When Was Daggerfall Released, Really?

This is a story about one person's obsession with what should have been a simple bit of information. The pursuit of that information ended up going down the rabbit hole of the internet, dating back to more than 25 years ago. This discoveries gained along the way were simply too good a story not to share.

Sources Doc:

#daggerfall

0:00 Intro - What does it mean to be right?
2:03: A simple task, a trivial mistake.
3:52 What is a “release date?”
4:45 Wikipedia
5:45 OGR
9:32 Next Gen Online
11:37 Print Magazines
17:00 Judgment - What is the real date?
17:40 Where did it all start?
18:30 The UESP
22:23 Daggerfall’s 15th Anniversary
24:11 Metacritic - An Intriguing Pattern
27:06 Gamespot - A Revelation
29:39 Why the change? - A Theory
33:15 Closing Thoughts
34:39 Acknowledgements

[DoubleNegative]

UPDATED INFORMATION:

The release date shown on the main Daggerfall page of UESP has now been changed! The discussion on the topic was opened within A FEW HOURS of the video being posted, and the change was made LESS THAN 24 HOURS LATER!

Vindication tastes pretty sweet, I have to say.

As if that wasn't enough, a viewer---who also happens to be a longstanding, well regarded member of the TES community---granted my other wish. They sent me an archived copy of the 08/28/96 press release!

To summarize, it states definitively that Daggerfall would "arrive in stores in late September, three weeks later than previously scheduled." Three weeks later than the previously set date of August 30 is PRECISELY September 20. Bethesda actually cited two reasons for the delay. One was to have extra time to work out the major bugs, which had been reported by the news outlets I mentioned in the video. The other reason they gave was because, "The level of initial consumer demand has taken Bethesda by surprise. The initial build of product was supposed to be a two months supply, but the entire inventory has been depleted in the first week of orders." They go on to say that retail stores had to be put "on allocation, " so that the unanticipated quantity of preorders could be prioritized.

This does paint a slightly different picture than what I may have implied. The final delay was not simply a result of Bethesda needing more time than they thought in order to finish the game. Clearly there was some of that, but it's not the whole story. A big reason was perfectly legitimate production delays, caused by the apparently unimaginable number of orders that had to be filled before the game could be sent to retailers.

I would have absolutely loved to have included that bit in the video, and it's a shame I couldn't. But at least it's out there now.

For anyone who would like to read the full press release, I have included a link below. I will also be adding it to the Sources Doc.

[смрш]

It's clearly just a dragon break, don't question it

[kevnar]

I remember following this game's development for months. I remember getting so frickin' insanely hyped when the release date was approaching. I remember going down to the game store after work on the reported release date. I remember going home empty handed, in agony after being told the game hasn't released yet. I remember going back to that store every day for weeks, asking the poor guy if it was out yet, like a nagging little kid in the back seat during a road trip. Finally, weeks later, I got a copy in my hands, and my brain nearly exploded as I rushed home to install it, reading the game manual on the bus.

So yeah, this all checks out.

[OnceLostGames]

Good thing we absolutely, without a doubt, never ever, certainly did not celebrate the anniversary on the wrong day, no sir. Great job investigating this and getting to the (probable) root of the problem!

[BobofWOGGLE]

Saw somebody posting old usenet archives, one including Todd Howard in August '95 telling some poor fool "Daggerfall should be out by Christmas."

That got a chuckle out of me.

[seraaron]

It's kinda humbling and also weirdly relieving to know that even in the 90s game delays were a frequent occurrence, Bethesda's track record notwithstanding.

[Jwlar]

Oh man, is actually noticed this when researching the magazine reviews and old websites myself a while back, but I just put it down to regional differences and editorial mistakes.

Great job clearing it all up!

[TarceGaming]

How fitting of an elder scrolls game release date needing a lore dive to sift past all of the contradictory statements about some crazy event in history. Daggerfalls release is a dragon break in itself I guess 😂

[Matakshaman]

Not the lore I expected, but certainly important Daggerfall lore.

[efjay]

The Warp in the Web! Thanks for sharing this interesting event

[GMPisReal]

Double Negative: *says Wikipedia isn't to be taken at face value*
Also Double Negative: *proves Wikipedia is more accurate than Bethesda themselves*

[badernera]

Maybe the real release date is the friends we made along the way

[mr.potato]

A discussion has already been started on UESP to change the release date.

[seancdaug]

I have to wonder if, when GameSpot redesigned their site in the early 2000s, they moved to a database backend that required an exact release date. Since the original page only listed a release month, someone might have just fudged the day, figuring that they'd move it back to the last day of the preceding month for uncertain dates. That's exactly the sort of logic I'd have used as a programmer, frankly, when you don't have the luxury of modifying your platform nor the time to research more precise information

[ToxicToastur]

Been a long time watcher/listener and it's good to see another video. This new style is just as good as all your other content. Keep up the good work!

[AWACS_Snowblind]

I can't wait for you to hit 100k one day. I hope you enjoy making videos and the stress of deadlines doesn't get to you often, I believe in you, you're one of my favorites :D

[SaeedAhmed-lntd]

This was fun to watch actually, Detective Double Negative. Appreciate your enthusiasm.

[corentinlamy]

Oh god I just posted a long ass comment but he got immediately deleted. Maybe because there were URL in it?

Anyway. I just wanted to say that your video is brillant, and so funny for me on so many levels.

First, as a game journalist and a die hard Daggerfall fan, I did the same research last year for an article in the magazine "JV" (I also did a similar research about Arena's release date for "Le Monde" a few years ago, but that's a different story), but I gave up long before I could find with an absolute certainty the exact date. All I was able to find is that Daggerfall was released "circa September 21st" - close enough! For some reason, it always drove me nuts that nobody cares to check if the release date of "August 31st" was legit. Including people at Bethesda, who should know better.

But if your video really blew my mind, it's because it made me realize... that several years ago, I was also culprit of perpetuating this fake release date! Back then, I was the creator and the main contributor of a french website about Elder Scrolls lore, and I first used the "August 31st" date in January 2006... seven months before the UESP did! I don't know where I found this date - on Gamespot I suppose, but I really can't be sure.

Anyway, thanks for this great video. I'd be glad to provide some links (and to discuss Arena's release date), feel free to contact me.

[TheBlaiit]

What an amazing video! It’s a great example of how to dig into history, no matter how trivial the topic may be. Also shows how much burden is placed on the person, who is challenging the already etashblished understanding of a subject.
Enjoyed the vid and I also wish you luck on your next endeavour, whatever it may be :)

[javdgevsv]

Since DN took the Sep 20th date from Wikipedia and the Wikipedia article was previously changed by someone from Aug 31 to Sep 20 does that mean that DN is the 2nd person to go down this rabbit hole?