The Elder Scrolls VI Has a Name: Sentinel

Eight years, one word

The Elder Scrolls VI has a name at last. Bethesda Game Studios revealed it on November 3, at the close of Celebrating 40 Years of Bethesda Game Studios, a video marking the studio’s 40th anniversary, with studio chief Todd Howard handling the announcement himself. The game had gone by a numeral alone since its first teaser at E3 2018 — eight years, four months and 23 days earlier, by Eurogamer’s count — and the reveal lands just as The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim approaches its 15th birthday on November 11.

The teaser itself is about a minute long: an Elder Scroll half-buried in desert sand, golden runes swirling into a bronze Sentinel wordmark. Then it ends. There is no gameplay, no characters and no date — and the Xbox Wire post carrying the reveal holds little more than the new logo.

What the teaser actually shows

The only place the teaser names is Hammerfell — and only by implication. A line of text appears, attributed to Yazar, Moth Priest of High Queen Iradne of Hammerfell: “The scroll offered only a shimmer, a veil thinly lifted to my eyes. A future lost. A victory undone. Sands of time scattered by fate.” The passage is dated 4E 206, five years after Skyrim’s 4E 201.

Sentinel is a Redguard port city on Hammerfell’s northwestern coast, on the Iliac Bay — which is why the name reads as a setting clue. But Bethesda has not said in a plain statement that the game is set in Hammerfell, or how much of the province players will explore. Its follow-up post said only that it felt great to “finally reveal the name and location with you.” Treat the setting as the teaser’s strong hint, not a confirmed fact. The Verge’s Tom Warren had reported both the Sentinel name and the Hammerfell setting on October 29, ahead of the reveal.

What’s still unknown

Everything else is still unannounced. There is no release date or window, no platform list — not even Xbox or PC, despite Microsoft owning Bethesda — no gameplay, no editions, no price and no preorder page. Bethesda’s follow-up post put it plainly: “Development continues, and while it’ll be some time before we’re ready to share more…”

Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier has reported the game is still more than two years away. That is a report, not Bethesda’s word — and it is the only timeframe anyone credible has put on it. The “2029” dates circulating from unnamed insiders are rumors, not announcements.

What it means for buyers

There is nothing to buy yet — no editions, no preorder page and no official purchase page exist for Sentinel. If you see a listing selling Sentinel preorders, early access or a beta key, it is not an official product: wait until Bethesda names platforms and a date before spending anything. The one thing you can play right now is free: The Elder Scrolls Online’s “Alik’r Awaits” Golden Pursuit runs until November 10, with up to 10 Warrior Wave Crown Crates for activities in the Alik’r Desert. See the Elder Scrolls Online page for the verified sellers listed there.

Games in this story

Elder Scrolls Online