The Elder Scrolls 6 is undoubtedly one of the most highly anticipated video games of our time. In 2011, The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim took the gaming world by storm, its popularity barely diminished even after ten years. Along the way, mounting eagerness and speculation have grown around the next major entry in the vaunted franchise.

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Unfortunately for fans, Bethesda has proven to be tight-lipped on the subject of The Elder Scrolls 6. Not nearly enough information has been released yet to satisfy fans. Nevertheless, what morsels do exist has fueled plenty of speculation. Only time will tell whether or not these assumptions are justified in the end.

This is really the million-dollar question when it comes to The Elder Scrolls 6. Regrettably, concrete information is hard to come by in this department. There's only one lead that gamers have to work with when it comes to a release date. Bethesda has stated that The Elder Scrolls 6 won't be released until after the launch of Starfield. The latter is a sci-fi RPG, a setting that Bethesda doesn't experiment with very often.

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That information helps a little. However, the problem is that Starfield itself hasn't even be given a release date. That makes any kind of imminent release on the part of The Elder Scrolls 6 highly unlikely. It's realistic to assume that The Elder Scrolls 6 won't be released for several more years. 2021 is out of the question, as is 2022 for that matter. By 2023, the situation may look different, although the game could still be a ways off even then. Hopefully, with E3 2021 just around the corner, more information about Starfield may be forthcoming. If a release date for Starfield can be nailed down, then it might be a little easier to estimate The Elder Scrolls 6's release window. The Bethesda E3 2021 conference is scheduled for June 13 at 1:00 pm ET.

Teaser trailers, as the name implies, aren't meant to give viewers the whole story upfront. Their purpose is to generate excitement and anticipation before the real details start to trickle out. It would be an understatement to say that the teaser for The Elder Scrolls 6 caused a stir. Currently, the video on YouTube is just shy of 14 million views. That's a lot of anticipation...

Teasers are meticulously combed through by legions of fans to sniff out any hidden details, especially when it's an Elder Scrolls game. This, once again, has led to a veritable cavalcade of speculation, particularly when it comes to the game's setting...

The lore of The Elder Scrolls runs very deep. The geographical details of certain regions are known by players, even if they haven't been explored in an official game. The aforementioned teaser trailer offers a brief, 36-second view of an unidentified landscape. Players wasted no time in formulating their theories as to The Elder Scrolls 6's setting.

It's fair to assume that The Elder Scrolls 6 won't focus on a region that's already been given significant attention. That rules out Skyrim, Cyrodiil, and Morrowind. The homelands of the Nords, Imperials, and Dark Elves are unlikely to receive a second treatment. This has led fans to theorize that the homelands of Tamriel's other races are good contenders for the setting of the next entry. These regions include Hammerfell, High Rock, Black Marsh, and Elsweyr.

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The view of the landscape provided in the trailer doesn't offer much. It's rather barren, with a few mountain ranges visible in the background. What appears to be an ocean lies off to the right. Lastly, a small collection of ruins sit towards the left of the frame. The land itself is rugged with some degree of vegetation. These features, scant as they are, conform roughly to the lands belonging to the Redguards, Bretons, Argonians, and Khajiit. The regions previously mentioned all contain some or all of these geographic details. The Summerset Isles, described by the lore as a land of sunshine and beauty, doesn't quite fit the bill. However, like the rest of these theories, it's simply speculation at this point.

Out of all these possibilities, the case for Hammerfell is perhaps the strongest. The reasoning behind this stems from a tweet released in December 2020. It depicts a map of Tamriel with a series of candles strategically positioned across its surface. Sharp-eyed fans have speculated that the placement of one particular candle implies that Hammerfell is the game's next destination. Is this a significant, yet subtle clue? Or is it the developers having some fun with their audience? Supposed "clues" of this nature need to be taken with a grain of salt. Check out these arguments for some of the possible settings:

• The Elder Scrolls 6: The Case For A Hammerfell Setting
• The Elder Scrolls 6: The Case For An Elsweyr Setting
• The Elder Scrolls 6: The Case For A Summerset Isles Setting

All numeric Elder Scrolls titles have a name associated with them. It's the name that usually gives away the game's setting. So, unsurprisingly, that interesting tidbit isn't common knowledge yet. One of the earliest names floating around the Internet was Argonia, with many fans thinking the new game might take place in Black Marsh.

Nevertheless, "Redfall" has also been making the rounds. In 2018, Bethesda trademarked this term. This led many fans to jump to the conclusion that The Elder Scrolls 6 was going to be named Redfall. Fans have even concocted an interesting theory around the term. Some believe that Redfall refers to a deadly plague and that the game's plotline revolves around its spread. It may be a bit of a stretch, but at this point, who knows?

If there's one glaring criticism that can be leveled at an Elder Scrolls game, it's the combat. Even in 2011, the combat mechanics of Skyrim were already starting to feel dated. While it's not a disaster by any stretch of the imagination, the combat simply lacks depth. The core idea behind it can be summed up as "keep swinging the sword until the thing is dead." There's not a whole lot to think about when it comes to slaying enemies in The Elder Scrolls.

RELATED: How Character Creation Has Changed Before The Elder Scrolls 6

This state of affairs begs a rather interesting question. How will The Elder Scrolls 6 handle combat? Will it be more of the same? Or, perhaps, will something more complicated be implemented. Now, it may be a stretch to assume Bethesda would ever add a Dark Souls-level of complexity to the combat. There are less extreme ways to spice things up a bit. Accessibility can still be maintained without going overboard. Until actual gameplay footage is released, it's impossible to say which direction Bethesda is leaning. However, it's practically guaranteed the gameplay is going to be shaken up to a considerable extent.

One gameplay mechanic that fans know will be used in The Elder Scrolls 6 is procedural generation. In an interview, Todd Howard stated that both the upcoming Elder Scrolls game and Starfield will utilize procedural generation. Check out this article for more of the nitty-gritty on this topic.

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It should be clarified, however, that it's very unlikely either of these games will implement procedural generation for their maps. Rather, it will probably have more to do with how certain quests are organized and administered to the player.

By now, gamers have most likely heard of Microsoft's acquisition of ZeniMax Media, the parent company of Bethesda Softworks. Microsoft has made its intentions clear that, by acquiring more game studios, they intend to make certain titles exclusive to their brand. Of course, this is all done in the interest of competing with Sony. Thus, a new caveat has been thrown into the mix when it comes to The Elder Scrolls 6. Will it be exclusive to the Xbox Series X and PC?

RELATED: The Elder Scrolls 6: Todd Howard Talks About Possible Xbox Exclusivity

Currently, gamers are still in the dark on that front. It's hard to imagine the PS5 being excluded completely from The Elder Scrolls 6. A far more likely scenario involves the game being given a timed exclusivity for the Xbox Series X and the PC. In addition, it's already been confirmed that The Elder Scrolls 6 will be available on Xbox Game Pass, meaning subscribers of that service won't even need to pay full price for the game upon release.

With so little concrete information, it's easy to formulate any number of theories concerning various aspects of The Elder Scrolls 6. This collection of articles provides a great, one-stop resource for the various fan theories currently circulating the web:

• Rumor: The Elder Scrolls 6 Could Have Survival Gameplay Mechanics, New Magic System
• The Elder Scrolls 6 Could Really Reinvent The Wheel With Cities
• Most Believable Elder Scrolls 6 Fan Theories
• The Elder Scrolls 6's Rumored New Spellcrafting System Only Makes Sense
• The Elder Scrolls 6's Rumored Rune Drawing Could Have Big Implications for VR
• The Elder Scrolls 6 May Actually Abandon One Long-Running Staple

As the wait continues for more news regarding The Elder Scrolls 6, the discourse around the game will only progressively intensify. In the meantime, here are some pieces concerning Bethesda's upcoming RPG that readers can check out:

• One Iconic Skyrim Armor Feature Will Almost Certainly Not Be in The Elder Scrolls 6
• The Elder Scrolls 6 Should Bring Back One Oblivion Feature for the Laughs
• The Elder Scrolls 6 Needs a Mortal Villain
• The Elder Scrolls 6 Needs to Unlock the Thalmor's Full Potential
• Skyrim's Civil War Makes The Elder Scrolls 6 Even Harder
• The Elder Scrolls 6: How Dragons Should be Handled
• Why The Elder Scrolls 6 Needs Another Time Jump
• The Biggest Challenges Facing The Elder Scrolls 6
• How the Elder Scrolls 6 Could Make Travel Exciting
• The Elder Scrolls 6's Map Size Has an Interesting Implication for Magic
• The Elder Scrolls 6: Why the Lost Continent of Yokuda Could Return

NEXT: The Elder Scrolls 6: 5 Rumors We Hope Are True (& 5 We Hope Aren't)