The Fallen Eclipse

The Fallen Eclipse is an upcoming open world action role-playing game developed by Bethesda Game Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks. The game was directed by Todd Howard who directed Bethesda's other games, and made in collaboration with fantasy author J. K. Rowling, who provides the game's setting. The game is scheduled to be released for the PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Microsoft Windows, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S on September 8th, 2026.
== Premise ==
The Fallen Eclipse takes place in the fictional Continents of Union, where an evil has taken over all of the deities and demigods that resided and ruled the lands. Once under protection of six nations and the deities, all of them were now against each other in the midst of the chaos, and crime arose. The union king had no choice but to call back the outlaw warriors he banished before he disappeared, Trapho, the Laser Knight, Tess, the Death Wielder, and Arcan the Mage. All three must traverse what they once called home to destroy the evil and redeem themselves from the crimes they committed.
== Gameplay ==
The Fallen Eclipse is an action role-playing game, which can be playable in either first-person or third-person perspective and features no camera cuts and a continuous shot. Unlike the Fallout or Elder Scrolls series, there is no character customization, but players can choose either of the main characters Trapho, Tess, and Arcan. Once the player chose their character, they cannot go back to change it. The gameplay focuses on combat and exploration, but it also balances it with the story within. Throughout the game, the player goes through a linear storyline but later becomes nonlinear as they get to explore the Continents of Union freely, especially its six nations, eight areas, including castles, dungeons, underwater cities, and prisons scattered across the open-world map. Each the eight areas feature different enemies and are ruled by a demigod or deity, the main bosses of the game.
If the player chooses one of the three characters, the character will have a unique set of six attributes, Trapho with his laser sword, Tess with her Soulscythe, and Arcan with the Sword of Fury and her magic. The attributes can be used with the in-game currency, Aurums, which can be earned from killing enemies, completing quests, or trading. The Aurums are then used to purchase items, upgrade equipment, or acquire incantations and sorceries. These attributes can be enhanced when the player explores the map instead of a skill tree as well.
Todd Howard also added the six nations that would be a part of J. K. Rowling's worldbuilding. He also added faction reputation from Elder Scrolls and Fallout to keep up with the tradition. A higher reputation unlocks what can be bought in the nations, with discounts if higher. If reputation is low, the weapons unlocked remain unlocked, but prices are higher, and any known fighter within the faction start attacking.
The combat in The Fallen Eclipse tends to have the player use whatever they have strategically as well as dodging, parrying, and the use of ranged attacks. The enemies the player fights sometimes tend to have status effects which can negatively impact their health. The Fallen Eclipse also sees mounted combat return from the Elder Scrolls games, but with different mounts other than a horse "to add diversity", but a fast travel option is available. Tom Howard also introduced a crafting system that would apply for all consumables only. Todd Howard also included a way for players to keep their progress even after they died.
Non-playable characters (NPCs) are widespread across the Continents of Union, with some offering quests and rewards, some of which will be essential for the multiple endings The Fallen Eclipse offers. The player can start conversations with them or kill them, which would also prevent any quest they would have or get a potential ending. Some NPCs are essential to the main storyline, so they could not be killed even if the player tried. Todd Howard also stated he would remove the witness and law mechanic as "The Fallen Eclipse will be like Fallout, but in a fantasy setting".
Category:Video games
Category:Video games developed in the United States
Category:Action Role-Playing
Category:Soulslike video games
Category:Bethesda Game Studios games
Category:Video games about death
Category:PlayStation 5 games
Category:PlayStation 4 games
Category:Microsoft Windows Games
Category:Xbox One games
Category:Xbox Series X Games
Category:Xbox Series S Games
Category:Role-playing video games
Category:Upcoming video games