Bethesda’s Fallout & Elder Scrolls Roadmap: Everything Officially Confirmed

On July 17, 2026, Bethesda Game Studios director Todd Howard published a studio roadmap open letter that laid out a series of major announcements for the Fallout franchise, The Elder Scrolls, Starfield, and more — all set against the recent mass layoffs at Xbox parent company Microsoft . Here is a complete breakdown of everything Bethesda officially confirmed.

Fallout 5 — In Pre-Production

Bethesda confirmed that Fallout 5 is now in pre-production, running on the studio’s in-house Creation Engine 3 technology . Howard described it as the studio's "long-range destination," while noting that multiple other Fallout projects are in active development .

Fallout 3 & Fallout: New Vegas Remasters

Bethesda officially confirmed that remasters of both Fallout 3 (2008) and Fallout: New Vegas (2010) are in development . These are full remasters being built internally at Bethesda, not simple ports or remakes . No release dates were announced.

Obsidian Entertainment’s Return to Fallout

Obsidian Entertainment is collaborating with Bethesda on a new, unannounced Fallout game, confirming earlier reports from Bloomberg . Forbes separately reported that Obsidian’s Avowed 2 was canceled as part of this shift, with the team — led by Josh Sawyer — redirected to the Fallout project .

The Elder Scrolls VI — Primary Development Focus

The Elder Scrolls VI is Bethesda’s "primary development focus" and its foremost priority . Howard stated the team is working on it using Creation Engine 3 . Forbes reported the game remains about 2–3 years away, suggesting a late 2028 or 2029 release window .

Starfield

Starfield "remains an important part of our future," Howard said . Bethesda plans to continue expanding the game as it enters year three of its life, with ongoing content updates and new stories planned .

Fallout 76

Fallout 76 continues to receive active support, though no major new expansion or detailed content roadmap was provided in the letter .

Other Projects (Blade, etc.)

Bethesda’s Blade game, announced in 2023 and developed by Arkane Lyon, was not directly addressed in Howard’s letter but was noted in IGN’s broader coverage as part of Bethesda’s ongoing portfolio .

The Context: Layoffs and Strategic Shift

The roadmap was released less than two weeks after a Microsoft-led "reset" that resulted in approximately 3,200 layoffs across Xbox and several studios being spun out .

On July 6, 2026, Bethesda Softworks CEO Jill Braff told staff in an internal memo: "We need to change course" . The company was shifting from a "planning model centered on what's next for each independent studio" to one focused on the company's "strongest franchises" .

Howard acknowledged the layoffs were "really tough" and said the studio was "going through a change so that we focus best on the franchises" .

The overarching strategic goal is to consolidate talent around Bethesda’s biggest IP (Fallout, The Elder Scrolls, Starfield), bring teams closer together to build games faster, support them longer, and deliver titles at a faster pace going forward .