Summary
- The Elder Scrolls series has a rich lore and history that fans have been delving into while waiting for The Elder Scrolls 6.
- The most acclaimed titles in the series are Morrowind, Oblivion, and Skyrim, each with their own strengths and flaws.
- The spin-off games and experiments, such as Battlespire, Legends, and Blades, have had mixed success, but still contribute to the franchise's legacy.
The Elder Scrolls series has become one of the most prolific in all of gaming, known for helping to define RPGs as a genre ever since its inception in 1994. With no sign of The Elder Scrolls 6 in sight, however, more fans have been delving into the history of Bethesda’s largest franchise. Over the course of decades and console generations alike, the world of Tamriel has established a rich lore both through multiple iconic entries and other lesser known spin-offs that leave The Elder Scrolls 6 with much to draw from.
Several titles of the series are often lauded as some of the best RPGs of all time, but that doesn't mean even The Elder Scrolls hasn't experienced problems along the way. Skyrim is a ubiquitous term to even those with casual knowledge of video games, and all the steps taken along the way are rarely afforded the same level of praise. The far less popular Elder Scrolls: Arena dates back far before even the days of Oblivion’s prominence, and Bethesda has focused on experimentation within the past few years, for better or worse.
S Tier
The Elder Scrolls 3: Morrowind (2002) - The game that truly defined the modern formula of The Elder Scrolls as most players know it, Morrowind is widely considered to have held up over the years despite its slow pace. If the game's flaws such as unforgiving rolls and enemies like Cliff Racers can be looked past, it is easily the most immersive experience in the franchise. While it may lack many of the quality of life features players have come to expect in the era following Skyrim, Morrowind's aged state has also ensured that a plethora of mods are available for the title. Completed with its Tribunal and Bloodmoon expansions that foreshadowed the future of the series, Morrowind is the most definitive Elder Scrolls for those that value the roleplaying experience.
The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion (2006) - A legendary release of its era, Oblivion is likely one of the most memorable video games in history. Known to both veteran gamers who played through it and younger audiences who have seen its NPCs as memes, Oblivion's cultural influence cannot be ignored. Taking a much more traditional fantasy approach to the series, the fourth mainline entry features what is generally considered to be the best questing throughout the world of Cyrodiil. With its Knights of the Nine and famous Shivering Isles expansions, Oblivion was elevated to a cultural status that few titles have reached. Around for the better part of 20 years itself, the variety of mods available for Oblivion also allow this title to be updated in several modern ways.
A Tier
The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim (2011) - Following years of hiatus after the last mainline entry, Skyrim would revolutionize its franchise and the gaming industry as a whole in 2011. Bringing a more traditional RPG to the forefront of the mainstream during the seventh generation of consoles, Skyrim affected trends for years to come with its groundbreaking release. Streamlining many RPG mechanics of the series in a controversial manner, Skyrim mananged to appeal to the widest audience of any release yet. While it has been criticized in the years following its release for the ways in which its age has begun to show across multiple re-releases, Skyrim's influence is undeniable.
The Dawnguard expansion would bring vampires and werewolves to the forefront before Dragonborn introduced even more to the adventure, following up on the massive amount of content already innately available. Special Edition would bring the title into the next generation with more continued support than a game in the series had ever seen before Skyrim Anniversary Edition more recently did the same years later. Seeing official support to mod creators given by Bethesda, Skyrim has evolved over time into nothing short of a monolith in the industry. Skyrim has amassed an impressive amount of mod support itself, with huge projects such as Skyblivion and Skywind even recapturing some magic of previous titles.
B Tier
The Elder Scrolls 2: Daggerfall (1996) - The follow-up to Arena refined key features of the first title while also featuring the largest game world of the franchise through Bethesda's use of procedural generation. Difficult to find and play due to its age, Daggerfall is actually considered quite good by those who have been able to play it. It may have outdated presentation and UI compared to its successors, but its large amount of content makes it impressive for the era in which it was released. Despite its somewhat primitive nature, Daggerfall has received continued community support through an updated Unity engine port that is far more accessible and compatible with mods for those who wish to delve into the roots of the series.
The Elder Scrolls Online (2014) - The Elder Scrolls Online is Bethesda's foray into the MMO space, which sees Tamriel opened up to the multiplayer experience in a massive way. Still active and supported nearly a decade after its initial release, this expanded take on the franchise has been praised for featuring areas that have yet to appear in the modern mainline series.
Initially receiving mixed reception upon its release that required a subscription to play, ESO found its footing the following year when the game reestablished itself through a buy-to-play model with the Tamriel Unlimited update. Supported with extensive content additions in the years leading up to now, The Elder Scrolls Online is going strong with its recent Necrom expansion.
An Elder Scrolls Legend: Battlespire (1997) - Originally an expansion to Daggerfall, the first spin-off of the franchise failed to find the same RPG depth the series was built on despite its adherence to much of the core identity established with the first two titles. Focused on a story that sees the player as a Battlemage escaping Oblivion and facing Mehrunes Dagon, Battlespire takes a much more linear approach than The Elder Scrolls is typically known.
C Tier
The Elder Scrolls: Legends (2017) - A collectible card game released for mobile devices, Legends saw Bethesda dip its toes into a space that games like Hearthstone have managed to thrive within. With development halted less than three years into the life of the game, however, it's safe to say that this experiment didn't really pan out.
The Elder Scrolls: Arena (1994) - The first entry in the series, Arena introduced the land of Tamriel and the extensive lore of The Elder Scrolls earlier than some may have guessed. A relatively solid dungeon crawling experience that utilizes the concepts of rolls and character building made famous by Dungeons and Dragons, Arena laid the groundwork for future titles but doesn't quite hold up anymore.
The Elder Scrolls Travels Series (2003-2006) - All but forgotten by the vast majority of players, the Travels set of spin-offs made for mobile phones stands as a strange relic of the past. Appearing basic due to their hardware, Stormhold, Dawnstar, and Shadowkey alike are both hard to track down and likely not worth the effort for most. While they may be inconsequential to the greater franchise, the Travels series is still worth remembering as a period of bold experimentation when an Elder Scrolls experience was available on a simple flip phone. Oblivion's down-port mobile version would end this experiment in 2006 when it disappointed with a bizarre isometric perspective that has yet to return.
The Elder Scrolls Adventures: Redguard (1998) - Infamously departing entirely from the core RPG systems that make up the identity of The Elder Scrolls, Redguard bizarrely follows a gameplay structure much more reminiscent of Tomb Raider. Failing to capture the magic of either style, Redguard is remembered as a tragically mediocre title that has only found value in recent years within the video game speedrunning community. Stripping away the staple mechanic of creating a custom character, this is one of Bethesda's strangest experiments in retrospect.
The Elder Scrolls: Blades (2020) - Another mobile game following the end of Legends, Blades has been one of the most controversial releases and potentially the most maligned Elder Scrolls title. Also released on Nintendo Switch, Blades features the most fully realized port of The Elder Scrolls' core experience to a mobile device. Maintaining relatively similar combat and base mechanics to titles like Skyrim and Oblivion, one key aspect of this title is generally cited as its undoing: Blades' aggressive monetization. Despite the negative reception the title's microtransaction systems have received from several sources, its status as a profitable endeavor makes it a recent success as fans await the next mainline entry.
The Elder Scrolls 6 is in development.
