Along with this, Rush has also asked the Fallout 76 community what kind of masks they would like to see added to the game for next year’s Fasnacht seasonal event. “Our Vault is one where its engineers cultivate all aspects of Appalachia from a future time and space,” he explained, while going on to note that “Masks for the next iteration have already been crafted, and you’re sure to love them.”

It is worth noting that, while some aspects of the Fallout franchise have been quite dark, the post-apocalyptic RPG series has largely leaned more towards the comedy side of things. Due to this, even the darker content has traditionally felt like more of an exception to the norm. What truly “dark” content would mean for when it comes to Fallout 76, however, remains to be seen, especially since the multiplayer title’s core gameplay loop revolves around taking down massive enemies with fancy and often funny guns.

In the meantime, the Fallout 76 team has been testing out the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S versions of the title, which are slated for release later this summer. While beta versions of these ports are available for testing, the studio has noted that players should be prepared to face a variety of bugs. These bugs might be worth it, however, since the current-gen versions of the title feature many enhancements.

Core among these is the goal of a steady frame rate of 60 FPS across all consoles, along with visual improvements like better draw distances, softer shadows, and even support for 4K resolution on Xbox Series X and PS5 Pro. Interestingly, the last-gen Xbox One X and PS4 Pro are also going to get some of these improvements, especially on the visual fidelity side. Along with this, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S versions of Fallout 76 will also include support for 1440p displays and variable refresh rate.

The current-gen version of Fallout 76 has been in the works from as far back as October 2025. At the time, the team had noted that it was aiming to release the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S version in 2026.

One of the biggest requests from the Fallout 76 player base has been the addition of cross-platform multiplayer. Rush and production director Bill LaCoste had acknowledged this request and said that it was something that the team would look at implementing in the future. Difficulty in bringing over the feature seems to revolve around the fact that the Creation Engine powering Fallout 76 simply wasn’t built for multiplayer to begin with, and that adding crossplay involves “huge technical hurdles” that involve “going back and retrofitting” the engine.

The premise involves being trapped in an illusion with seemingly no escape (and it’s far from peaceful). There may be some respite if he destroys the Nightmare Machine, which lies somewhere in the Elder realms, but he’ll need to reach it first.

Dawn of the Machine offers 19 maps, a new deathmatch map, new music, and even some variants for the Rocket Ogre, Blood Shambler and more. You’ll discover the Super Axe, which deals lightning damage, and the ricocheting Laser Cannon, but perhaps most intriguing is how the time loop premise affects gameplay.

Players will acquire Runes that unlock new areas in maps, which contain new encounters (and secrets). You’ll also upgrade health and ammo to gain a fighting chance against new enemy behavior (including reviving after death).

Dawn of the Machine is free for all owners of the 2021 Quake remaster, and even adds a Cheats menu, new Achievements, and more.

As caught by social media user Anonimo, changes were discovered on the SteamDB page for Wolfenstein, despite the title having been delisted from Steam entirely. A host of updates have seemingly been made to the metadata for the title, with some even mentioning modern features like controller glyph displays and default graphical configurations. Interestingly, among the changes is the original listed release date of the game – August 18th, 2009. This could hint at an upcoming remastered release.

There have also been mentions of Steam Deck compatibility, which would indicate that Bethesda and Microsoft are looking at a wide release for the 2009 shooter.

While neither of the companies has made any announcements as of yet, QuakeCon 2026 is right around the corner, kicking off on August 6th and running until August 9th. Bethesda has maintained a tradition of remastering some of the older shooter franchises it owns so far, and this year, we could see Wolfenstein getting the treatment. We’ve previously seen this happen with Quake, Quake 2, Heretic, and Hexen.

2009’s Wolfenstein was developed by Raven Software – a studio that was previously known for its work on classic shooters like Hexen and Heretic, and more recently known as a support studio working on the Call of Duty franchise.

The title revolves around American superspy B.J. Blaskowicz on a mission to stop the Nazi forces from being able to harness the power of an ancient alternate dimension known only as the Black Sun. While the Nazis have been using the power from the dimension to create new super soldiers and other monsters, Blaskowicz is equipped with a magic amulet that allows him to pull off some fantastical moves, like slowing down time, for example.

Interestingly, the story was a follow-up to 2001’s Return to Castle Wolfenstein, which laid many of the foundations of the Nazis and their obsession with occult artifacts leading up to the 2009 title.

Interestingly, while Wolfenstein: The New Order was a soft reboot for the franchise, developer MachineGames brought over some of the story elements from Wolfenstein to flesh out the world, including characters like Caroline Becker and Wilhelm Strasse. Many of the technological advances made by the Nazi forces in MachineGames’ series could also be attributed to their discovery and use of the Black Sun.

However, in terms of overarching continuity, the B.J. Blaskowicz of MachineGames’ titles is not the same as the one from the 2009 shooter, and the newer entries have also opted to take on a much more serious tone for their stories when compared to their predecessors.

Kicking the letter off, Giacomini acknowledged the fact that the roadmap it had previously laid out for a seasonal content model for The Elder Scrolls Online would be difficult following the layoffs. To address this, the team is giving itself some more time to establish its pipelines again. This means that some of the planned features for the game are being pushed to 2027. This includes the new Crimson Veldt trial, Update 52, and a Class and Combat refresh.

“Instead of rushing to hit a previously announced deadline, we are giving our teams the runway they need to do things right. Some of our upcoming additions, like the Class and Combat Refresh and our new Trial, are highly complex, and we want to ensure they hit the mark before we put them in your hands,” he explained.

“We know it’s disappointing to see some features move out, and believe me, we want to get these into your hands as soon as possible, too. But we believe this is the right move for the long-term health of the game.”

As for 2026, Update 51 has been delayed to September 28th, and will bring with it a new challenge in the form of The Nowhere Vault, the new Rumors game system, and general quality-of-life and UI enhancements, like more options for HUD customization, adding more Transmute Stations in Cyrodiil, and the ability to pin Achievements. In the meantime, the ongoing first season of the MMO – Return of the Thieves Guild – will go ahead as planned along with a few additions.

Currently, players can take on the new Sheogorath story quests and Golden Pursuit. August 5th will see the start of the Whitestrake’s Mayhem event, which will end on August 12th. August 20th to September 17th will feature a new Golden Pursuit campaign dubbed Straight to the Crate, which will reward players with 20 free Crown Crates. From September 30th to October 14th, players will be able to take on the High Seas of Tamriel event. Finally, Update 51 on September 28th will mark the permanent return of three-sided Battlegrounds.

Season 2, starting on October 21st, will also go ahead as planned, bringing with it new solo dungeons Moon Hunter Keep and March of Sacrifices, a new Golden Pursuit focused on the region of Skyrim, and other improvements. Along with this, October 12th will see group versions of solo dungeons made free for all players. November 9th will also mark the Greymoor Chapter and Markarth DLC becoming free for everyone.

“Moving forward, our principles are simple: we will continue to build fun and rewarding experiences through our Seasonal model, deliver long-standing player-requested features and changes that make Tamriel more fulfilling, and find new ways to provide you with features and content to keep your adventures fresh,” wrote Giacomini.

It’s a bit of welcome news for a studio that’s been under pressure to reach the dizzying heights its players have come to expect. Starfield hasn’t done as well as it might have liked (despite over 17 million players), but it had nuances that made it endearing to fans of the studio’s work while alienating others who might not have been familiar with The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim’s quirks. There was The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered and the buzz that it generated when it was shadow-dropped, but the lack of post-launch support was concerning.

Although the studio has assured us that development of the next Elder Scrolls title hasn’t been affected by layoffs, the lack of a closer look at where it’s at, and of course, our concerns that even recent Fallout reveals might not be enough to help it break away are all factors that it’s probably considering as it looks to the future.

Here’s to hoping that the new logo and the optimism the studio has expressed with its reveal are indicators of a new direction into a future where it continues to influence the genres it works in.

https://x.com/bethesda/status/2082843915724423334

But it does beg the question: What have been this generation’s most successful? Alinea Analytics estimates it’s Resident Evil 4 Remake, which has reportedly sold 16.8 million and generated $560 million in revenue. The last official figure from Capcom was 13.6 million sold as of March 31st, 2026, so this wouldn’t be too far off.

What’s surprising is that ARK: Survival Ascended is apparently in second place with seven million sold. It’s followed by The Last of Us Part 1 in third with 6.3 million reportedly sold. So even if it seemed baffling, remaking the classic to coincide with the TV show proved a viable strategy. Then there’s The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered and its alleged 4.5 million sales. Would that have been higher if Virtuos hadn’t abandoned support? Or did it abandon support after reaching this milestone? It’s hard to say.

Either way, expect even more remakes in the future, given that they bring in the sales. On the bright side, if they turn out to be as enjoyable as either Resynced or Campaign Evolved, then we should be in for a fun time.

It is worth noting that the layoffs across Bethesda as a whole, which includes teams from ZeniMax Online Studios and Bethesda Game Studios, have been quite extensive, with the former losing 213 of its employees. As for the latter, in an official statement, the company has said that its “primary development focus” is the long-awaited The Elder Scrolls 6.

“With over 65 million copies sold, players are still exploring Skyrim 15 years later, but we know it’s been a very long wait for the sequel. We’re where we planned to be, loving how it looks, and playing it every day.”

Previous reports have indicated Bethesda Game Studios has lost more than 50 of its employees due to the layoffs, which included “key, high-performing people in the trenches” across “a mix of every discipline: programmers, artists, and designers” that were working on the open-world RPG. “Their loss will have a substantial and cascading effect on the game and morale of this studio,” said one employee.

While these current and former Bethesda employees aren’t quite sure how the studio will continue developing the game going forward, one has expressed worries about being “replaced by cheaper contracted labor.” Some also believe that Bethesda might “hire folks to replace them that will need to be onboarded (our tools are proprietary, other devs aren’t going to know how they work), resulting in more delays, and we’ll need to crunch to make up the time.”

Bethesda, for its part, has been generally quiet about the release window for The Elder Scrolls 6. In a recent Q&A session, Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier has posited that it might still be at least two years away. Even director Todd Howard hasn’t revealed much, simply saying that it’s “our biggest project right now” and that the team knows “we need to get it right, and it’s been a long time.”

The closest idea we’ve gotten about the state of The Elder Scrolls 6’s development has been a statement by Xbox CCO Matt Booty from back in June, when he said that it was “coming along well.” He went on to say that the team wants to “wait till the right moment” before it reveals more details.

“And when you decide to show it, you want it to be the best you’ve got. And also that when you show the game, you’re also giving them a promise of, hey, it’s coming soon. So I can tell you, having visited Bethesda and sat with Todd and seen Elder Scrolls playing, it looks amazing, and it’s coming along well. And we’ll make sure to announce it and really reveal it at the right time.”

For more on The Elder Scrolls 6, take a look at our thoughts about how troubled it seems.

Unfortunately, no other details about this canceled project have been revealed. Jones’ note about working on cross-team coordination at Bethesda Softworks as a whole rather than just for Bethesda Game Studios indicates that it could have been in development at one of the studios under the company.

A likely candidate for this is a project that was reportedly being developed at MachineGames, which was described as being similar to Rainbow Six Siege. While the studio itself hadn’t confirmed any details, the title is believed to involve attacker vs. defender gameplay similar to Ubisoft’s shooter.

In the meantime, the studio has spoken about wanting to make more games in its Wolfenstein series. Last year, having wrapped up development on Indiana Jones and the Great Circle’s The Order of Giants expansion, studio co-founder and director Jerk Gustafsson said that MachineGames saw the Wolfenstein series as a trilogy.

“So that journey, for B.J., even during those first weeks at id when we mapped out New Order, we still had the plan for, at least, that character; What will happen in the second one, what will happen in the third one. I think that’s important to say, because, at least, I hope, that we’re not done with Wolfenstein yet. We have a story to tell.”

Reports following Xbox-wide layoffs have indicated that development on a new Wolfenstein game has begun following studio restructuring that led to Gustafsson being made president of Arkane.

Other reports have also indicated that there are no plans to stop working on games in the Wolfenstein, Doom, and Quake franchises. Taking to social media, Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier noted that these games will be developed despite significant reorganization across ZeniMax.

“ZeniMax will be impacted significantly by the reorganization but will NOT be reduced to only Fallout and The Elder Scrolls, despite rumors over the last few weeks. The publisher will also still work on Wolfenstein, Doom and Quake,” he posted.

Xbox CEO Asha Sharma announced the layoffs at the beginning of the month, confirming that around 1,600 jobs were being cut. She also said that approximately 1,600 more cuts are planned for before the end of the current fiscal year.

“I know this is painful. These changes will directly affect people who have poured their creativity into building Xbox,” she said. “Many joined us through acquisitions, while others were recruited here, or sought us out because they loved this industry and loved Xbox. Today’s decisions do not reflect their talent or dedication.”

The layoffs were followed up with significant restructuring across Xbox, which included the appointment of Helen Chiang as the division’s new chief operating officer, who would be directly accountable for its profits and losses moving forward.

“Last Friday, Xbox flooded news sites announcing every expansion, sequel, and remake they could. That same day, they told their laid-off Bethesda Montreal employees that they would receive the smallest severance legally possible without bargaining with the union.”

Further in its statement, the union also noted that Microsoft had spoken to US and Canada-based employees affected by the layoffs that it would negotiate severance with OneBGS. However, on July 17th, the company has allegedly changed its mind and sent out termination letters to affected employees through email.

“This was contrary to what they had been told in the Monday calls,” explained OneBGS. “These letters stated that the Canadians are to receive the bare legal minimum in terms of severance: eight weeks of pay in lieu of the minimum legal notice, any outstanding vacation pay, etc. They were to also immediately lose their group benefits health insurance.”

“We’re not going to take this lying down. We’ve filed yet another legal complaint against Bethesda for continuing to violate labor laws in Canada. Bethesda and Xbox leadership depend on our labor to make them millions, and yet when we do, we are disposed of. The cycle of workers paying for the mistakes of management ends here.”

In a now-deleted Bluseky post (via GamesRadar), lead character artist Ben Carnow reiterated the union’s claims that Microsoft had not negotiated with OneBGS despite being legally required to do so. “Folks lost their healthcare with zero notice. Unconscionable.”

Bethesda’s Todd Howard recently acknowledged in an interview that the layoffs were a “really tough” experience for him and his colleagues. However, he also said that the company is going through a change that will allow it to “focus best on the franchises and what we need to do to deliver for everybody.”

The company has confirmed that it will work on Fallout 5 in the future, and in the meantime, will work on remasters of Fallout 3 and Fallout: New Vegas. Along with this, it is also working with Obsidian Entertainment on an entirely new Fallout project. Development on Fallout 76 is also slated to continue as planned, with its team currently working on the Raven Rock expansion.

Aside from this, Bethesda is currently also hard at work on The Elder Scrolls 6. Earlier this month, the company reaffirmed that it remains its “primary development focus today”, and that “the majority of our team” is working on the project.

“With over 65 million copies sold, players are still exploring Skyrim 15 years later, but we know it’s been a very long wait for the sequel.” It then went on to assure that, “We’re where we planned to be, loving how it looks, and playing it every day.”

Bethesda Games Studios’ Montreal workers are being treated especially poorly by XBOX and we won’t stand for it. Here are the details.If this upsets you let Microsoft know: feedbackportal.microsoft.com/feedback/ide…

— OneBGS – Bethesda Game Studios Union (@bethesdaunion.bsky.social) 2026-07-22T14:50:07.511Z

So what better thing to do than go on the offensive and lay out all its cards, as desperate as it may come across to some? That’s exactly what this recent “note” to fans has done, and if you thought the 2018 announcement of The Elder Scrolls 6 was a doozy, you might want to sit down for this.

Fallout 5 in pre-production. Remasters of Fallout 3 and Fallout: New Vegas confirmed. The Outer Worlds 2’s developer working on a new Fallout project. ZeniMax Online Studios working with Bethesda on The Elder Scrolls (while still delivering new Elder Scrolls Online content). No Fallout Day this year, but there will be a special 30th anniversary celebration next year when it returns live from Washington, D.C. And…an unscripted Fallout Shelter TV show? We’ll ignore that one for now.

The Elder Scrolls 6 still doesn’t have a release date after all these years, but it remains the primary focus, with most of Bethesda currently on it. So far, it’s “loving how it looks and playing it every day,” though that part about how “We’re where we planned to be” is certainly an odd thing to say. Maybe to try and address those reports about how layoffs will result in delays and crunch?

And Starfield…will continue (they even used that exact word). No expansion or DLC announcements (yet), but Bethesda is looking to deliver “new stories, targeted gameplay improvements, and additional updates.” There’s even new Starborn content coming next year. It also mentioned over 40 percent of players use Creations and that it paid out over $10 million in royalties (not necessarily all on Starfield, mind you). Bethesda has released entire questlines through the Creation Store – maybe this is the path forward rather than hyping up some DLC that ultimately won’t deliver.

Now on the one hand, this “roadmap” barely qualifies as such, because the biggest announcements lack dates. Do I expect anyone in charge at the studio to approve telling us that Fallout 3 Remastered is coming next year? And then someone in charge at Xbox approve that? No, and hell no. But this comes across as a repeat of The Elder Scrolls 6 announcement. “We’re working on these things, please be excited.” It’s only really one step away from being an email if you think about it.

However, I’m not begrudging Bethesda for taking this route for two main reasons. First, it’s just gone through a massive restructuring process while saying goodbye to the numerous colleagues it’s worked with through ZeniMax Online Studios or id Software. If ever there was an occasion to try and reassure fans, amid all the rumors and reports, that the games they want are coming, even if the studio isn’t 100 percent A-okay, then this would be it. To say that this is a complete 180 from the usual practice of unveiling a game before it’s six months away from release would be an understatement.

Second, this note feels like an indirect admission – almost saying the quiet part out loud – that it can’t just leave franchises dormant for years, sometimes a decade. It also can’t have a singular team, the so-called crème of the crop, being the ones responsible for new entries. Hearing that remasters of older Fallout games are in the works isn’t all that surprising. Not because of all the rumors, or the fact that The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered was a runaway success, but because a Fallout 3 Remaster was mentioned in Microsoft’s documents during its legal battle with the FCC years ago. We’ve known it’s coming in some form or fashion once all those other announcements turned out to be true (except for Dishonored 3 because we can’t have nice things).

What’s surprising is the confirmation that The Outer World 2’s developer is working on a new Fallout project together with Bethesda. Is this one of the remasters? A brand-new spin-off? Whatever the case, it’s hard not to think that Xbox finally stepped in and mandated that The Outer World 2 ‘s developer should give the people what they want. And if that isn’t New Vegas 2, then it’s going to be something Fallout-related, especially since The Outer Worlds 2 and Avowed failed to really set the market on fire.

As for The Elder Scrolls Online team, it wouldn’t be surprising if future content is extremely pared down and it’s focused on supporting The Elder Scrolls 6. Because even if it hasn’t been working on the Creation Engine for all these years and needs to be brought up to speed, this is a team that’s been expanding Tamriel, developing new quests and characters at a regular pace for years. We don’t know how much has already been locked down for Bethesda’s big sequel, which could release in 2028 or 2029 if we’re lucky, but maybe this option is better than hiring contractors. Benefit of the doubt and all that.

However, you have to wonder whether having the same creatives in charge will be ultimately beneficial for Bethesda. I’m not going to complain too much about Todd Howard or Emil Pagliarulo – they’ve each had a key role in delivering some of the most iconic video games ever made. But their recent output – and by “recent,” I mean dating all the way back to Fallout 4 – hasn’t been up to snuff. The fact that Starfield had even less staying power, regardless of whether you like the game or not, is hard to deny. The fact that we’re only just getting around to remasters for Fallout 3 and New Vegas two years after the show premiered and primarily because of its success also shows a massive lack of foresight.

Maybe Howard is slowly planning to transition away from the same – he has confirmed that The Elder Scrolls 6 is his last game as a director, so for all we know, this is all a foregone conclusion.

Even if you consider this strategy to be a new direction, it’s ultimately in vain if Bethesda keeps making the same mistakes. Designing the same poorly told stories with companions most players don’t care about against the backdrop of decisions that don’t matter. The time for fresh ideas is long past due, but at present, Bethesda needs to change how it’s developing its games. Can we consider this a step in that direction, even as it sticks to Creation Engine 3?

Whatever the result, unscripted Fallout Shelter TV announcement (which sounds like a reality show in disguise) aside, I’m interested in this new strategy. Because at the end of the day, whether it’s Xbox, shareholders or the players themselves, it’s the games that ultimately matter. As much as Todd Howard believes that the team needs to “get it right” with The Elder Scrolls 6, you can only spend so much time and money on that before nearly a decade has passed without anything – including gameplay or even a reveal of the setting – to show for it.

Note: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, GamingBolt as an organization.