Bethesda won't have a digital showcase this year, but it still has things to talk about

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The big pre-E3 extravaganza has been halted by the 'challenges' of the coronavirus pandemic.

(Image credit: Bethesda Softworks)

Every year, Bethesda holds an E3 press conference (technically pre-E3, but that's hardly a distinction worth making anymore) where it talks about what sorts of things it will be getting up to in the coming year and beyond. Sometimes it's a relatively in-depth presentation of upcoming releases, and other times it's just some music and a title and everyone goes nuts.

With the cancellation of E3 this year because of the coronavirus outbreak, some developers and publishers are moving to online-only presentations for media and the public, and with gamers eager to hear more about Starfield and The Elder Scrolls 6, there was some hope that Bethesda might do one of its own.

Unfortunately, it will not: Bethesda's vice president of marketing Pete Hines said on Twitter today that the company has things to talk about, but it won't be doing it in an online showcase.

Both Starfield and The Elder Scrolls 6 were announced two years ago, at E3 2018.  Virtually nothing has been said about either of them since, but Bethesda's chief software engineer Todd Howard said at the time that Starfield had been in "active development" for a couple of years at that point and was in a "playable" state, so hopes were high that this could be the year we'd finally get a proper look. Neither game currently has a public release target, although we know TES6 will come later: Bethesda's priority is Starfield, and work on the new Elder Scrolls won't kick into top gear until after Starfield comes out.  

Andy Chalk
Andy Chalk
US News Lead

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.