Bethesda has delisted mobile RPG The Elder Scrolls: Blades from all platforms as it prepares to permanently shut it down on June 30.
The developer announced the news via a brief in-game statement, thanking its fans for playing and offering a free bundle of Gems and Sigils "so you can enjoy all content Blades has to offer." To help with this, you'll also now find that every single item in the game's store is available for a single Gem or Sigil.
"I played it, and it's not terrible for a mobile game, but you pretty quickly hit a wall where you are stuck waiting for days-long upgrades, and the second it was like 'real money will make this faster,' I stopped," said one player, reflecting on the game's closure.
Another agreed, writing: "I enjoyed it quite a bit up to that point. Thought it looked pretty damn good for mobile, and it played surprisingly well […] But yeah, you only get a couple hours of real progression before the game hits you with day/s long timers and 'SUPER SPECIAL ONCE-IN-A-LIFETIME TODAY ONLY FOR THE NEXT 30 MINUTES' deals that cover just enough to handle all the buildings you have going right then."
"It’s really annoying how common this is for mobile games. Any notable mobile game that pushed the scene forward […] just ends up lost," mourned another.
The Elder Scrolls: Blades launched proper six years ago, in May 2020, as a free-to-play action role-playing spinoff set between the events of Oblivion and Skyrim. While commenters focus on the mobile version, Blades was available in Nintendo Switch, too. The $14.99 console version is no longer available to buy on the Nintendo eShop, and its description includes the same statement posted above.
We thought The Elder Scrolls: Blades was mediocre, writing in IGN's review: "The Elder Scrolls: Blades has a few bright spots, but this watered-down version of Tamriel is far from the mobile Elder Scrolls game fans may have been hoping for."
Of course, the world is waiting for the next mainline entry in The Elder Scrolls series, The Elder Scrolls 6, which still doesn't have a release date despite being announced nearly eight years ago.
Vikki Blake is a reporter for IGN, as well as a critic, columnist, and consultant with 15+ years experience working with some of the world's biggest gaming sites and publications. She's also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.
