Oof…Oblivion Remake Leak

[Fear2288]

Just saw an article about how an employee at Virtuous Games recently leaked that the developer is working on an Oblivion remake right now for Microsoft/Bethesda.

You can find and read the article yourself, but the gist of it is that this leak could be valid because the last leak that came out of someone who worked for Virtuous ended up being very much legit (MGS: Snake Eater remake).

It’s not known yet if this will be just an HD Remaster or a full-on remake, but supposedly they’re using Unreal Engine 5 for something having to do with it.

And it’s rumored to be releasing in 2025.

I’d hate to be on the Skyblivion team if this turns out to be true…granted, the Skyblivion version could end up being better, but still…sorta would make their 10+ years of work feel a little less special and/or a little pointless if they have to watch some developer come along and do what they did in a fraction of the time, and even moreso if what Virtuous puts out looks better, runs better, and is more complete than what they’ve done.

Also kinda adds insult to injury to have it release the same year as Skyblivion too.

Not sure how valid this leak is though, the MGS one turned out to be true, but I kinda feel like if there was an Oblivion remake in the works, Bethesda/ZeniMax/Microsoft/Virtuous would’ve slapped the Skyblivion team with a cease-and-desist order to eliminate the possibility that the remake loses sales to a free mod.

I also remember reading something a few weeks ago in an interview with the Skyblivion team lead that said that he and the team have been getting attacked and harassed online by anonymous bad actors, and there have been hacks and attempts to hack their social media pages and project data. Maybe this leak is nothing but a fake, concocted by these bad actors, in an attempt to get in the team’s heads and derail their work as they move into the home stretch to complete the mod.

Interesting stuff either way.

[peppermint hollows]

I'm gonna lean on the skeptical side of this.

Plus, I wouldn't call Skyblivion a total waste even if it is real because it will be free and only require that you already own Oblivion & its DLCs + Skyrim & its DLCs (which you already do if you own SSE). And if you're interested in Skyblivion chances are high you already own Oblivion. Meanwhile an Oblivion remaster would likely be a full price game, meaning 60 or 70 USD (probably 70 given that Starfield is priced at that and more and more new games are pushing that price).

Even if you don't already own both you can pick them up for very cheap on a sale.

And...on top of all that, assuming development continues as the Skyblivion devs currently plan, we would most likely have it much, much sooner than an Oblivion remake.

[theo]

Sounds unlikely, and mentioning Virtuous Games doesn't make it more credible - kinda the opposite, looks like someone used that name on purpose.

[peppermint hollows]

Actually, sorry, being honest I kinda skimmed the thread, but I re-read it and also looked into it some more.

Making Oblivion in the Unreal Engine? Yeah, I don't really buy it...

[SpeedFreak1972]

Bwahahaha using the UE in your wildest dreams not happening anything not when bethesda has a say. I mean even TES VI will be on the creation engine so no chance

[Altbert]

It wouldn't surprise me! Looking at Viruos Games website, they have done a lot of art for various games (Horizon, Assassin's Creed and more) and a few remakes (e.g. Demon's Soul). If VG is going to team up with BGS, it will probably be the latest Creation Engine.

[Mavrah]

Originally posted by Fear2288:

Not sure how valid this leak is though, the MGS one turned out to be true, but I kinda feel like if there was an Oblivion remake in the works, Bethesda/ZeniMax/Microsoft/Virtuous would’ve slapped the Skyblivion team with a cease-and-desist order to eliminate the possibility that the remake loses sales to a free mod.
Interesting stuff either way.

Bethesda usually embraces the creative side of their playerbase- and yes, milking a game for 20+ years of income.
I doubt they're actually threatened. A controversial fan project would likely drum up more interest in Skyrim's predecessors, assuming the games are actually good.

[hawkeye]

I would say that it's just a working prototype. Unreal has a lot of tools and utilities including third-party plugins that expedite development and improve the end product. Picking up those tools could be a wise move. Also it could be an online multi-player experiment or VR.

I can't see a single player Oblivion remake being a profit-making venture. Plus BGS would be pretty keen to maintain modability as doing so sells a lot more units.

[Liquid Inc]

Rebuilding Oblivion, from the ground up, in UE5, complete with graphics overhaul?

Now, that's BS if ever i saw it...


If it was that easy that a small company could convert Oblivion to UE5, Bethesda would have done it for a quick buck. (They might still update Oblivion for the 20th anniversary ofcourse, but that would be totally up to Bethesda)


IMHO, this is bait just to get at the Skyblivion team, and that's really quite sad and pathetic by whoever is doing it.

[psychotron666]

Definitely ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥. Bethesda tried to move to the unreal engine a few years back and it lasted like a month before they abandoned it and went back to their old engine

[titanopteryx]

Originally posted by Fear2288:

Just saw an article about how an employee at Virtuous Games recently leaked that the developer is working on an Oblivion remake right now for Bethesda.

You can find and read the article yourself, but the gist of it is that this leak could be valid because the last leak that came out of someone who worked for Virtuous ended up being very much legit (MGS: Snake Eater remake).

It’s not known yet if this will be just an HD Remaster or a full-on remake, but supposedly they’re using Unreal Engine 5 for something having to do with it.

And it’s rumored to be releasing in 2025.

I’d hate to be on the Skyblivion team if this turns out to be true…granted, the Skyblivion version could end up being better, but still…sorta would make their 10+ years of work feel a little less special and/or a little pointless if they have to watch some developer come along and do what they did in a fraction of the time, and even moreso if what Virtuous puts out looks better, runs better, and is more complete than what they’ve done.

Also kinda adds insult to injury to have it release the same year as Skyblivion too.

Not sure how valid this leak is though, the MGS one turned out to be true, but I kinda feel like if there was an Oblivion remake in the works, Bethesda/ZeniMax/Microsoft/Virtuous would’ve slapped the Skyblivion team with a cease-and-desist order to eliminate the possibility that the remake loses sales to a free mod.

I also remember reading something a few weeks ago in an interview with the Skyblivion team lead that said that he and the team have been getting attacked and harassed online by anonymous bad actors, and there have been hacks and attempts to hack their social media pages and project data. Maybe this leak is nothing but a fake, concocted by these bad actors, in an attempt to get in the team’s heads and derail their work as they move into the home stretch to complete the mod.

Interesting stuff either way.

I share everyone's disdain for bad actors but I really don't see Steve Guttenburg trying to sabotage a Skyrim mod. Are you sure it's not hackers or internet trolls?

[Altbert]

Originally posted by Liquid Inc:

If it was that easy that a small company could convert Oblivion to UE5, Bethesda would have done it for a quick buck. (They might still update Oblivion for the 20th anniversary ofcourse, but that would be totally up to Bethesda)

Viruos Games is not a small company, they have 3500 employees worldwide. They have done lots of artwork for various popular games and a few remakes. As I wrote before, it wouldn't surprise me, but we're only sure if there is an official announcement. Until then we are in the dark. It could be true, a hoax, or whatever. Don't misunderstand me, but secretly I hope they do, because of their excellent 3D artwork for Horizon, Assassin's Creed and other games.

BTW, I would also play Skyblivion!

[Liquid Inc]

Originally posted by Altbert:

Viruos Games is not a small company, they have 3500 employees worldwide.

I.... did not know that, but my point stands; If they could do it, so could Bethesda...
...and then there's the whole "they've never mentioned a word to anyone about it" and it really doesn't seem like this is real.
A company of that size is bound to make a splash about this for some reviewer somewhere, especially if it's as close to release as they say. Where's the "lets play" kind of video's, showing gameplay? Where's the trailers? Where's the hype?

Im pretty sure this is a hoax just to annoy the Skyblivion team more.

[Teratus]

I have my doubts tbh..

Mainly because Skyblivion is still an active development, if there was an official remake in the works then I would absolutely expect Bethesda to have shut down Skyblivion as soon as their official remake was given the go ahead.

Bethesda has also been pretty cool with modders overall so I'd also have expected them to open the doors to bring on some of the Skyblivion team to work on the official remake too.

So yeah I doubt there is an official remake in the works, if anything Bethesda would probably be better off sponsoring Skyblivion and making it an official mod based remake, though there's probably a lot of reasons that can't happen I expect, specially when it comes to putting a price tag on it.
A whole lot of people have worked on Skyblivion if i'm not mistaken, even if their contribution is very minor.

I almost applied myself a few years back to do some voice work for it.

[Altbert]

Consider Arknwind, Nehrim and Enderal. Did BGS ever support those complete overhauls? BGS allowed it, but nothing more!

[Fear2288]

Originally posted by Liquid Inc:

Originally posted by Altbert:

Viruos Games is not a small company, they have 3500 employees worldwide.

I.... did not know that, but my point stands; If they could do it, so could Bethesda...
...and then there's the whole "they've never mentioned a word to anyone about it" and it really doesn't seem like this is real.
A company of that size is bound to make a splash about this for some reviewer somewhere, especially if it's as close to release as they say. Where's the "lets play" kind of video's, showing gameplay? Where's the trailers? Where's the hype?

Im pretty sure this is a hoax just to annoy the Skyblivion team more.

Honestly, it’s not unbelievable that they wouldn’t be promoting it quite yet.

Bethesda is infamous for not revealing games until they’re less than a year away from release (Starfield is only an exception because they delayed it) so it wouldn’t be unusual for Virtuos to follow suit.

Also, have you noticed that since Starfield was revealed it’s almost seemed like they’ve intentionally been quiet about or only minimally promoted anything TES/FO related?

Since Starfield was revealed things like FO76 and ESO have gotten multiple updates and expansions, and they’re shooting a FO television series right now…but the average gamer would be forgiven for not even knowing these things because they’ve only done minimal advertising. And the “official” TESVI reveal five years ago has received 0 further updates despite the assumption that they’re made some level of progress in the game’s development since then.

It’s as if Bethesda/Microsoft wants everyone’s attention SQUARELY on Starfield for the time being and not thinking about TES or FO.

Thus, waiting until say…the Xbox Showcase next spring/summer…may be believable for an Oblivion remake reveal.

It also kinda makes sense from a certain perspective.

Starfield releases in a month, the earliest guesstimates for TESVI are 2026 - 27, and it’s probably a safe bet that FO5 won’t show up until around 2030.

An Oblivion remake sliding in there in 2025 - 26 leaves enough room for Starfield to have its spotlight and enough time to be throughly played and receive post-release content, it matches up with the 20 year anniversary of Oblivion, and not only could it provide a hold-over for TES fans if VI isn’t ready until 2027-28 but also could act as a hype-builder for VI.