The Elder Scrolls 6 release already facing one major problem

Even if The Elder Scrolls 6 turns out to be amazing, an ex-Bethesda developer says the long-awaited sequel still faces one major problem.

If there's one thing that has become more apparent in the last decade, it's that gaming communities can be pretty vocal about things they like and dislike. Especially the things they dislike.

Whether it's complaining that a game developer has "gone woke" or that a new game has decided to "be political" by including women in it, there's no end to the volume of online discourse gaming has seen lately.

The Elder Scrolls 6 could be Bethesda's next big hit.

Then there are the death threats, which game developers, journalists, and content creators know about all too well. We understand that this is a hobby you love, but please chill out, guys.

Nate Purkeypile, a former Bethesda developer who has worked on titles like Skyrim, Fallout 76, and Starfield, knows this too. Speaking at GDC last month [thanks, GamesRadar], the developer said "putting out Fallout 76 was a tough thing" because "the internet can be really awful."

As a former developer for some of the biggest AAA games of the past decade, he's fully aware of how gaming discourse culture has evolved with social media.

"Even if The Elder Scrolls 6 is great, I'm sure there's gonna be these hour-long YouTube videos [and] death threats yet again," he says. "If you put out a game that people don't like, the internet is going to treat you like you're clubbing baby seals."

Purkeypile left Bethesda in 2021 to open his own game studio, Just Purkey Games. The studio released its first game, The Axis Unseen, late last year. It's a folkloric action-adventure game that looks heavily inspired by The Elder Scrolls and Hellblade.

The Elder Scrolls 6 is one of the most anticipated games of this generation, and so it's surely going to rustle some feathers no matter how successful it is.

It's just important to keep in mind that there are humans on the other side of that screen, so be careful with your language and intentions when you don't like something.