Bethesda unlikely to use external developers in future
Todd Howard says despite Obsidian's success on Fallout: New Vegas, the company is now large enough to handle such work internally
Don't expect a new New Vegas anytime soon. While the Obsidian Entertainment-developed 2010 Fallout game was a critical and commercial success, publisher Bethesda is in no hurry to reprise that model of collaboration.
Speaking with The Guardian, Bethesda Game Studios' Todd Howard said working with external partners is not something that interests the company these days.
"I wouldn't say never," Howard said. "[But] now that our company is so big, it's always better to keep stuff internal ... it becomes less likely, but I could never say never. I thought the Obsidian guys did a fabulous job."
Indeed, Bethesda Game Studios has grown to the point that it has four upcoming titles it's announced: Fallout 76, Starfield, The Elder Scrolls VI, and The Elder Scrolls: Blades, in addition to continued support for Fallout Shelter. Bethesda the publisher has a wealth of projects and teams beyond that.
Another thing Bethesda has found success with but is reluctant to pursue further is remastered editions of older games. While The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim received remastered editions for the current generation of consoles, Howard said it didn't require the sort of overhaul remastering older titles would, and he prefers people to enjoy those games in their original forms.
"We [also] get asked a lot to remaster [1997's] Fallout 1, and I usually say, if you have a PC you can play Fallout the way it was," Howard said. "I think that's how it should be. I think streaming technology is definitely coming, and it's gonna make people's access to games infinitely easier. You've seen it happen to music and movies and I think it's a great thing."