The recent layoffs at Bethesda should not have a direct impact The Elder Scrolls 6 The development timeline, according to a new shared explanation from established Xbox insiders. The update suggests TES 6 remains on track for the late 2020s, while a separate report potentially narrows the project's launch window to a year.
Microsoft announced its latest phase of Xbox layoffs on July 6, immediately cutting about 1,600 jobs and plans to cut a similar number by the end of its 2027 fiscal year in June 2027. Alert records obtained by The Game File show 158 ZeniMax positions in Texas were affected. That includes 136 roles tied to the Richardson office used by ID Software and other Bethesda teams, as well as 22 jobs in Austin. Notices filed in Maryland list an additional 213 cuts at ZeniMax Online Studios and 166 at ZeniMax Media, potentially affecting Bethesda's publishing division and central development operations.
Matthew Schroeder, known by his online moniker MrMattyPlays, said in a recent video that he had asked Bethesda Game Studios directly if the layoffs had affected the development schedule. TES 6. According to Schroeder, a company official told him the game's timeline “remains unaffected.” Although the update seems reassuring, its significance is limited because even after eight-plus years The Elder Scrolls 6 Disclosure, the highly anticipated RPG has no announcement window.
MrMattyPlays is primarily known as a leaker, but he has demonstrated direct access to Bethesda officials, most notably through his hour-long June 2024 interview with Todd Howard. That history lends more credibility to this kind of limited explanation than to anonymous rumours; After all, it's unlikely that anyone with direct access to senior Bethesda higher-ups would do anything to jeopardize that relationship—eg, spread false rumors. The claim itself is in line with Bethesda's latest development update TES 6 As of mid-July 2026, the project was where the studio expected it to be and playing internally every day. Neither statement independently or definitively proves that the layoff will not have a long-term impact on the development of open-world RPGs. In all likelihood, this summer of 2026 is too early to make that determination.
The Elder Scrolls 6 Timeline
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Image by GameRant Image Source: Bethesda Game Studios
- June 2018: Bethesda announces The Elder Scrolls 6 at E3.
- June 2021: Todd Howard explains that while the game is still in the design phase, its technology development for Starfield is complete.
- August 2023: Bethesda confirms TES 6 has left pre-production and is entering early development after Starfield is completed.
- July 2026: Jason Schreier reports that TES 6 is at least “two to three years” away from completion.
- July 2026: Microsoft cuts hundreds of positions at Bethesda and Zenimax operations, but Bethesda insists the game's current schedule is unchanged.
- 2028–2029: TES 6 release (based on latest available internal estimates)
One possible explanation for the unchanged schedule is that Bethesda protected the core The Elder Scrolls 6 The development team will focus on some of the cuts in management and supervisory roles, which Xbox aims to streamline when it announces the initial layoffs in July 2026. However, there is no concrete evidence that Bethesda followed this approach. Available employment data from Texas indicates Xbox layoffs are having an impact result and The Elder Scrolls The teams included gameplay designers, engine programmers, artists, QA testers, and producers. The Maryland notice, meanwhile, does not identify the projects supported by the affected ZeniMax Media employees.
According to a recent report by Bloomberg's Jason Schrier, TES 6 Completion by July 2026 is at least two or three years away. Estimates point to the project starting before the end of 2028 and possibly 2029 or later. That range is roughly in line with Bethesda's modern big-budget development cycle, which lasts an average of five years unless it undergoes major and complex engine overhauls. Starfield did
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2026
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m
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Bethesda Game Studio
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Bethesda Softworks
Source: Game file
