After an exhausting wait for The Elder Scrolls 6, The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered is a refreshing change to the usual distance between games being announced and getting released. Although The Elder Scrolls 6 may be an extreme example, in general it isn't too strange to see an extended wait between a game's announcement and its actual release date. Still, with games like Beyond Good and Evil 2 that feel like they're never coming out, it's nice to get something like Oblivion Remastered that flips the script.

While there have been rumors circulating about a possible remake of Oblivion, Oblivion Remastered was just officially confirmed yesterday when Bethesda started a countdown to a livestream announcement. If I had to guess yesterday, I would have said that we would probably be getting the game sometime late this year, probably after all the hype from GTA 6 had some chance to die down. Though I wouldn't have been too surprised to see it come out a bit earlier, I definitely wasn't expecting how short I would have to wait to start playing Oblivion Remastered.

The Oblivion Remaster Is Available Today

The Oblivion Remaster's Immediate Release Was Announced On Bethesda's Livestream

During the livestream announcement on a surprise release today. Since I'd been preparing to wait at least a few months to get my hands on the game, I was thrilled to realize that I could start ing the game before the full stream had even ended. The idea of a game coming out within a day of it being officially revealed is somewhat unheard of, and I kind of hope that Bethesda is setting a precedent for more surprise reveals.

This reveal got me thinking about what other games could potentially pull off this type of surprise. Imagine the fervor if Rockstar decided to copy this stunt with the release of Grand Theft Auto 6. The excitement of being able to play right away may even dull the sting of the game's rumored $100 price tag. This quick announcement to release turnaround also got me thinking about how different it is from The Elder Scrolls 6's timeline.

See Related: Oblivion Remastered Wiki

The Oblivion Remaster's Release Is The Opposite Of The Elder Scrolls 6

The Elder Scrolls 6 Has Been A Long Wait And Oblivion Was Released Almost Immediately

The Elder Scrolls 6 was originally announced back in 2018, meaning this June will be the seven-year anniversary. In that time, we have gotten frustratingly few updates about progress on the game, aside from Bethesda acknowledging that it's still working on TES 6. Although fans are pretty sure we'll be going to Hammerfell in the new game, we still don't even have an official setting for The Elder Scrolls 6, let alone a solid release window. The timeline of information about The Elder Scrolls 6 is essentially the exact opposite of what we've just gotten with Oblivion Remastered.

Given how stark of a contrast this is, I can't help but think that it was a deliberate choice on Bethesda's part. After making players wait so long for new information about The Elder Scrolls 6, the company likely understood that asking us to wait a long time for another game to bridge that gap would have caused some frustration. By instead releasing Oblivion Remastered right after announcing it, Bethesda has bought itself some good will, and some extra time to work on The Elder Scrolls 6. That said, this announcement has me hopeful the wait won't be much longer.

Oblivion Remaster's Immediate Release Gives Me Hope That The Elder Scrolls 6 Could Be Out Sooner Than We Think

The Elder Scrolls 6 May Also Surprise Us With Its Release Date

Although there were some leaks about Oblivion Remastered last week, the game's sudden arrival still proves that Bethesda can play things pretty close to the chest without the public learning about it. This makes me hopeful that, when we get our next bit of information about The Elder Scrolls 6, we won't have to wait long to actually play the game. Now, I'm not expecting another same-day release. I'm sure The Elder Scrolls 6 will be getting a physical release and probably a Collector's Edition. Still, it's nice to know that the game could be near completion without us knowing.

Even if we don't hear anything about The Elder Scrolls 6 right away, I'm at least happy that I can bide my time with The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered. With any luck, the game's sudden release will be somewhat imitated by the next game in the series, and we'll be seeing The Elder Scrolls 6 sooner than expected. Either way, it's nice to have an option to revisit the world of The Elder Scrolls while waiting besides just booting up Skyrim again and slipping back into a stealth archer build for the dozenth time.

Source: Bethesda Softworks/YouTube