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Bethesda announces Starfield, its long-rumoured new original IP

Bethesda is working on a big, single-player experience with an original IP - the first all-original game they've developed in twenty-five years.

Starfield was announced during Bethesda's E3 showcase, in which they went particularly hard on announcements. Starfield is coming well into the future - beyond Rage 2, Wolfenstein Youngblood, Doom Eternal, and Fallout 76 - and Bethesda isn't yet ready to tell us what it is.

The trailer below is appropriately cinematic, but also quite enigmatic.

Watch on YouTube

What does this brief video of a supernova sucking up a satellite mean? Your guess is as good as mine, but there was a rumour about Starfield a full year ago, before E3 2017. The game didn't premiere back then, of course, but the rumour was that the game was a version of Fallout set in the far future. This seems to be incorrect, judging by Todd Howard's careful and precise use of the phrase "original IP" during the reveal.

Starfield next gen:

Also conspicuous in its use was Todd's phrasing of referring to Starfield as "next-gen", adding further fuel to the flaming rumours that new console hardware is on the horizon.

We imagine we'll have to wait for E3 2019 before we learn anything about Starfield - or The Elder Scrolls 6, for that matter - but Bethesda could surprise us.

Keep an eye on our E3 conference time guide for all the upcoming conference times and stay on top of all the big E3 2018 announcements.

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