GTA 6 Will Launch Before The Elder Scrolls VI, Todd Howard All but Confirms

Will GTA 6 really arrive before The Elder Scrolls VI? Bethesda Game Studios Creative Director Todd Howard was asked this exact question by Power Unlimited on the red carpet for Amazon’s Fallout Season 2 premiere. The full exchange, posted via Power Unlimited’s interview clip, offered a surprisingly clear answer “ yes”.

Howard did not hesitate to express confidence that Rockstar Games will release Grand Theft Auto VI before Bethesda ships its next major RPG. He also praised Rockstar’s craft in building immersive worlds.

When asked which game he expects to release sooner, Howard replied:

 “I got my fingers crossed for GTA 6.”

Pressed further on whether he truly believes Rockstar will deliver next year, he added:

“I do. They are doing an incredible job. I know the folks at Rockstar and I think they are some of the absolute best at bringing a virtual world to life. It’s a world that feels like it would go on even if you weren’t there.”

For longtime fans of both GTA and The Elder Scrolls, Howard’s admiration rings true. While the genres differ, the studios share a reputation for designing living, systemic open worlds regarded as benchmarks across the industry.

A Realistic Timeline for TES VI

Howard’s comments should not come as a surprise. Fallout 5 is still in pre-production, and Bethesda is fully dedicated to completing The Elder Scrolls VI. Just weeks ago, Howard stated that TES VI is “still a long way off”, despite joking that he wishes he could make the game “just appear.”

Historically, Bethesda Game Studios releases major titles roughly every four years:

• Morrowind to Oblivion: four years

• Oblivion to Skyrim (via Fallout 3): four years

• Skyrim to Fallout 4: four years

While Fallout 76 launched sooner, it was more of a multiplayer adaptation of Fallout 4 than a full new RPG.
Starfield, meanwhile, took five years due to pandemic delays and the complexity of introducing a new IP with spaceflight and combat systems.

Given this cadence, TES VI is unlikely to arrive before late 2027.

Rockstar’s GTA 6 is currently targeting November 2026, and even if delayed, such a slip would almost certainly stay within Take-Two’s fiscal year ending March 31. Rockstar has also never delayed a game three times in its history, making another major shift unlikely. With Bethesda’s next Elder Scrolls title still deep in development, Howard’s comments effectively confirm what many expected: GTA 6 will hit the market long before TES VI.

As both franchises represent the pinnacle of open world design, 2026 and 2027 are shaping up to be monumental years for blockbuster RPG and sandbox players.

Do you expect GTA 6 to stay on schedule, or could Rockstar still surprise us with a delay? Let us know what you think.