on some of these new areas. Dramatic time shifts can always change the landscape, as well.

If it is Hammerfell, it might not just be Hammerfell. We might also get the Orsmer home of High Rock, which combined would both give us a healthy increase in the size of the map as well as some more dramatic landscape variance than what we saw in Skyrim.

Hammerfell and High Rock seem to be Reddit's best guesses, but there's a wildcard in there as well. This speculation really only works if the game is in Tamriel, which is the continent we've been working with for the entirety of the series so far. It might not be in Tamriel: it might also be in Akavir, an entirely new continent full of snow demons and vampire snake people.

If it's in Akavir, disregard everything above. We really don't know anything all that useful about what a screenshot of Akavir would look like, because we mostly have shaky information about that continent save some scattered lore: there were some Imperial outposts there, one of which might be that destroyed-looking fort. Akavir has been rumored for a while for the new game, and it would definitely get around the problem of so much of Tamriel already being explored in TESO.

Regardless, we likely won't get to play this game until at least 2020, and maybe not even then. But it exists! Expect the speculation to continue.

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Microsoft is getting ready for the next Xbox vs. PlayStation console war

Posted: 11 Jun 2018 08:15 AM PDT

Microsoft's gaming chief, Phil Spencer, didn't spend a lot of time talking at the company's E3 press conference last night, preferring to let the games speak for themselves. Microsoft showed off 52 games onstage, including Halo Infinite, Gears 5, Forza Horizon 4, and titles from third parties like Fallout 76 and Cyberpunk 2077. While Spencer let the pace of the games dazzle the 6,000 people in the crowd, in his less than 15 minutes of stage time, he also made it very clear Microsoft is ready to battle. With new Xbox consoles, cloud streaming, and a fresh commitment to original games, Microsoft is getting ready for the next console war and beyond.

The Xbox One fell behind Sony's PlayStation 4 for a number of reasons (pricing and Kinect didn't help initially), but Microsoft is now facing a lack of exclusive titles to really boost its new Xbox One X console. Microsoft is finally responding to that negative feedback, and one of the surprise announcements at last night's Xbox E3 briefing was the company's commitment to first-party games. Microsoft is acquiring Undead Labs (makers of State of Decay), Playground Games (Forza Horizon developers), Ninja Theory (Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice), and Compulsion Games (We Happy Few). These developers will join Microsoft Studios, alongside the formation of a newly founded Santa Monica-based studio, The Initiative, that will be led by former Crystal Dynamics head of studio Darrell Gallagher.

While two of the studios already develop exclusive Xbox games for Microsoft, the rest will add to Microsoft's original games list. "We know that exclusive games from our Microsoft Studios are what originally turned so many of us into Xbox fans. My team and I take our commitment to you seriously," said Phil Spencer. "By joining us at Microsoft Studios, these five new teams will have the resources, the platform, and creative independence to take bigger risks, create even bolder worlds for you."

These studio acquisitions are clearly a reaction to a lack of solid first-party games, but they're also a commitment to Xbox fans that Microsoft isn't about to give up on gaming. Microsoft is already embracing a world beyond Windows PCs, reducing its consumer focus, and trying to win back developers. A lot of these moves have Microsoft and Xbox fans concerned about the future of its gaming commitments, and Spencer ended Microsoft's E3 showing with a very clear message.

"We commit and harness the full breadth of our resources at Microsoft to deliver on the future of play," revealed Spencer, before detailing Microsoft's plans for a game streaming network and new Xbox consoles. "The same team that delivered unprecedented performance with Xbox One X is deep into architecturing the next Xbox consoles, where we will once again deliver on our commitment to set the benchmark for console gaming." If that wasn't enough of a message, Spencer ended with a clear signal that Microsoft is here to stay with Xbox for years to come.

"We have committed our team, our company, our technical resources so we can declare to you today, and next year, and all the years after that: you will always experience the best in gaming on Xbox." Spencer's strong message felt like a reassuring one to Xbox fans, but it was also a realization that Microsoft isn't ready to offer the best games on Xbox One just yet. The Xbox One is the best console if you don't care about new exclusive games, and it's obvious that Microsoft's deep focus on backward compatibility will continue with its future consoles.

These new studios will take time to create the games Microsoft needs, and this isn't going to be a quick turnaround. Microsoft will once again have to mostly rely on third-party studios to fill the gaps this year, with massive games that can also be played on rival hardware.

It might be another tricky year for the Xbox One, especially as Sony has already delivered exclusive games like Detroit: Become Human, God of War, and Shadow of the Colossus this year. Sony is also expected to show off more big exclusives at its own E3 event tonight, including Death Stranding, The Last of Us: Part II, Ghost of Tsushima, and Spider-Man. Microsoft showed at E3 that it's ready to play the long game, and that will inevitably lead it toward the next big console battle with Sony.

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E3 2018: Fallout Shelter For Nintendo Switch And PS4 Announced, Out Now

Posted: 10 Jun 2018 11:16 PM PDT

During its E3 2018 press conference, Bethesda's Todd Howard announced that Fallout Shelter will be coming to Nintendo Switch and PS4. The game, which was originally released on mobile during E3 in 2015, will be out tonight on the new platforms. And as with the versions on other platforms, it will be available for free. [Update: Both versions are now available on the consoles' respective online stores.]

According to Howard, Fallout Shelter has been played by over 120 million people, saying that's "more people than every game we have made combined." Previously, Fallout Shelter was available on iOS and Android, Xbox One, and PC. The game allows you to establish and lay out your own Vault. You're charged with managing its inhabitants to grow and expand the Vault while also sending out adventurers into the wasteland to gather supplies (although you don't actually directly control them).

The new versions will presumably feature all of the updates and improvements that have been made over the past three years, but there was no word about any new content being added.

This was one of many announcements during Bethesda's E3 2018 conference. In terms of the Fallout franchise, we learned the first real details about Fallout 76, which is an online, multiplayer-focused RPG. The company also made some surprising announcements, including confirmation that both Starfield and The Elder Scrolls VI are in development. To catch up on everything, be sure to check out our roundup of all the news.

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