Daggerfall Retrospective Recalls Arena's Rough 1994 Launch
Designer Ted Peterson says game stores cancelled orders after Bethesda missed Arena's ship date, in a Time Extension piece on Daggerfall.
A Time Extension retrospective on the making of Daggerfall includes designer Ted Peterson recalling the difficult launch of The Elder Scrolls: Arena in 1994, according to pcgamer.com. Peterson, a designer on the first two Elder Scrolls games, said the game had trouble selling copies when it arrived that year.
Peterson attributed part of the problem to timing: game stores cancelled orders after Bethesda failed to ship The Elder Scrolls: Arena on time, he said in the retrospective.
He also recalled an early sales comparison from the same period. A retail pack for Terminator 2029 that required owning the original game shipped more copies early on than The Elder Scrolls: Arena did, according to Peterson.
The Elder Scrolls: Arena reached shelves in 1994. At the time, PC Gamer reviewer Andy Butcher gave the game an 87 in his review.
Bethesda in the early 1990s
Before The Elder Scrolls, Bethesda was known in the early 1990s for sports games including Wayne Gretzky Hockey 3 and Gridiron!, and the company was hired by Electronic Arts to help finish John Madden Football. Bethesda president Christopher Weaver told PC Gamer in a November 1995 interview that the company was in unknown territory with Arena. Bethesda later sued Electronic Arts after EA failed to publish a promised rerelease of Gridiron!.
Quick answers
When did The Elder Scrolls: Arena launch?
The Elder Scrolls: Arena arrived on shelves in 1994.
Why did the game have trouble selling at launch?
According to designer Ted Peterson, game stores cancelled orders after Bethesda failed to ship The Elder Scrolls: Arena on time.
Where did Ted Peterson discuss the launch?
In a Time Extension retrospective on the making of Daggerfall.