Ships and naval battles? According to one of the lead developers who worked on The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, it would naturally fit into the game that was announced eight years ago.

One of the lead developers of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim hopes that The Elder Scrolls VI will feature ships and naval exploration. In an interview with GoHumanize, Bruce Nesmith, who worked at Bethesda from 1995 to 1998 and from 2004 to 2021 (where he served as lead designer on Skyrim and mission designer on Fallout 3, 4, and 76), was asked what he would like to see in The Elder Scrolls VI. He is no longer working on the project. He replied that he hopes the fan theories are true—that TES6 will be set around the Bay of Iliac and Sentinel City—because this would allow for ships and maritime exploration for the first time in the series.

He added that sailing and maritime exploration would represent more than just another mode of transportation; they would also introduce new gameplay mechanics and enemies. However, he hopes that if aquatic exploration is introduced, it will remain on the surface. Players shouldn’t be able to dive underwater because that would present new development challenges and overwhelm the team, something he has experienced in the past.

“What will the big new feature be for The Elder Scrolls VI? I think boats, and potentially even naval combat, are the most likely options. The Elder Scrolls has never really had moving vehicles. There were carriages that could take you from place to place, but most players only used them once. They didn’t really add anything. If you set The Elder Scrolls VI in Iliac Bay, you’re setting yourself up for a big expansion into seafaring activities. Even if you never go underwater, think about all the things you could do on the surface. It could be really cool. We might get entire skill trees that allow you to walk on water or control boats that can do more than just sail. There could be all kinds of unique creatures and spells related to water. To me, that would be an opportunity to take real advantage of because there’s a lot there, and I think it would be exciting for the team working on it, too.

Boats and gameplay on the water would be a dragon-level feature, in my opinion. Of course, you could also have to contend with a kraken at sea. You’d have to have a kraken. Sharks and krakens are the two most obvious ones, as well as Sea Elves. Sea elves are mentioned in the lore, but they’ve never appeared in the games significantly, and their lore is so broad. One of the designers pushed hard for an underwater environment in Fallout 4. They created proof-of-concept content to demonstrate its potential, but ultimately, it proved too challenging, and the idea was not pursued further.

I don’t believe it’s true that there was a plan to include an underwater section with a vault that didn’t make it into the game. I think it was more a matter of someone on the team pushing for it. He had a lot of good ideas, but, as the saying goes, you can’t do everything. You can’t do everything. When it comes to The Elder Scrolls VI, I would probably scrap anything underwater and keep everyone focused on the surface. It wouldn’t be because it wouldn’t be cool, but because I’d rather do one part really well than do two parts not so well,” Nesmith said.

The big question is when The Elder Scrolls VI will finally be released.

Source: VGC, GoHumanize