Over the weeks and months, we’ve spoken about several things that we feel Bethesda needs to improve upon in the inevitable but distant The Elder Scrolls 6, and though the core formula of the series has a number of strengths, one of its weaknesses remains its dungeons. Sure, Skyrim was better than Oblivion in this regard, but the difference was still minimal and dungeons in Skyrim were still very much plain and lacklustre.
There are several ways Bethesda can fix their dungeons, of course. We’ve already talking about a few aspects of this, such as adding more emergent gameplay, and making significant improvements to the in-game puzzles, but there is perhaps another way that the dungeons of the game can be improved. That, of course, would be to introduce dungeon ownership, which won’t quite do much for the dungeon design itself, but will make the entire concept of dungeons much more interesting.
For instance, after clearing out a dungeon, other inhabitants might move in, who may or may not be friendly, or may or may not have brought new loot and/or quests with them. Conversely, what if players were allowed to establish ownership over dungeons as well? Such as making one into their stronghold, or a new, isolated place of residence, or just a place to stash their goods.
We certainly think is idea is worth exploring, especially since it adds to the whole emergent style of gameplay that would be such a perfect fit for the franchise. What are your thoughts on this? Let us know in the comments section below.
This article is part of our series on Bethesda’s next big entry into the world of The Elder Scrolls. Through this series we take a look at the possible new features that Bethesda can add into the next The Elder Scrolls game, based on what they implemented in the previous entries and player feedback.