Romance has never been a focal feature in the Elder Scrolls series, but other recent Bethesda games have been changing that, leading many to believe that future releases from the studio might follow suit. If The Elder Scrolls 6 were to borrow from more romance-heavy RPGs such as Fallout 4, what would the game’s potential romances look like?
Marriage was first introduced to The Elder Scrolls series with the release of Skyrim. The game featured a host of marriage candidates for the Dragonborn to propose to. Players just had to wear an Amulet of Mara and meet each individual character’s marriage requirement – usually the completion of a side quest – before they would be able to attend a wedding event at the Temple of Mara. From there, romanced companions could move into the Dragonborn’s house, where they would provide unique benefits and dialogue.
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This feature was brought back in The Elder Scrolls Online, though the option is only available between two player characters and there are far less benefits than what was included in Skyrim. More recently, the addition of companions into ESO expansions has raised the possibility of a more in-depth romance mechanic being introduced to the game, but thus far nothing similar has been implemented. Instead, fans of the franchise are starting to look to the eventual release of Elder Scrolls 6 as their next best option as far as the series is concerned.
TES6 Could Be The First Elder Scrolls Game With Real Romances
Elder Scrolls 6 was confirmed to be in development a few years back, but thanks to the prioritization of Starfield as Bethesda’s next release, little else has been revealed about the game. Despite the lack of gameplay information, however, there are reasons to suspect that romance might be a more prominent part of TES6 than it was in previous Elder Scrolls titles. Two other recent Bethesda games, Fallout 4 and Fallout 76, both included much more fleshed-out romance storylines – though in Fallout 76‘s case, the feature is only available for players who have purchased the Wastelanders DLC.
Similarly to Skyrim, romanced allies in Fallout 76 have certain requirements that must be met before players can engage in romances with them. Usually, this comes in the form of a personal quest. However, a key difference worth noting is the fact that players have to actively engage in multiple conversations with their companions before options to flirt with them will begin to appear. In Fallout 4, affinity also plays an important role in the progression of the romance. Given that both followers and dialogue as a whole are more straightforward and limited in Skyrim than in later Bethesda games, it isn’t very surprising that the romance feature also doesn’t receive much focus. The question is whether the studio will fall back into this standard or move in a different direction with the release of The Elder Scrolls 6.
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