A massive leak of Bethesda’s planned release schedule reveals plans for The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, Fallout 3 remasters, as well as sequels like Dishonored 3 and Ghostwire: Tokyo 2.
The source is, incredibly, a rather innocuous-looking FTC investigational hearing held remotely with Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer on October 11, 2022. While the transcript includes no leak, the files attached do.
Now, to begin with, it is important to clarify these were internal Bethesda plans circa 2020. Nearly all of the games have been delayed from the estimates in that table, in large part due to the massive curveball known as COVID. For instance, Deathloop was planned for a fiscal year 2020 release but launched in September 2021; Starfield, Redfall, and Hi-Fi Rush (here under the codename Project: Hibiki) were planned for a fiscal year 2021 launch but eventually released in 2023. Even Ghostwire: Tokyo received a slight delay from fiscal year 2021 to March 2022.
Still, delays notwithstanding, it is unlikely that Bethesda’s schedule has changed that much in terms of active projects. As such, with an Oblivion remaster originally planned for fiscal year 2022, we could be looking at a 2024 release. Interestingly, the Indiana Jones game in development at MachineGames seems to have been scheduled for fiscal year 2022, too. Applying the same two-year-delay criteria, we could be looking at a late 2024 target launch; Executive Producer Todd Howard did say that the game would be unveiled next year.
| Title Release Schedule | Console/PC | F2P/Mobile |
| FY20E | DOOM Eternal & DLC, The Elder Scrolls Online: Greymoor, Fallout: Wastelanders, Deathloop | Fallout Shelter Online, Project Whirlwind |
| FY21E | Starfield, Elder Scrolls Online: Expansion, Redfall, DOOM Eternal DLC, Ghostwire: Tokyo, Fallout Worlds (Fallout 76), Project Hibiki | Project Ubu, Project Wanderer |
| FY22E | Indiana Jones Game, Oblivion Remaster, Elder Scrolls Online: Expansion, Starfield DLC | 3 planned titles |
| FY23E | DOOM: Year Zero & DLC, Project Kestrel, Elder Scrolls Online: Expansion, Project Platinum | 1 planned title |
| FY24E | The Elder Scrolls VI, Project Kestrel: Expansion, Licensed IP Game, Fallout 3 Remaster, Elder Scrolls Online: Expansion, Ghostwire: Tokyo Sequel, Dishonored 3, DOOM Year Zero DLC | 1 planned title |
For fiscal year 2023, we have a DOOM: Year Zero game (likely in development at id Software) and two unannounced projects, known only by their codenames (Kestrel and Platinum). Kestrel is the new game in development at ZeniMax Online Studios, having previously been part of another historic leak that took place via GeForce NOW.
Lastly, fiscal year 2024 includes another BGS remaster following Oblivion (Fallout 3), an expansion for Project: Kestrel, an unannounced licensed IP game, and two big sequels: Dishonored 3 from Arkane and Ghostwire: Tokyo 2 by Tango Gameworks. On top of that, the original FY2024 schedule includes The Elder Scrolls VI, too.
Needless to say, these games are unlikely to appear before 2026. TES VI is notoriously now scheduled for 2026 or later, according to Microsoft. Given the increasingly lengthy AAA development turnaround, we should also expect similar timeframes for Dishonored 3 and Ghostwire: Tokyo 2 since the developers released their previous games in September 2021 and March 2022, respectively.
Still, even with all these caveats, it’s a fascinating look into what’s coming from Bethesda. It’s also not the only leak from the newly released FTC vs. Microsoft documents – check out Microsoft’s upcoming plans for Xbox hardware here.
