The development team behind the highly anticipatedElder Scrolls 5: SkyrimmodSkyblivionspoke out about the advice they gave to series developer Bethesda on the subject of modding the studio’s games.Skyblivionis the team’s large-scale project recreatingThe Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivionusing the modding tools and engine ofSkyrim.
Though Bethesda is a major developer with many games across multiple genres in its catalog, it’s best known for open world RPGs.Titles likeOblivionandFallout 4are ranked among the best Bethesda games aroundnot just because of their scale and play experience, but for their support for user-created modifications. Bethesda regularly releases toolsets and documentation to support players who take it upon themselves to create new content for the games. In turn, the likes ofSkyrimandOblivionhave become evergreen titles as players spend years, even decades playing through user-created mods and customized expansions.
One of the largest such projects isSkyblivion, which attempts to create an enhanced version ofOblivion’s campaign and content withinSkyrim. The project was so highly anticipated thattheSkybliviondevelopment team was even invited to visit Bethesda directlyin the wake of the launch ofOblivion Remastered, Bethesda’s own official refresh of the 2006 classic. According toan interview with PC Gamer, the team’s visit to Bethesda’s offices went rather well, with in-depth discussions of modding and mod tools.
Skyblivion Team Offers Advice to Bethesda on Engaging the Modding Community
According toSkyblivion’s team lead, who goes by Rebelzize, Bethesda developers were happy to show theSkyblivionteam around the office. The visit originated as an impromptu proposition that came as Rebelzize planned to visit the PAX East convention in Boston. Because Boston was located relatively near Bethesda’s headquarters in Maryland, Rebelzize reached out and raised the possibility of a quick visit to “say hi.” Bethesda opted to formally invite the entire team over to interact, with the visit lasting nearly five hours. Rebelzize said that Bethesda was most interested in finding out how theSkyblivionteam got along with the Bethesda-created tools it had created to support modding, such asSkyrim’s creation kit. SinceSkyblivionis one of the largest and most detailedSkyrimmods, and one that riffs directly on Bethesda’s official work onOblivion, the team was in a position to give detailed insight.
One insight theSkyblivionteam shared was a desire for more detailed, video-based documentation and help to accompany the release of a creation kit. Rebelzize shared that he missed the days when Bethesda would produce a series of videos helping new users come to grips with theSkyrimCreation Kit Suite, which included developer-led walkthroughs for basic projects like creating a new dungeon. Such learning aids forfuture Bethesda games likeThe Elder Scrolls 6orFallout 5could get fans well on their way to producing high-quality content for those titles and extending their lives much sooner.
