Bethesda Confirms Fallout 5 In Preproduction, Obsidian’s Fallout Game, Fallout 3 And New Vegas Remasters, And Updates On Elder Scrolls VI And Starfield

Bethesda Game Studios has penned a lengthy studio letter on the developer’s project pipeline for the next several years. Among the updates are confirmation of multiple Fallout projects, including Fallout 5, and notes about The Elder Scrolls VI and Starfield.

Bethesda details the future of Fallout, confirming that Fallout 5 is currently in preproduction, saying it “remains our long-range destination.” This echoes a similar statement he made in 2022, when he said Fallout 5 would arrive after The Elder Scrolls VI, which will likely still be the case. The game is being developed using Creation Engine 3, Bethesda’s next-generation game engine that will also power The Elder Scrolls VI. 

Additionally, multiple other Fallout projects are in the works. Bethesda confirms it is developing remasters of Fallout 3 and Fallout: New Vegas, the former of which was leaked in court documents back in 2023. There are no release windows for these remasters, however.

Fallout 76 will receive its next major expansion in 2027 called Raven Rock, a prequel story to Fallout 3. Fallout Shelter will receive new seasons while Bethesda teases the unscripted TV adaptation of the mobile game that’s currently in development at Amazon. Bethesda also confirms there will be no Fallout Day broadcast this year because it is planning to celebrate the franchise’s 30th anniversary in 2027 with a live celebration in Washington, D.C.

In the last Fallout-related update, Bethesda confirmed it is working with Obsidian Entertainment on a new Fallout game, corroborating an earlier report that Obsidian had been mandated to pivot to this project, canceling an Avowed sequel in the process. 

Bethesda’s next big project is The Elder Scrolls VI, a project it describes as “our primary development focus today, with the majority of our team currently working on the next chapter of the franchise.” 

“The next chapter is on the way. We’re where we planned to be, loving how it looks, and playing it every day,” Bethesda writes.

Bethesda is also promoting closer collaborations between its teams. ZeniMax Online Studios, the team behind The Elder Scrolls Online, will also “partner closely” with Bethesda on the Elder Scrolls franchise in addition to making new updates for ESO. “By aligning more directly across the franchise, we can create even better experiences for players,” writes Bethesda. 

As for Bethesda’s newest IP, Starfield, the team is not done with that universe. He states that Year 3 of the game will bring new stories, further gameplay improvements, and more as Bethesda prepares to launch new Starborn content in 2027. 

Bethesda’s updates come in the wake of an ongoing massive restructuring of Xbox’s game division initiated by CEO Asha Sharma as a “reset” of the brand, which saw 1,600 employees laid off across its entire game division, with 1,600 more cuts to come over the next several months. Xbox also divested itself of five of its development studios, with Bethesda’s parent company, ZeniMax, losing its subsidiary, Arkane Studios. ZeniMax as a whole has reportedly been hit hard by the layoffs, with Bethesda Game Studios, id Software, and ZeniMax Online losing hundreds of staff members amid the restructuring.