A new leak for the "Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion" remake details the potential release date of the game as well as its supposed inspiration from the soulslike subgenre.
The latest leak suggests that Bethesda's long-rumored remake is set to arrive in June 2025. The remake is said to be in development in Unreal Engine 5, and claims about its existence first surfaced in July 2023.
Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remake Leak
At the time, a former Virtuos employee posted on Reddit where they claimed that the "Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion" remake was being worked on by the studio. Later that year, references to a remaster for the game came out based on an internal Microsoft document from 2020.
The document was leaked during the company's court battle with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and lent some credence to the supposed claims. Earlier this month, a technical art director for Virtuos updated their LinkedIn profile.
They highlighted their work on a mysterious "unannounced Unreal Engine 5 remake." Most recently another studio employee shared more explicit details of a Virtuos-developed remake on their own website, according to Eurogamer.
The unnamed employee is said to have worked on the project they mentioned between 2023 and 2024. It was described as a "fully remade" version of "Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion" that was developed in Unreal Engine 5.
Reworking Various Systems
The former Virtuos staff member also apparently referenced six gameplay systems that were reworked for the remake. These were said to be stamina, sneaking, blocking, archery, hit reaction, and HUD.
One particular system that is being reworked with inspiration from soulslike games is blocking. However, there have been no further details regarding this that have been mentioned in the latest leak for the remake, Game Rant said.
If the information turns out to be accurate, then fans can assume that the "Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion" remake will come out sometime this year. While the game's blocking system will not make the title a soulslike, it will borrow some ideas from combat systems in the soulslike subgenre.
This was apparently decided on in order to offer a fresh experience for fans of the "Elder Scrolls" franchise but how it will work exactly is still a mystery. A lot of players expect the game to be announced at the Xbox Developer Direct event that is scheduled on Jan. 23, 2025.
The game being worked on by Virtuos comes as the studio has had a hand in various other projects, such as "The Outer Worlds" and remakes or remasters of "Dark Souls" and "Final Fantasy XII," according to Screen Rant.
