[Darlene Delk]

Well, they'd at least have the plot, artwork, models, etc done/in the works. Because only the tech people could work on the engine for 2+ years, and the other people aren't being paid to watch Hulu all day.

[Prisca Lacour]

I take it to mean that there is nothing TO say. I am of the belief, from all the interviews I have read, that they spent a huge chunk of time working on the technology for the new ESV and are just now actually getting into the design stages. In other words, we have a LONG time to wait. I can't imagine an announcement this year. In fact I think it will be late NEXT year. 2013 sounds about right for ESV.

While this is possible, keep in mind that not everyone on the team would be working on the new technology. Not everyone is a programmer, and likewise the programmers aren't designers. While the new technology is being developed, the rest of the team will be working on other design aspects (art, models, animation, mechanics, world, story, etc.).

EDIT: Ninja'd by NM.

[Talitha Kukk]

methinks he can't say anything, because they have the announcement date planned (E.G. Quakecon)

Not trying to sound negative or misleading. He's just making it sound like he's being ordered not to say anything. I have full confidence of an announcement at QuakeCon. Or my name isn't Jack Sparrow

[Danial Zachery]

Or my name isn't Jack Sparrow

You're name's nat-hand.

[Alexis Estrada]

While this is possible, keep in mind that not everyone on the team would be working on the new technology. Not everyone is a programmer, and likewise the programmers aren't designers. While the new technology is being developed, the rest of the team will be working on other design aspects (art, models, animation, mechanics, world, story, etc.).

EDIT: Ninja'd by NM.

Give up dude, your fighting the ignorance of the world. For every person you inform there's N number of ignorant people still out there who won't read your stuff, where N = infinity. :nuke:

Learning about game development is a hobby of mine, and I've concluded that it's like the anti quantum physics. In that despite being complicated and very involved everyone who plays games thinks they have an idea of how it works.

[Ysabelle]

I agree, the fact that they've been tweaking the engine all this time doesn't mean that's all they've been doing. The artists and level designers and so on have been creating the game world while the programmers work on the engine. When Bethesda first started development of the game, they likely did what they did with Oblivion, which is decide how large they want the map to be, create a heightmap and start detailing the world. Thinking that Bethesda's artists have been working on Skyrim since 2006 fills me with a lot of hope. The more time they have to spend making the game world, the better,

[Ludivine Dupuy]

Okay, more evidence that they're definitely working on TES V, and not Fallout 4:

http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/5943/taking_back_fallout.php?page=1

It's frequently observed that a number of you at Obsidian worked on the original Fallout games. What's it like working with the new gatekeeper of the series? How did you get together with Bethesda?

Feargus Urquhart: Ever since we left Black Isle and started Obsidian Entertainment, we still make role playing games. It's what we love to do. It's just what we do. Bethesda is a publisher of role playing games. They have their big internal team.

I think a lot of times, and you saw this sometimes with fans talking about Fallout 3 in particular, people say things like, "Oh, are we going to have to wait another five years to see another Fallout?" Well, Bethesda knew that we make role playing games, and the industry is not that gigantic -- I mean, Bethesda's VP of development is Todd Vaughn, and he used to be an editor of PC Gamer magazine.

Todd and I had talked together for a really long time, and we just kept in touch and talked about things. It all really seemed to fit well. We had a team available, and they really wanted to get another Fallout made. In some ways, it was an easy thing.

Now why would they want to get another Fallout made if they were just going to start focusing on Fallout 4 anyway? Because they aren't focusing on Fallout 4, they're focusing on TES V.

I've been saying for a long time now that Bethesda got Obsidian to make another Fallout game so they could focus on TES V, and Urquhart's comments seem to hint towards that being exactly why they did it.

[Abi Emily]

Nice find!

Any way to guesstimate a stepladder of game releases and extrapolate to a TESV release, or is a 4+ year span to generic for that?

[Sweet Blighty]

Okay, more evidence that they're definitely working on TES V, and not Fallout 4:

http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/5943/taking_back_fallout.php?page=1



Now why would they want to get another Fallout made if they were just going to start focusing on Fallout 4 anyway? Because they aren't focusing on Fallout 4, they're focusing on TES V.

I've been saying for a long time now that Bethesda got Obsidian to make another Fallout game so they could focus on TES V, and Urquhart's comments seem to hint towards that being exactly why they did it.

:thumbsup:

[Czar Kahchi]

Okay, more evidence that they're definitely working on TES V, and not Fallout 4:

http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/5943/taking_back_fallout.php?page=1

It's frequently observed that a number of you at Obsidian worked on the original Fallout games. What's it like working with the new gatekeeper of the series? How did you get together with Bethesda?

Feargus Urquhart: Ever since we left Black Isle and started Obsidian Entertainment, we still make role playing games. It's what we love to do. It's just what we do. Bethesda is a publisher of role playing games. They have their big internal team.

I think a lot of times, and you saw this sometimes with fans talking about Fallout 3 in particular, people say things like, "Oh, are we going to have to wait another five years to see another Fallout?" Well, Bethesda knew that we make role playing games, and the industry is not that gigantic -- I mean, Bethesda's VP of development is Todd Vaughn, and he used to be an editor of PC Gamer magazine.

Todd and I had talked together for a really long time, and we just kept in touch and talked about things. It all really seemed to fit well. We had a team available, and they really wanted to get another Fallout made. In some ways, it was an easy thing.

Now why would they want to get another Fallout made if they were just going to start focusing on Fallout 4 anyway? Because they aren't focusing on Fallout 4, they're focusing on TES V.

I've been saying for a long time now that Bethesda got Obsidian to make another Fallout game so they could focus on TES V, and Urquhart's comments seem to hint towards that being exactly why they did it.

Nice find. It makes me wonder if when TES V is out and BGS is working on FO4 if they'll get a company to make a TES spin off. (I kid, I kid. Nice find though. )

[amhain]

Do you guys think if they had planned to finish the serie on IV they would have told us? Serious question here, maybe there wont ever be a TES V .

[daniel royle]

Do you guys think if they had planned to finish the serie on IV they would have told us? Serious question here, maybe there wont ever be a TES V .

They've said multiple times there will be more Elder Scrolls games in the future. So yes, there will be a TES V.

[Lakyn Ellery]

Do you guys think if they had planned to finish the serie on IV they would have told us? Serious question here, maybe there wont ever be a TES V .

what Antibody said

Plus, Oblivion's ending set up the perfect scenario for a great story. TES IV is only the beginning of what Bethesda is doing with the series. It all seems more like a new beginning rather than an end.

[joannARRGH]

Nice find, Antibody.

[Riky Carrasco]

Maybe it's already been said but perhaps they're not working on a direct sequel (something like New Vegas/FO4, and yes I know it's not Bethesda really making New Vegas per say but you know what I mean with the numbers and not numbers and such :stare:)

Maybe we won't see a true TES V for 8 more years

IMO maybe we should rename the thread to Official Next TES installment speculation thread

then again that name sounds horrible perhaps we should keep the current one :laugh:

[Devils Cheek]

Maybe it's already been said but perhaps they're not working on a direct sequel

If they're not then it's going to be one damn amazing spin-off.

[TRIsha FEnnesse]

If they're not then it's going to be one damn amazing spin-off.

Well look at New Vegas and the hype around that

I'm just saying it is a possibility however unlikely

[xx_Jess_xx]

Give up dude, your fighting the ignorance of the world. For every person you inform there's N number of ignorant people still out there who won't read your stuff, where N = infinity. :nuke:

Learning about game development is a hobby of mine, and I've concluded that it's like the anti quantum physics. In that despite being complicated and very involved everyone who plays games thinks they have an idea of how it works.

Anger issues? I am FAR from ignorant, my friend.

Anyway, I would hope and assume that they were working on different aspects of ESV since they finished FO3. Scripts, story-boards, artwork, etc. etc. Yet my statement still stands, I think they spent a significant amount of time working on the engine and have just NOW started working on putting the game together. Pieces do not equal a whole. Design documents and artwork do not equal a game. So when Todd Howard says he has nothing to say about another ESV. I think he is telling the truth. He has NOTHING. I am sure he doesn't want to show off some concept art!

[Darlene DIllow]

All this talk by Todd Howard about the engine and new technology is simply another way to avoid talking about the actual game every time the question is raised by a journalist and it doesn't necessarily mean that there hasn't been any work done on the actual game after all this time.

[Roy Harris]

Anyway, I would hope and assume that they were working on different aspects of ESV since they finished FO3. Scripts, story-boards, artwork, etc. etc. Yet my statement still stands, I think they spent a significant amount of time working on the engine and have just NOW started working on putting the game together. Pieces do not equal a whole. Design documents and artwork do not equal a game. So when Todd Howard says he has nothing to say about another ESV. I think he is telling the truth. He has NOTHING. I am sure he doesn't want to show off some concept art!

All this talk by Todd Howard about the engine and new technology is simply another way to avoid talking about the actual game every time the question is raised by a journalist and it doesn't necessarily mean that there hasn't been any work done on the actual game after all this time.

Antibody created a comparison of the team members who worked on Oblivion and Fallout 3 several months ago, and highlighted the members who had worked on both games, and those who had worked on Oblivion but not worked on Fallout 3. The most interesting revelation to come from the comparison was that the vast majority of artists from Oblivion did not carry over to Fallout 3. They moved on to some other project. Chances are they worked on the DLC for Oblivion, and then moved straight on to conceptualization for TES:V.

Granted, a world cannot be built without an engine in place and a fully functional Construction Set (for TES games at least), but in the process of retooling the engine the main and guild stories, as well as the random side quests, can be finalized; the maps of the wilderness and towns created so that world builders know exactly where to place things when the engine is ready; the meshes, textures and miscellaneous objects can be created ready for use by the world builders, since estimations of polygon counts and texture sizes can easily be made before an engine is built; voice actors can be cast and recorded; animations can be captured and (hopefully) middleware like Euphoria can be licensed for quick implementation when the engine is completed... and the list goes on.

When the engine is completed, everything gets merged together so that they stop being individual pieces, and become a living, breathing world - the keystone to Bethesda's success and reputation. If the engine has only just been completed, then we may not have that long to wait after all. :foodndrink:

[kitten maciver]

They had a lot of job openings for world builders about a month ago (or so I believe), which fits perfectly in the speculation. Todd said they finished tweaking the engine and we assume the others have been working on the story, models etc., so it only makes sense for them to merge the two together, as in have world builders use the models to decorate the world.

On the other hand, I don't think we should expect an announcement at Quakecon, Todd was really apologetic in his http://www.industrygamers.com/news/bethesdas-todd-howard-on-rpg-development-3d-not-supporting-nintendo-and-more/2/:

G: So what's the focus right now? What are you looking at in terms of your projects? Is there anything you can say on what's going on internally at your studio?

TH: I would say that we have pretty much the same team. I've worked with a lot of guys for over 10 years – the group that did Morrowind, Oblivion, and Fallout 3. We just really enjoy doing what we're doing. We don’t want to be doing a ton of stuff. There will definitely be – and I'm glad everybody’s patient with us – gaps and sometimes bigger gaps between the titles. We hope it's worth the payoff. Thanks for your patience and bear with us. Hopefully it will be worth the wait.

IG: Is there an estimate of when there will be an announcement? You know, an announcement about an announcement!

(laughter)

TH: We do have an estimate, but I'm not allowed to talk about it. Even right now it's an estimate.p

The gap so far isn't that exceptionally long, but he seems to be apologising for the wait. The last line in particular seems to indicate it's definitely not going to be Quakecon.

[Laura Shipley]

On the other hand, I don't think we should expect an announcement at Quakecon, Todd was really apologetic in his http://www.industrygamers.com/news/bethesdas-todd-howard-on-rpg-development-3d-not-supporting-nintendo-and-more/2/:

The gap so far isn't that exceptionally long, but he seems to be apologising for the wait. The last line in particular seems to indicate it's definitely not going to be Quakecon.

Well, I think that QuakeCon is close enough that we can just adopt a "wait and see" approach without too much anxiety.

[Project]

voice actors can be cast and recorded;

I may have an idea. I don't know of anyone here remembers/knows this, but when people were speculating about where the next COD game(COD 7/black ops) would be set, Game Informer ran a story about someone somehow finding a casting call for the game. This casting call revealed the setting and character names and backgrounds. Is there any way to research casting calls or job listings for video game voice actors? Maybe we could dig up some dirt on TES V that way??? I know Bethesda likes to use big name voice actors. Patrick Stewart and Sean Bean were in Oblivion and Liam Neeson was in Fallout 3...


I couldn't find the GI article, but here's one from another site: http://www.product-reviews.net/2010/02/22/call-of-duty-7-casting-call-reveals-character-and-location-details/

[Adriana Lenzo]

I may have an idea. I don't know of anyone here remembers/knows this, but when people were speculating about where the next COD game(COD 7/black ops) would be set, Game Informer ran a story about someone somehow finding a casting call for the game. This casting call revealed the setting and character names and backgrounds. Is there any way to research casting calls or job listings for video game voice actors? Maybe we could dig up some dirt on TES V that way??? I know Bethesda likes to use big name voice actors. Patrick Stewart and Sean Bean were in Oblivion and Liam Neeson was in Fallout 3...


I couldn't find the GI article, but here's one from another site: http://www.product-reviews.net/2010/02/22/call-of-duty-7-casting-call-reveals-character-and-location-details/

I am not sure that they really do casting calls like that. WIth Patrick Stewart and Terrance Stamp, they were approached for these roles (not like they would have responded to any casting calls at that). Also, and correct me if I am wrong, but didn't they re-use many of the same vocal talents from Morrowind when creating Oblivion? I don't think that they did give any casting calls for that. As for the location being given away, that would be hard to do with TES since the voices really need to represent races (and all of them at that). Though it would be quite funny to see a casting call like this:

"Seeking voice talent for upcoming video game. Please be able to purr like a kitten and hiss like an iguana."

Hahaha!

[Charlotte Henderson]

"Seeking voice talent for upcoming video game. Please be able to purr like a kitten and hiss like an iguana."

...now we know exactly what to look for!

As for the voice acting carryover, they dropped the Dunmer voice (a devastating disappointment) and I didn't recognize Oblivion's elf voice with anything from Morrowind. Otherwise, the other voices were preserved.