Surprise! There’s a new Elder Scrolls game out, but it’s not what you’d think. The Elder Scrolls: Castles is a fantasy take on Fallout Shelter, letting you build a castle and establish your very own dynasty within the realm of Tamriel. The game dropped on the Google Play Store without any fanfare in an early access state, and the limited test is already filled to capacity. The Elder Scrolls: Castles is coming to both iOS and Android when it fully launches, which will hopefully be sometime soon. Here’s what we know about The Elder Scrolls: Castles full release and when more early access downloads will become available.
The Elder Scrolls: Castles iOS & Android Release Date
The Elder Scrolls: Castles is currently available in early access on the Google Play Store for Android devices. This test is incredibly limited and only a select few people were able to download it, which is likely why Bethesda released the game without an official announcement of any kind.
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There currently isn’t an official release window for The Elder Scrolls: Castles on either iOS or Android, but since the game is entirely playable according to those who have the early access build, it likely won’t be long before everyone can jump in. Expect the game to be publicly released on the Google Play Store and App Store before the end of the year.
Why is The Elder Scrolls: Castles in Early Access?
This is a similar strategy that other mobile games have taken in the past, soft launching in select regions or parts of the world in order to ensure a steady server rollout and make sure monetization and other things are working properly. Pokemon Sleep and Monster Hunter Now are two of the biggest recent examples, launching in countries like New Zealand and Canada several weeks before their global debuts.
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The Elder Scrolls: Castles seems to have taken a slightly different approach, opening itself up to every region but only for a very limited pool of players, but the same principle still applies. The game will likely see a full release in a few weeks once Bethesda ensures everything works as intended in a live environment and incorporates player feedback based on the initial pricing models and things like that.
When Will More Early Access Slots Open Up?
Since The Elder Scrolls: Castles still hasn’t been officially announced yet, it’s unlikely that more early access spots will open up anytime soon. The next wave of early access downloads will most likely become available once Bethesda officially unveils the game to the world on its social media channels.
There’s a good chance that these early access slots will still be limited to Android devices, however, since Apple is much stricter with its App Store policies and mobile games with rushed rollouts like this tend to hit Android just a bit earlier than iOS.
