When Xbox acquired Bethesda, questions about exclusivity circulated for years. Naturally, even titles that started as console exclusives, like Starfield, would arrive on other platforms, while the likes of DOOM: The Dark Ages, Fallout 76 and whatnot remain multiplatform. But The Elder Scrolls 6’s exclusivity status has never been clarified, and even with a new CEO, Asha Sharma, in charge, that remains the case.
“We are increasingly going to be one of the largest platforms in the world. Every platform needs some form of exclusive experiences and content. And so, what we’ve shared is Gears [of War: E-Day] and Clockwork [Revolution]. We’re going to do the best we can to continue to do that, all in context of the business being healthy, and so we have to balance that,” she told the BBC at Gamescom.
Of course, when asked if The Elder Scrolls 6 being Xbox console-exclusive was a “priority,” she simply replied, “It’s a beautiful game.”
While Sharma has famously talked about how fluid plans are for Xbox since becoming CEO, the division seems quite set on its current exclusivity stance. Chief strategist Matthew Ball said it’s only getting started with exclusives; Sharma later added that more will be added as the business gets “healthier.” The commitment is such that Ball later denied rumors that Xbox was reversing course.
You might think that it’s following Sony’s recent stance of keeping single-player titles on its console while releasing live-service efforts for other platforms like PC. However, chief content officer Matt Booty said that fans shouldn’t “overly fixate” on single-player titles alone.
While The Elder Scrolls 6 doesn’t have a release date (or much else beyond the 2018 announcement trailer), Bethesda recently noted that it remains the “primary development focus” and that layoffs haven’t affected development. When visiting the developer’s offices (amid ongoing protests by laid-off workers), Sharma received a first-hand look at the title and praised its scale and “grandeur” as “incredible.”
