Oblivion Remastered’s “physical” console releases will “require content download,” and fans of the RPG aren’t happy: “Why make something physical that still requires a download?”

It’s been a good four months since Bethesda Game Studios released the much-anticipated RPG remaster, The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered, but recent Steam reviews have turned to “Mixed”-and now, a physical edition is being released that isn’t actually a physical copy at all.

Fans noticed last month that descriptions for the physical edition of Oblivion Remastered had changed. They now state the game is just a code inside a box, not a traditional disc – a situation many gaming communities are facing as physical copies become less common. Talk about the game not actually being physical has started up again recently.

It appears Bethesda has changed the packaging for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S versions of the game, as TweakTown noticed. The new box art includes a warning stating that each copy “requires content download.” This suggests a mandatory download from the internet, but it’s currently unknown if this applies to the bonus content – which needs a separate app to access – or something else. We’ll likely have a clearer picture once the physical copies are released.

Although physical copies for consoles won’t be available until October 13, players are expressing their disappointment – similar to how they reacted in September when it was revealed that the physical edition of Oblivion Remastered might just be a boxed code. They are sharing their concerns widely online. A recent discussion on Reddit brings these feelings to light, with one user questioning, “Why create a physical product if it still requires a download?” Many others echo this sentiment.

One user commented, “Typical Bethesda, typical Microsoft,” criticizing the practice of not including everything on the game disc. Some players are hoping the “required” download is simply extra content, like downloadable content (DLC): “Isn’t this just a download required for the DLC content (as in armour add-ons etc)?” For now, we won’t know for sure until physical copies of Oblivion Remastered are released later this month.

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2025-10-03 15:30