Phil Spencer confirms The Elder Scrolls 6 is an Xbox and PC exclusive

Xbox head Phil Spencer has confirmed that the Elder Scrolls 6 will be exclusive to Xbox and PC.

The confirmation comes from Spencer’s interview with GQ, in which he stated that while both The Elder Scrolls 6 and Starfield will both be Xbox console exclusives, it is “not about punishing any other platform.”

“I fundamentally believe all of the platforms can continue to grow,” said Spencer. “But in order to be on Xbox, I want us to be able to bring the full complete package of what we have. And that would be true when I think about Elder Scrolls VI. That would be true when I think about any of our franchises.”

Spencer is finally putting to rest the seemingly endless debate as to the title’s exclusivity, which has been circulating since the company’s $7.5bn acquisition of Bethesda parent company ZeniMax last year.

While Spencer did confirm that some Bethesda titles would be Xbox exclusives back in March, this is the first time The Elder Scrolls’ exclusivity has been confirmed. Opening the door for an endless debate about Fallout instead.

It’s likely that we won’t hear much more about The Elder Scrolls 6 for some time, though. The most recent game in the mainline series, Skyrim, just celebrated its 10 year anniversary. While The Elder Scrolls Online likely goes some way to filling the gap, Todd Howard, game director at Bethesda Game Studios, noted to GQ that having to deliver the next ‘decade game’ is a challenge for the company.

“I think that would drive me crazy to try to say, ‘Okay, this is the thing you have to top,’” said Howard. “But then you realise, like, The Elder Scrolls VI has got to be a ‘decade game’. How do you make a game where you go into it, like, ‘people have to play it for a decade?’”