Bethesda Game Studios to Shut Down Support for The Elder Scrolls: Blades in 2026

Bethesda Game Studios has officially announced that it will discontinue support for its mobile title The Elder Scrolls: Blades. The game’s servers are scheduled to be shut down on June 30, 2026, after which the game will become completely inaccessible.

The closure was revealed through an official statement from the studio, first noticed by users on Reddit. In parallel, the game has already been removed from digital storefronts and is no longer available on the App Store, Google Play, or the Nintendo eShop.

Ahead of the shutdown, Bethesda has introduced final in-game bonuses for players. All users will receive free resources, including Gems and Sigils, while all items in the in-game store have been reduced to a cost of just one unit of currency, effectively unlocking access to the game’s full content before its end.

After June 30, 2026, access to The Elder Scrolls: Blades will no longer be possible, as the title relies entirely on server-based infrastructure.

The Elder Scrolls: Blades is a mobile spin-off of the iconic RPG franchise The Elder Scrolls, originally released in 2020 for iOS, Android, and Nintendo Switch. The game combined traditional series elements—such as dungeon exploration, first-person combat, and character progression—with mobile-focused mechanics. Its core gameplay revolved around short, procedurally generated dungeon sessions where players completed quests, fought enemies, and gathered resources.

A notable feature of the game was its town-building system, allowing players to construct and upgrade buildings, unlock NPCs, and gradually rebuild a settlement after enemy attacks. This system was designed to provide long-term progression beyond combat missions.

At launch, Blades showed strong momentum. During early access, it surpassed one million downloads on iOS within its first week. However, that initial interest declined over time.

The game ultimately failed to match the success of mainline entries such as The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. One of the main reasons was criticism from both players and industry media. On Metacritic, the game received a “Generally Unfavorable” rating, with common complaints including repetitive gameplay, limited depth in mechanics, and aggressive monetization. Many users also criticized the microtransaction system, which affected the pace of progression.

The shutdown of Blades comes as no surprise, as Bethesda has gradually scaled back support for secondary projects within the The Elder Scrolls universe. Previously, the company discontinued support for the card game The Elder Scrolls: Legends: active development ended in 2019, and its servers were fully shut down in January 2025. Blades had remained the last active mobile spin-off in the franchise, but it was ultimately unable to sustain a long-term player base.

Despite the closure, the franchise’s mobile presence is not disappearing entirely. Players looking to stay within the universe on mobile devices can turn to The Elder Scrolls: Castles, a title that places greater emphasis on management and settlement development rather than combat, expanding on some of the ideas introduced in Blades.