The Official Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remaster is Real And It’s Out Now

One of the worst kept secrets in the video game industry has now been officially revealed: Bethesda and Virtuos have remastered The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion and it’s out now on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X.

Rumours and speculation had been swirling around the Internet for the last couple of months, as Reddit detectives uncovered apparent screenshots and game info on the Virtuos and Bethesda sites. None of these things were verified firsthand by established gaming sites, however. On April 22, 2025, Bethesda took to social media to reveal that, yes, it was all real, and it was out now.

“When we started this project in 2021, we aimed to breathe new life into a chapter of The Elder Scrolls that set the path for so many of our games after it,” Bethesda said in a statement posted across its official channels. 

“We never wanted to remake it – but remaster it – where the original game was there as you remember playing it, but seen through today’s technology.”

The Freedom to do What You Want

The original Oblivion was released in 2006 and met with broad critical acclaim, before going on to win multiple awards, including Game of The Year and Role-Playing Game of The Year, both from the Academy of Interactive Arts And Sciences in the US.

Oblivion is, as with other Elder Scrolls games, set in the fantasy world of Tamriel. Following the assasination of the Emperor, Oblivion gates begin opening across the world and releasing evil creatures. 

The main quest involves finding a way to stop this happening, although it’s entirely possible for the player to completely ignore the invasion and do just about anything else they want, from joining the Thieves Guild to exploring the outer reaches of the map.

The RPG built upon the robust template set by its predecessor, Morrowind, including a detailed character creator and an open world that allowed near-complete freedom to explore. As the original Oblivion team put it in the game’s manual:

“With The Elder Scrolls, our goal has always been to create a game that offers unlimited possibilities. A game where you could be whoever you wanted and do whatever you wanted. ‘Live another life, in another world’ has been our motto, and we want you to do just that.”

Remaster or Remake?

Game remasters are a popular way for studios to update a beloved title for modern consoles, but while Bethesda and Virtuos are marketing the new Oblivion as a remaster, a lot of the content has been remade or expanded using Unreal Engine 5.

“Every piece of art, animation, special effects, and part of the world would be remastered,” Bethesda said in an official news post. “Some new voices would be recorded, while keeping the originals there as well. Game systems were updated to feel better in your hands. Leveling systems modified for smoother progression and balance. We looked at every part and carefully upgraded it.”

In a reveal video posted to YouTube, Todd Howard, Bethesda’s Studio Head and Creative Director, spoke about the design challenges and principles the studio kept in mind when working on the new version.

“I think when it comes to a remaster, we want people to feel the way they did then, but it’s still a game of its time. You want to keep those bones in place. You want some of that old charm.”

A separate news post on Bethesda’s site goes into more detail on what changed for the new version of Oblivion: “If you can see it, it’s been remade.”

“Sprinting was added to meet modern RPG standards. In fact, all character locomotion and models have been completely redone from scratch,” Bethesda added. 

“In addition to refining gameplay, there have been tons of quality-of-life improvements to continue adding a modernized touch to 2006’s Game of the Year. The leveling system has been redesigned, inspired by both Oblivion and Skyrim, to offer the best of both worlds.”

Skyblivion

The elephant in the room for some gamers is the other Oblivion remaster: Skyblivion. This is a community mod by TESR that’s been in development since 2012 and rebuilds Oblivion in the same game engine as Skyrim. 

However, the developers behind this version were quick to shoot down any unnecessary rivalry, via a recent post across their official social media channels.

“Both projects can exist and thrive together, offering unique experiences for players,” TESR said. “Bethesda has always been supportive of community projects like ours, and we don’t see that changing any time soon.”

Bolstering this point, Bethesda subsequently reached out to the TESR team and gave everyone a free copy of Oblivion Remastered.

“As massive fans, we’re beyond grateful for the generous gift of Oblivion Remastered game keys for our entire modding team! This means so much to us. Thank you for everything, Bethesda!”

Finding a Suitable Partner

Bethesda is the studio and publisher behind multiple award-winning games and series, from The Elder Scrolls through to Fallout. When it came time to remaster Oblivion, the studio knew who they wanted to help.

“From the very beginning of this project we had one rule,” said Tom Mustaine, External Projects and Studio Director at Bethesda, in a reveal trailer. “We weren’t going to do this if we weren’t going to be able to do it right. Our partners at Virtuos went above and beyond to bring our vision to life.”

Virtuos is a global studio with a lot of experience under its belt, including work done on The Last of Us Part II and the forthcoming Dune: Awakening. Alex Murphy, Virtuos’ Executive Producer, spoke in the same reveal trailer about his team’s involvement with Oblivion Remastered.

“We’ve worked with Bethesda Game Studios on other projects in the past, so we know what makes that team and their games special.”