Elder Scrolls 6's Release Date Is Redacted, But Not For The UK Government

For most of the "Elder Scrolls" series' past, fans could expect a new entry every few years. Players waited for six years between "Daggerfall" and "Morrowind," then four years for the release of "Oblivion," and five years between "Oblivion" and "Skyrim." Ever since that fifth "Elder Scrolls" game released to widespread acclaim in 2011 — now more than 11 years ago — fans have wondered what the sixth entry would bring to the table.

After seven years, Bethesda released a lackluster teaser for "The Elder Scrolls 6" to announce that it is in development. Since then, virtually no new information about its release date has been made public. However, according to documents pertaining to Microsoft's pending merger with Activision Blizzard, the government of the United Kingdom has a rough idea of when the highly anticipated game will come out.

The document was released by the Competition and Markets Authority of the United Kingdom, which regulates fair business competition in the country and is heading an inquiry into the merger. Though the UK government knows all the details, as pointed out by series fan site Unofficial Elder Scrolls Pages, the actual dates that Microsoft provided for the release of "The Elder Scrolls 6" were redacted.

This revelation was revealed in a response by Microsoft to the Competition and Markets Authority regarding the Issues Statement of the second phase of the inquiry. The Issues Statement, as the name suggests, "outlines initial theories on what might be adversely affecting competition" with the Microsoft and Activision Blizzard merger, but it doesn't make any definitive statements or accusations. Instead, it offers Microsoft a chance to respond. 

The part of Microsoft's response to the Issues Statement that includes the release date of "The Elder Scrolls 6" is found on page 57. It's not the focal point, though, and the release date is only being referenced as part of a larger response. The inquiry was concerned with Microsoft's "incentives to continue to make 'Call of Duty' available cross-platform." Microsoft responded by pointing out that their choice to make certain games exclusive has nothing to do with "Call of Duty" being on multiple platforms, and referenced "The Elder Scrolls 6" as one of these upcoming exclusives.

The redacted date is not definite, either. The response says that "The Elder Scrolls 6" is "not expected to be released before" the redacted date. The UK government, then, doesn't have an official, set-in-stone release date. What it does know is the earliest date fans can expect to see the next "Elder Scrolls" title. Sadly, fans will have to wait to find out what that date is, exactly.