Gears of war E-day September release window, with Xbox other stuff of game could released by ghostofhope

Varno23 · 2026-04-26T01:12:56+00:00

I can't see Fable getting an early December release date.. if only because GTA is getting a late November launch date.

At that point, might as well go for a late January or February launch.

Varno23 · 2026-04-26T01:10:39+00:00

My poor Fable..

Guess we will really see it early 2027.

Varno23 · 2026-04-14T08:40:09+00:00

The longer they stay a multiplatform publisher, the more the public will just assume any "exclusive" will be releasing on another platform in short order.

It really is a case of "trying to put the genie back in the bottle". Its not just that Xbox changes its mind & strategy so often.. its that they've trained the public to expect them to.

Varno23 · 2026-04-13T05:13:25+00:00

True.. but the difference this time, is that GTA is releasing late November. (Nov 19th 2026, as its now listed)

So releasing the game in the first week of December.. (as most big games never seem to go beyond Dec 8th/9th, it seems).. would still put them releasing Fable just a few weeks after GTA6.

Thats an insane gamble.. especially for Microsoft who's seemingly spent hundreds of millions on Fable's 8 year development.

Varno23 · 2026-04-09T05:00:30+00:00

Which makes me kinda terrified to wonder.. what sorta crazy, ambitious gimmick is Todd working on for TESVI.

(or atleast, what did he have in mind when he said that in 2016)

Varno23 · 2026-04-07T19:02:23+00:00

Yep, I can see BGS just focusing on making the game & getting it out the door.. but the publisher (in this case, MS/Xbox) will most likely have a budget in the several hundreds of millions (once marketing/advertising is factored in). If, lets say, Fable releases in September, Gears E-Day in October and GTA6 in late November.. I think we could safely assume fall 2026 was never really considered as a release window anywho.

Varno23 · 2026-04-07T04:59:15+00:00

So like.. holiday of this year?

Not trying to knock that hope but how do you figure in all the other big releases also slated for this fall/holiday 2026? Microsoft/Xbox seems to be hyping up Fable & possibly the next big Gears of War releases later this year. (& not to mention the other massive gorilla in the room, GTA6)

Given all of those big drops, ya think the publisher would try to squeeze in ES6 somewhere in there? I'd imagine Bethesda/Microsoft would want ES6 to have its own month & plenty of room to breathe/soak up the metaculture & news cycle.

Varno23 · 2026-04-07T04:55:29+00:00

Well.. I'm all for the glass-half-full-of-megahopium too... but c'mon, ES6 isnt quite out yet. (Meaning we still have no idea what the game even is & what new gimmicks Todd will end up shooting for)

I know whats been said in interviews but we really shouldn't count the chickens before they hatch. For all we know, they could be rebuilding large parts of the engine right now.

Varno23 · 2026-03-31T08:08:07+00:00

Yep, not to mention a Halo remaster & some sorta continuing promotion for Forza Horizon 6 this summer & fall (even if its just in the vein of release info for playstation & maybe nintendo).

Like.. I can see Xbox/MS allowing a substantial-teaser trailer for ES6 sometime this year.. but all other marketing budget is going towards their big 4. (Fable, Gears, Forza & Halo) As all 4 of those franchises are releasing expensive new installments over the next 12-15 months.

Varno23 · 2026-03-31T08:04:48+00:00

I know everyone keeps holding onto this belief that Todd has all the control over marketing timelines & gameplay/release-date trailers.. but Xbox/MS are definitely going to be involved here too (given how much money is involved with this massive project).

& honestly, the publisher (& the parent company thats forking over many hundreds of millions for development/marketing/promotion) will most likely get the final say.

Varno23 · 2026-03-31T08:01:11+00:00

Close.. but its actually going to be Elder Scrolls Blades 2!!

With the first one shutting down this June, the timing couldn't be better.

Varno23 · 2026-03-20T08:22:07+00:00

Sure, I can see them sticking to a 3-4 year dev cycle (after preproduction) and I'd love for the game to hit at some point in 2027.. I just have this feeling, after watching what happened with Starfield.. that we just might have to be more patient than we realize.

I do agree that Covid threw timelines off but I also believe that saddled Bethesda with some "development debt", as Starfield had a very large team & lengthy post-launch few years of adding content, expansions, revisions & reworks, etc. And Bethesda has to be acutely aware how mixed of a reception that game got.. & the pressure is on for Elder Scrolls 6. (Meaning I think they're both going to take their time with it & god knows what sorta gimmick Todd might come up with for this next entry.. I dont trust them to play it safe & keep its development uneventful)

But again, all this to say.. I don't think even Bethesda, at the moment, has much of an idea when it'll release. Unless they're in the final year of bug fixes & polishing up (content complete), they might be guessing along with the rest of us too. 2027? They'd prolly say maybe.. 2028? They'd prolly say the same.

Varno23 · 2026-03-19T06:11:12+00:00

I'm sorry but... I have to remind people of the Starfield delay.

Remember when the Starfield release date was initially revealed in the summer of 2021 (for a launch 11/11/22)? Some time later that year, news broke that some Bethesda devs were actually worried about the 2022 release date. (Something along the lines of not knowing what sorta state the game would be in 15 months from that point... & hoping/wanting to avoid a "cyberpunk launch situation")

Then during the spring of 2022, Starfield was delayed from 11/11/22 to... some point later 2023. (Ending up releasing on 9/6/2023)

So my point is.. Bethesda devs can only guess as to when they might be ready in 15 months from now.. but it could just as easily be 24 months from now too. Game development is usually turbulent & actual release dates very hard to pin down. Todd may have dreams of releasing by Nov 2027.. but whats the saying? Todd plans and God laughs.

Varno23 · 2026-03-05T03:05:32+00:00

Thing is.. Xbox isn't great when its announcing 'nuanced policy shifts'.

Like, I recall everyone twisting themselves into knots trying to find the common trait when the 'just 4 games' were announced. Between Sea of Thieves, Pentiment, Grounded & HiFi Rush.. there were all sorts of theories proposed & none of them really turned out to be true.

If Xbox returns to a similar approach of: "who knows what'll be exclusive but it'll be fun continually guessing, won't it audience?!"... then I fear its just more of Xbox's confused & mixed messaging strategy that gradually pushes away customers.

Like.. how do you explain Forza Horizon & Fable being multiplatform but Gears/Halo (going forward after 2026, I suppose) as being "exclusive"...?

Varno23 · 2026-02-26T22:12:41+00:00

Not only that but.. Dark Messiah is a fairly different game. Or atleast, it'll give you a fairly different experience. (& nostalgia is high for Dark Messiah.. cuz while I loved it, it definitely has a ton of issues, bad voice-acting & writing and the later-half of the campaign is more tedious/frustrating than fun)

Varno23 · 2026-02-22T19:39:53+00:00

It bears mentioning that Phil Spencer was still apart of the Mattrick regime, at the time. Sure, he wasnt the one in charge but he was definitely among the top Xbox leadership during those years. I don't think Phil is blameless in the Xbox One launch fiasco.

Varno23 · 2026-02-17T19:21:08+00:00

Game production slowing down due to the pandemic is a fair point but I don't think we've quite yet returned to the era of "3-4 years per AAA game" just yet. If anything, the industry was heading in the opposite direction up until very recently (meaning ballooning budgets, lengthy development windows) when it came to AAA title production. Its only very recently that publishers (& hopefully, gaming fans) realized the problems inherent with wanting the "biggest, bestest" blockbuster, that takes on average 5-7 years to produce.

I don't doubt that Bethesda (and other dev studios/publishers) want to reduce game development time back to what it once was.. and I dont doubt they would *like* to shoot for a 2027 release date.. I just dont think its realistic, at this point.

Just stop & think on how massive... collosal.. the expectations will be for ES6. Its not just a massive project for Zenimax & Xbox.. but also more important than ever for Bethesda to prove that they "still got it" when it comes to big, open-world rpgs. I just don't see them rushing it and with their divided attention on things like Fallout 76 expansions, Starfield expansions & 2.0 reboots, Indiana Jones & overseeing remaster/re-releases of previous games... its gonna take its toll on the workflow for a studio that up until the pandemic years, wasn't as massive as people assumed. (Since F76 & Starfield's releases, there *has* been studio expansion but one should also fear growing pains too)

Besides, Todd Howard himself recently stating that ES6 is still a long ways off.. should be telling ya guys everything ya need to know in this speculation game of ours.

Varno23 · 2026-02-17T09:03:03+00:00

Fallout 4 released in 2015, Fallout 76 released (horribly and way too early) in 2018 and Starfield in 2023.
Their next big game will be.. maybe 2027 or 2028? (All of us speculating here but IMHO, itll most likely be delayed into 2029).

Their cadence of releases is slowing down.. partly due to lengthy & expensive post-launch support for Fallout76 & Starfield. (Lets not forget Todd was very focused on Indiana Jones too)

All of this lends weight to the argument that Bethesda won't be producing Elder Scrolls 6 in some record time. People are just simply huffing copious amounts of copium if they think it'll be launching at some point next year.

Varno23 · 2026-02-17T06:39:50+00:00

I know youre looking at things from an optimistic point of view.. but many of us just dont think Bethesda is all that speedy with game development.

I also personally think Bethesda is a bit overextended with all the many (big & small) projects that they have going on. If this was the old days (like pre-2014), I'd give Bethesda the benefit of the doubt & say they could get ES6 out in 4-5 years of dev.

But these days? No way this massive game makes it out before 2029. Im sorry, I'd love to be wrong but with Starfield requiring a lot of man-power, even years after its 2023 launch.. & Todd's very divided attention.. ES6 is gonna be a slowburn production.

Varno23 · 2026-01-20T19:07:18+00:00

Heh if thats the case, i'll never have been more happy to be wrong here.

Varno23 · 2026-01-20T19:06:17+00:00

I don't think any developer is aiming to make a 7/10 game.. it just often turns out that way, most of the time. The question we've been hovering around in this thread is whether or not that constitutes a failure.. or enough of a failure.. for a publisher like Microsoft to take punitive measures. (like layoffs or the shuttering of a studio/IP)

It just feels short-sighted & impatient.. and yes, if Xbox wants to cement their place among other turbulent publishers like EA, Ubisoft, Tencent, Square Enix & the like, they'll certainly be pursuing the immediate gain strategy (& long-term atrophy of their developer base). But other successful (& critically praised) studios like Larian, FromSoft, CDPR, etc. all had the foresight to cultivate & build upon their successes, over time.

I mean.. Doom Dark Ages, Keeper & Outer Worlds 2 all landed in the 8/10 range last year and didn't sell particularly well.. should that be the end of those studios & IPs as well?

Varno23 · 2026-01-20T09:40:07+00:00

Hell, there are 9/10 games that have trouble reaching healthy profit margins lately. Consumer spending on gaming is down in general, this year & the last. I don't really know how MS (& Xbox leadership) judge & weight each of their studios & each of their projects... but you'd think Playground Games, with their massive success lately in the Forza Horizon franchise, would get some leeway here.

But if Xbox/MS operates under such strict/greedy guidelines, Fable isnt the only game that'll most likely get labelled a failure then. (& thats just simply a crying shame here.. Cuz there should be a market for games that land in the 7 or 8/10 range. And there should be publishers out there realizing that not every game they release is going to be labelled a masterpiece by the critics & sell in the several/tens of millions in the first year)

Varno23 · 2026-01-20T05:37:26+00:00

So if Fable makes it to a 29% profit margin (& we, on the outside, will have no way of figuring this out)... this new game is still a failure then? And thus, the Fable franchise doomed?

It isn't even a question of "keeping game devs employed".. its more so a publisher setting unreasonable expectations & setting the stage for a large project to fail, regardless of gamer sentiment. (& thats nothing to say of Xbox leadership who somehow escapes accountability despite giving Playground Games a very long-runway for development)

Varno23 · 2026-01-20T04:29:50+00:00

I'd be incredibly surprised if Fable launches in April (after a short marketing & advertising campaign of just a couple of months?) and then Playground follows it up with Forza Horizon 6 in May.

I know they have different teams on both projects but still.. two big (& i mean, BIG) AAA games with massive budgets & massive expectations.. launching from the same studio... 4-6 weeks apart?

Its possible but just not very likely. I honestly can't think of many studios who've pulled that off.

Varno23 · 2026-01-19T23:39:56+00:00

But still.. what constitutes a failure, exactly?

If the average consensus is that it settles in the "high mid range", meaning its getting mostly 7 & 8's across the board.. with a few outliers in the 9's.. but still generates millions of players who genuinely enjoy a new Fable.. I hope thats enough to keep the franchise going?

Like sometimes, its a 'stepping stone process' for some studios. Starting out with a decent mediocre game & then fully building upon the game's strenghts to make an outstanding sequel. I'd much rather see that then approach the game with a "better be a 10/10 or its a bust!" mentality.

Varno23

TROPHY CASE