After the most recent leaks, The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion's remaster finally feels real, with players able to attach something tangible to the project before it is reported to shadow drop later in the month. Curiously, the project is called Oblivion Remastered, not a remake, which is odd considering that the game is being remade from the ground up in Unreal Engine 5. This seems like the definition of a remake, especially since there are going to be alleged changes to the base game, rather than being an exact remake with better visuals like with the Bluepoint Games' projects.

This is a double-edged sword, since fans of the original might be looking for the exact same experience with better graphics, while fans who haven't tried Oblivion, or couldn't get into the original because of its age, will likely benefit from the modern changes. Combat and the dungeons are reported to have been changed from the original, which is likely the best for a modern audience, but Bethesda has the chance to make Elder Scrolls lore more concrete with this project. It can help consolidate the retcons made to the lore by Skyrim.

The Oblivion Remaster Can Help Make Elder Scrolls Lore Consistent

It Will Depend On What Virtuos Has Been Told To Do

While published by Bethesda, the remaster is being developed by Virtuos, and it seems like the studio has been given free rein to modernize many aspects of the original game. Outsourcing the project is likely the reason it is being made in Unreal Engine 5, being quite different from many Bethesda projects, but it would be surprising if Bethesda is completely hands-off with the game. As an Elder Scrolls lore-lover, I hope that Bethesda has given Virtuos instructions to keep with the lore established by Skyrim, rather than using the original Oblivion's version of the world.

The problem with Elder Scrolls lore is that it is equal parts interesting and confusing, suffering from an inconsistent continuity brought on by a mass of retcons every single time a new game is released. For instance, before the original Oblivion, Cyrodil was a massive jungle, yet in the game, it is more typically European, specifically drawing inspiration from Italy. Each game gives and takes away, but there have been many retcons since Oblivion with Skyrim, a title that has been out for almost fourteen years. For the sake of continuity, Virtuos should use this version of the lore.

Cyrodil has been the seat of two empires, the Alessian Empire and the current empire seen in Oblivion and Skyrim.

While most people won't care either way, since many don't delve into the lore, more avid fans will, and the confusion brought on by going back to the original Oblivion's version of the world is only going to be compounded. The main events of Oblivion's story will be largely unaffected by sticking to the more modern interpretations of the lore, since Skyrim doesn't take place in Cyrodil, and it would be a nice way for Bethesda to neaten up the world of The Elder Scrolls. It would address a common complaint from lore-lovers who can't find an ounce of consistency.

Bethesda Used Skyrim To Retcon Oblivion's Lore

And Needs To Stick With This Version Of The Lore

Although the series has been around for a long time, Skyrim is the most popular Elder Scrolls game, and after thirteen years ing without a sequel, it's also the most recent. Skyrim's version of the lore is currently considered canon, although it did include fractures in reality called Dragon Breaks to lazily explain all the retcons. Some things in the original Oblivion are no longer considered canon or have elements messily tacked on by Skyrim, and if these are included in the remaster, Elder Scrolls canon will feel like a spaghetti junction, especially if ES6 retcons everything again.

For one example, vampire lore is completely different in each game. Vampires don't play a massive role in Oblivion compared to Skyrim and its Dawnguard DLC, and they were originally made by Vaermina, the Daedric Prince of Nightmares. Skyrim changed the origin to Molag Bal, the Daedric Prince of Domination, with lore written around the first vampire Lamae, the first vampire, and a rather disturbing ritual mentioned by Serana. It's these instances that need to be confirmed by the Oblivion remaster, rather than contradicted, especially for those who haven't played the original before but love Skyrim.

Molag Bal's realm is Coldharbour, and this is where the souls of vampires go when they die.

Those who know of Molag Bal and his involvement with vampires are only going to be confused when Vaermina is mentioned. Technically, Vaermina still has a hand in making vampires in the lore, since it hasn't been wiped away entirely, and can cure vampirism in Morrowind, but there is no origin story like with Molag Bal. Vaermina's continued involvement with vampirism seems like a byproduct of retconning, and this is the type of confusion that Bethesda needs to avoid with future Elder Scrolls projects. The entire world gets messier and messier with each project, but Bethesda can reverse this trend.

Virtuos Is Already Making Changes To Update Oblivion To Modern Standards

Changes To The Original Are Expected To Be Made

Another large retcon in Skyrim is the love Nords have for Talos. In Oblivion, Raman, an NPC in the Great Chapel of Talos, states that the Nords of Skyrim don't care for the man-turned-god, but punishing the worship of Talos causes the Civil War in Skyrim. There is a chance that perceptions changed over time, since Skyrim takes place centuries after Oblivion, but lines like this could be altered or clarified to have Skyrim and Oblivion make sense together. It isn't as though Virtuos isn't making a multitude of changes in the remaster anyway.

With modern graphics, gameplay, and improved dungeons allegedly part of the remaster, these smaller changes might get overlooked. If they aren't, however, it could prove that Bethesda is finally listening to its most loyal Elder Scrolls fans and giving the series some consistency. Someone who has only played Skyrim is going to be very confused when they hear that the Nords don't care for Talos in Bruma. Skyrim is going to make a lot less sense, and when an inevitable retcon happens again with The Elder Scrolls 6, it's going to get a lot messier.

All the lore-delving fans of The Elder Scrolls series want is consistency, and while adding new lore to the games is fine, having that contradict established lore only makes things more puzzling. The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion is already a victim of retcons, and its remaster should stick to the current version of the lore that has been established for over thirteen years. Still, it's likely that The Elder Scrolls will continue to lean on the Dragon Break plot device explaining away the inconsistencies, and retcons won't be high priority compared to everything Virtuos has to do.