Huge Elder Scrolls 6 release date and location leaks proven fake

The Elder Scrolls fans may have to wait a little longer to learn more about the franchise’s sixth installment, after what appeared to be a huge leak revealing a release date, as well as the game’s title and location, has been debunked.

There are few game series that grip the internet like Elder Scrolls releases. When Skyrim was first released in 2011, it sold over 30 million copies. That metric has only continued to climb ever higher in the past decade too.

Hype for the fantasy series hit new levels again when Bethesda confirmed a sixth entry was indeed on its way at E3 2018. Since then, little has been revealed. That is, until a “verified” leak uncovered mountains of new information on the potential “Orc wars” storyline, and a release date. Or so fans thought.

“Verified” Elder Scrolls 6 leaks fool the internet

On April 24, an unnamed user going by ‘Throwaway13579’ posted what appeared to be a big pile of leaks on the Elder Scrolls Fandom site. There were plenty of juicy details ⁠— a potential release date, a confirmed setting, and more.

In particular, the mega-leak sold the idea they had allegedly been “verified.” Reddit moderators on one of the site’s popular leak subreddits confirmed they had sighted Bethesda NDAs as evidence, and added they “do exist.”

This seemed proof enough for TES fans. They accepted the ‘Orc Wars’ leak. And why not? It sold the dream of Lord of the Rings-style battles with Orc hordes in Hammerfall with “hundreds of characters battling on-screen in real-time.”

• Read more: Major Last of Us 2 plot details revealed in huge leak

Alongside the alleged main plot ⁠— the aforementioned war against the Orcs ⁠— as well as a new Starfield-inspired building mechanics, the leaker revealed perhaps the most anticipated information: all this was coming “Q4 2024.”

Leaker comes clean on fake Elder Scrolls reveal

Unfortunately, it seems none of it was real, in the end. Four days after first posting the info on the Fandom site, and more than 100 hours leaving everyone in the dark, the ‘Throwaway13579’ user broke radio silence to spoil the entire party.

“I apologize for leading everyone astray, but the information provided is not factual. I wanted to provide Bethesda fans with something to look forward to, especially with the world events happening,” they explained in a follow-up post.

• Read more: Everything we know about The Elder Scrolls VI so far: Release date, story leaks, and more

“I did not pick the right way of doing it… for all the fans who got excited by the post, I’m sorry to all the fans who didn’t like [the leaks]… to Bethesda for my creating false fan expectations, and I’m sorry to any creators who used this post for content.”

While the “Orc wars” leak has been debunked, we do know a few things about TES6. A leak in March suggested Redfall would arrive in Q4 2025. It also suggested the story would be about a plot by Elven Supremacists the Thalmor ⁠— of course, take this with a grain of salt considering how these new leaks turned out.

These most recently Elder Scrolls VI leaks may have turned out to be false, but other recent high-profile leaks ⁠— namely The Last of Us 2’s plot spilling onto the internet ⁠— are very real, so search at your own peril!