Elder Scrolls lore keeper says he left over Bethesda's "bureaucratic" baggage and a broken promise from Todd Howard about leading The Elder Scrolls 6

1. Games
2. RPGs

Elder Scrolls lore keeper says he left over Bethesda's "bureaucratic" baggage and a broken promise from Todd Howard about leading The Elder Scrolls 6 News By Austin Wood published 15 January 2026

Kurt Kuhlmann, the keeper of the tomes, says he couldn't do the work he wanted at Bethesda

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

(Image credit: Skyrim) Share Share by:

• Copy link
• Facebook
• X
• Whatsapp
• Pinterest
• Flipboard

Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google

Kurt Kuhlmann, a "loremaster" long known as a foundational figure for The Elder Scrolls worldbuilding, and more topically recognized as co-lead designer on Skyrim and lead systems designer for Starfield, left Bethesda in 2023 after a total of over two decades at the company. More than two years later, he's now explained that his departure was fueled by growing dissatisfaction with his role at the studio and a particular pain point regarding his role on The Elder Scrolls 6.

Speaking with PC Gamer, Kuhlmann, who makes his continued love for Bethesda quite clear throughout his comments, recalls that "there were some things that had been going on for a long time that I'd not been super happy with."

Bethesda had grown enormously since its humble basement days, and the explosive success of Skyrim only catapulted it forward. Between the expansion and specialization that define so much of AAA development, Kuhlmann, who's now working at Tencent's Lightspeed LA studio, began to miss getting his hands dirty as a designer, and grew frustrated with all the red tape at the company. This is what happens when companies grow and fragment: when you go bigger, you go slower.

You may like

• Skyrim's co-lead wanted a cliffhanger ending for The Elder Scrolls 6, but now he knows that's "completely unfeasible"
• Todd Howard "hadn't had a break in 20 years" when Fallout 4 came out, so he took a 3-month sabbatical to "go touch some grass"
• "We wanted to do something new with Starfield": 14 years after Skyrim with no Elder Scrolls 6 in sight, Todd Howard finally admits it's been "too long" since the last RPG

"When you get to that size, you can't have people just popping into Todd Howard's office to chat about a design point," Kuhlmann says. "He's not having lunch with everybody… It's very different when it's 400 people, four studios, big business, and Microsoft is now involved."

"Communication breakdowns" intensified during Starfield's prolonged development, Kuhlmann says, with "the leads in one studio" potentially providing different answers to critical questions than "the leads in the other studio" under Bethesda's umbrella.

Kuhlmann, like several other high-level developers, gradually slid into a managerial role with less hands-on creative work. A "bureaucratic" feel crept in. "The expectation was… your job can't be also making content if you're actually managing that scope of the project," he says.

For what felt like 11 years, extended by the abnormally long road (even for Bethesda) to Starfield, Kuhlmann says he'd been waiting to step into the design lead role on The Elder Scrolls 6. After Skyrim, he says Howard had verbally promised him the position – "I had been told that that was going to happen" – but when the time finally came, he was only offered an "important role" on the game by Howard.

Sign up to the GamesRadar+ Newsletter

Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more

Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

"But what I wanted and what he wanted were different at that point," Kuhlmann says. He notes that things had certainly changed for the company and for The Elder Scrolls IP, "and the role of lead on TES 6 is very different from the role of lead on Skyrim." And with the benefit of hindsight, given the state of the studio, his creative appetite, and his experience with Starfield, he doubts he would've liked leading The Elder Scrolls 6 anyway.

"They may have made the right decision of saying [I] shouldn't be in this role," he concludes.

Last year, Kuhlmann said The Elder Scrolls 6 was "different than what I would have done, and so I don't know how I'm going to feel" when it finally, surely, is released in 2035. He's also argued that Howard leans "not towards the weird stuff" of the series, betting on a tamer Oblivion and Skyrim-style tone for the next entry.

Ex-Skyrim and Fallout 76 artist hopes The Elder Scrolls 6 has "some new ideas" that avoid the franchise burnout seen in Assassin's Creed: "Ubisoft games, despite being fun, are very repetitive and by the numbers."

TOPICS Bethesda Softworks Bethesda Game Studios Austin WoodSocial Links NavigationSenior writer

Austin has been a game journalist for 12 years, having freelanced for the likes of PC Gamer, Eurogamer, IGN, Sports Illustrated, and more while finishing his journalism degree. He's been with GamesRadar+ since 2019. They've yet to realize his position is a cover for his career-spanning Destiny column, and he's kept the ruse going with a lot of news and the occasional feature, all while playing as many roguelikes as possible.

Show More Comments

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.

Logout Read more Skyrim's co-lead wanted a cliffhanger ending for The Elder Scrolls 6, but now he knows that's "completely unfeasible"    Todd Howard "hadn't had a break in 20 years" when Fallout 4 came out, so he took a 3-month sabbatical to "go touch some grass"    "We wanted to do something new with Starfield": 14 years after Skyrim with no Elder Scrolls 6 in sight, Todd Howard finally admits it's been "too long" since the last RPG    Microsoft killed his dream MMO despite apparently loving it, says former Elder Scrolls Online head, so he left: "The game I had waited my entire career to create"    Ex-Skyrim artist hopes Elder Scrolls 6 has "some new ideas" that avoid the franchise burnout seen in Assassin's Creed    Fallout 5 and Elder Scrolls 6 are in a no-win situation due to fan expectations, former Bethesda lead artist says    Latest in RPGs Skyrim's co-lead wanted a cliffhanger ending for The Elder Scrolls 6, but now he knows that's "completely unfeasible"    Valve just revealed the Steam sales and events for the rest of 2026    Desperate for a guy who stinks a little, fans of popular RPG can't believe update makes love interests take a shower    How to escape Fort Joy in Divinity Original Sin 2    Fallout: London lead thinks Bethesda has "probably gone one game too far" with Elder Scrolls and Fallout    Baldur's Gate 3 lead and Larian Studios founder shouts out the "unsung heroes" who make games like Divinity possible    Latest in News Resident Evil Requiem's "classic" difficulty forces Grace to scrounge for ink ribbons to save    George Lucas padawan Dave Filoni takes over as co-president of Lucasfilm as Kathleen Kennedy steps down after 14 years    Resident Evil Requiem's "classic" difficulty forces Grace to scrounge for ink ribbons to save    Timothée Chalamet praises his own work over the "last seven, eight years" as "really top-of-the-line performances"    The Dreadful trailer reunites Game of Thrones stars Kit Harington and Sophie Turner for a medieval horror thriller    Arc Raiders dev teases 2026 roadmap, and maybe some new maps "even grander than what we've got now"    GAME REVIEWSMOVIE REVIEWSTV REVIEWS

1. 1Looking for a good 2-player board game? This superhero adventure is worth suiting up for
2. 2Trails Beyond the Horizon review: "This JRPG's thrilling real-time and turn-based combat evolves Metaphor ReFantazio's hybrid battles, making up for a poorly paced adventure"
3. 3This alt-history board game is still a gold standard for modern strategy
4. 4Skate Story review: "A beautiful and unique skateboarding game with great, stylized visuals set in a grungy underworld"
5. 5Octopath Traveler 0 review: "The strongest entry in this retro-styled JRPG series yet, I love the greater focus on tactical battles"

1. 128 Years Later: The Bone Temple review: "The wildest and weirdest entry into the franchise yet"
2. 2Avatar: Fire and Ash review: "Still a technical marvel, with some of the year's best action filmmaking"
3. 3Five Nights at Freddy's 2 review: "We have waited two years for a Five Nights at Freddy's 1.5"
4. 4Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery review: "Brings Knives Out back to its roots for a sequel that's almost on a par with the original"
5. 5Wicked: For Good review: "Builds to an incredibly cathartic conclusion, but isn't quite as captivating as Part 1"

1. 1Starfleet Academy review: "It may feel a little different to what we're used to, but this is Star Trek through and through"
2. 2A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms review: "This Game of Thrones spin-off is a heartfelt and fun return to Westeros"
3. 3Stranger Things season 5 finale review: “Shows off both the best and the worst of Hawkins”
4. 4Stranger Things season 5, Volume 2 review: “All set up for a finale that has so much to deliver”
5. 5Fallout season 2 review: "A hell of a lot of fun despite being overcrowded and convoluted"