PS5 and Xbox Series X Could Be Bad News for Avowed and The Elder Scrolls 6
The release of the next-gen consoles is just around the corner, and with plenty of new titles lined up for their releases, many gamers will be excited to usher in the next generation with some boundary-pushing games across the genres.
However, the PS5 and the Xbox Series X could be bad news for RPGs like Avowed and The Elder Scrolls 6. There are a few key reasons for this, as well as some big challenges each game will need to overcome to stick the landing during the next-gen.
There are some huge RPGs which will very likely be arriving before Avowed and The Elder Scrolls 6, and which could set some very different expectations for next-gen RPGs. Though recently delayed, Cyberpunk 2077 is still projected to arrive on December 10, making it one of the first big open-world RPGs available on the next-gen consoles. According to CD Projekt Red, Cyberpunk will feature a few key things which will distinguish it from open-world RPGs like Skyrim.
First, Cyberpunk’s protagonist V will be fully voiced, and Cyberpunk’s developers claim that every side-quest in Cyberpunk will feel like a full story. Skyrim set the previous standard for open-world RPGs for many fans of the genre, but while its sandbox was sprawling, few would argue that its story was particularly strong. Indeed, the game banked on its great level of freedom, which allowed players to avoid the story entirely if they wanted to.
If Cyberpunk can combine the two main schools of RPG design like the studio’s previous hit The Witcher 3 – huge open worlds and tight storytelling – then games like The Elder Scrolls may struggle to keep up without taking some huge risks which could alienate fans of the series. Avowed is being seen by many as Obsidian’s response to The Elder Scrolls just as The Outer Worlds was considered a response to the Fallout series. As a result it runs into many of the same challenges.
There are some other big RPGs which are set to land on the new consoles before Avowed and The Elder Scrolls 6 as well. Hogwarts Legacy is set for release at some point in 2021. Bethesda’s own upcoming RPG Starfield is also set for release before The Elder Scrolls 6, the first new IP the studio has tackled in decades. This could lead to Starfield setting some very new standards for the studio on the next-gen consoles that The Elder Scrolls formula cannot live up to without radical changes.
Another risk posed to both Avowed and The Elder Scrolls 6 is that they will be made Xbox Series X exclusives, at least for a time. After the purchase of Zenimax Media Inc, Microsoft now owns the studios behind both The Elder Scrolls and Avowed. With PS5 Exclusives like Spider-Man: Miles Morales and the upcoming sequel to God of War helping the PS5’s chances of being the best-selling console of the upcoming generation, Microsoft may respond with some exclusives of its own that could help the console but not the total sales of the games themselves. Of course, whether or not this potential outcome is a problem for the player depends on which platform they prefer.
However, there is one big advantage Avowed and The Elder Scrolls 6 have. Both studios involved will be able to observe how other RPGs are received on the next-gen, and hopefully could learn from their successes and mistakes. It is very likely, however, that the genre will need to undergo some big adaptations to achieve the success it has in the past.
The Elder Scrolls 6 is in development.
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