Since 1994, Bethesda Softworks has been enchanting RPG fans across the world with its legendary Elder Scrolls franchise. The expansive mainline entries provide nearly countless hours of entertainment in their open worlds.
With Elder Scrolls VI somewhere far off in the horizon, it seems like a good time to look back on the series and rank them all based on length. Using the website howlongtobeat.com, the average main story runtimes are used to determine which games in the franchise are the shortest and which ones players should clear their calendars to play. It will come as no surprise to see the linear spin-offs populate the first half of the list.
10 Elder Scrolls: Legends (4 Hours)
Though it only takes four hours to run through the plot, doing the extra content is said to extend the playtime well over 100 hours. Being a card game, it lacks the visual flair of the mainline entries, though the genre has carved out its own niche to make the game popular enough. New content updates stopped in December of 2019, though the servers are still open.
9 Elder Scrolls: Blades (10 Hours)
This mobile game is not exactly the continuation of the franchise fans were hoping for, though fitting an abridged Elder Scrolls experience on a mobile device is an impressive feat. Technical problems and long load times bog down the overall quality, but those willing to bear it are in for a solid story and surprisingly faithful gameplay.
8 An Elder Scrolls Legend: Battlespire (14 Hours)
This spin-off title focused on the dungeon-crawling aspect of the series, and also featured cooperative and versus modes for network play. A worthy enough entry for its time, but the lack of classic series staples' increased attention to combat has caused it to age worse than the other older entries.
7 The Elder Scrolls Adventures: Redguard (15 Hours)
While Morrowind was the first 3D mainline entry, the developer first tried their hand with the new tech by making The Elder Scrolls Adventures: Redguard.
While still taking place in open areas, the gameplay is more action-adventure oriented. Like several 3D action games of the late '90s, Redguard is nearly unplayable by today's standards.
6 Elder Scrolls: Arena (22 Hours)
The company's first foray into the RPG space was a risky venture. Their associates in the industry didn't think they could pull it off, based on the studio's previous experience mainly with sports titles. Arena feels like it is held together by duct tape in certain areas and is littered with bugs and glitches, but its unique gameplay struck a chord with RPG fans, and the game's popularity slowly escalated due to word of mouth.
5 Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (27.5 Hours)
While Morrowind came out on Xbox, Oblivion felt like the first time the series really made a splash on consoles.
It was released on both Xbox 360 and PS3, and didn't feel like it traded off too much to run on them. The world feels more pristine and clean than the other mainline 3D entries, given Cyrodiil's wealth compared to Skyrim and Vvardenfell.
4 Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall (32 Hours)
Arena was an impressive first step, and Daggerfall took the ball and ran. It introduced many iconic facets of the series, including stats which increase based on the way characters play rather than manually distributing them. Par for the Bethesda course, Daggerfall released with a slew of bugs. While most of these were fixed with patches, it still left some fans disappointed with the initial launch. For anybody curious about this title and the debut, both are available for free on the official Elder Scrolls website.
3 Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (33.5 Hours)
Skyrim continued the series' upwards trajectory. No longer could one consider the RPG franchise a niche; Elder Scrolls was as popular as any other large AAA game. A running gag revolves around the plethora of ports available, including a Nintendo Switch version.
It makes sense, though, considering the game's accessibility while still retaining the franchise's core tenets. While some hardcore fans may not like this shift, it is beneficial for more people to experience the wonderful continent of Tamriel.
2 Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind (45.5 Hours)
The first mainline entry to enter the third dimension also stands as a fan favorite. Even though the game world is comparatively tiny, an RPG never felt so alive before the 2002 release. While the graphics were magnificently detailed for its time, the game did not forget to focus on deep RPG mechanics. The small map has players memorizing its layout as they travel through it. Spend enough hours in Vvardenfell and a player will no longer need a map or directions.
1 Elder Scrolls: Online (87 Hours)
87 hours is a lot of time to sink into a game, but that's how MMORPGs operate. While Elder Scrolls: Online launched in a rocky state, the developers quickly remedied all of its problems to turn it into one of the most successful free-to-play games in the genre. Anybody interested in investing time in an MMORPG without a subscription can't do much better than Elder Scrolls: Online.