In a recent interview, Bethesda's Todd Howard discussed the role of AI in game development and confirmed that The Elder Scrolls 6 will return to the classic style of previous entries like Skyrim and Oblivion. He emphasized caution with AI while highlighting the enduring value of human creativity. Howard also noted that much of the original Skyrim team remains at the studio.
Todd Howard, director of The Elder Scrolls 6 and Fallout 5, spoke in a February 18, 2026, interview with Kinda Funny Games about the integration of artificial intelligence in Bethesda's workflow. He rejected the notion that AI is a passing trend, stating, “It’s certainly not a fad.” However, Howard stressed the studio's cautious approach, saying, “I think the AI answer now becomes ‘ask me in six months,’ right? It changes so much what you’re seeing out there. For us, we’re being incredibly cautious.”
Bethesda is experimenting with AI for data-intensive tasks to streamline processes, allowing more time for creative work. “We can’t ignore it, in terms of it’s coming, it’s changing, every few months there’s a new model, particularly on the tech side with code or productivity or other things,” Howard explained. He added that it helps with “big data tasks that just take us a lot of time, that we wish were done now so we can move onto the creative stuff.” Notably, AI is not used to generate content for Bethesda's games. “We’re not using it to generate anything,” Howard affirmed, underscoring the importance of human artistry: “I think there’s an element of artistic intention that is essential to what we do and what others do... that handcrafted human intention, is what makes things special, and that’s where we want to be.”
Shifting to The Elder Scrolls 6, announced in 2018, Howard described it as a return to Bethesda's roots after the “creative detour” of Fallout 76 and Starfield, released in 2023. “We’re coming back to that classic style that we’ve missed, that we know really really well,” he said, referencing the exploration-focused worlds of Skyrim, Oblivion, Fallout 3, and Fallout 4. The game will use the upgraded Creation Engine 3, an advancement from the Creation Engine 2 that powered Starfield. Howard also revealed that “the majority of people who made Skyrim are still here,” supplemented by new talent, though he cautioned that the project remains far from completion and development could proceed faster.
