Bethesda Names The Elder Scrolls VI: Sentinel in 40th Anniversary Video

Bethesda has revealed that the next Elder Scrolls game is called The Elder Scrolls VI: Sentinel. The name appeared at the end of a video celebrating 40 years of Bethesda Game Studios, narrated by Todd Howard. It comes roughly eight years after the game was first announced.

In the video, Howard looks back at the studio’s history, from its first game, Gridiron, to the Elder Scrolls series. He then says that people are always asking about Elder Scrolls 6 and that the anniversary seemed like a good moment to share what it is actually called. The title then rises out of sand, and a scroll is briefly visible beneath it.

The teaser also includes a line spoken by Yazar, Moth Priest of High Queen Iradne of Hammerfell: “The scroll offered only a shimmer, a veil thinly lifted to my eyes. A future lost. A victory undone. Sands of time scattered by fate.” PC Gamer, citing UESP, notes the quote is dated 4E 206, which puts the game at least five years after the events of Skyrim. GamesRadar+ makes the same observation.

Sentinel is a major city in Hammerfell, the home of the Redguards, and PC Gamer describes it as the capital of the Alik’r Desert. Engadget and PC Gamer both read the title and the sandy backdrop as pointing to Hammerfell as the setting, though Bethesda has not confirmed this. Engadget adds that the video seems to hint at the ancient origins of the Elder Scrolls themselves, which is also unconfirmed.

Bethesda has given no release date or window and has shown no real in-game footage. Engadget reports that Bethesda says it will “be some time” before more information arrives. Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier, as cited by Engadget, says the game is more than two years away.

Why it matters

The Elder Scrolls VI was announced in 2018, and Skyrim launched nearly 15 years ago. Until now, the only official look at the game was that 2018 reveal, which showed a flyover of mountains. A named setting, even an implied one, is the first concrete shift from that.

The name was widely predicted. Engadget notes that Xbox CEO Asha Sharma referred to the game as “The Elder Scrolls VI: ********” in August, with a letter count matching Sentinel. GamesRadar+ says Howard recently told it to “just pretend we didn’t announce it” and that the game is still “a while” off.

What we don’t know yet

Bethesda has not said when the game will launch, which platforms it will target, or what it will play like. The setting and its place in the timeline are inferred from the title, the teaser’s visuals and the quote, not stated by the studio.