Since debuting with Arena in 1994, the series has produced a total of five main games (of which the last three have each featured two or three expansions) as well as several spin-offs. A common theme in the lore is that a chosen hero rises to defeat an incoming threat, usually a malevolent being or an antagonistic army. The continent is split into a number of provinces inhabited by humans and popular humanoid fantasy races such as elves, orcs and anthropomorphic animals. The setting combines pre-medieval real-world elements, such as a powerful Roman-like Empire, with high fantasy medieval tropes, including limited technology, widespread magic use, and the existence of many mythological creatures. Within the series' fictional universe, each game takes place on the continent of Tamriel.

The series has sold more than 58 million copies worldwide. Morrowind, Oblivion and Skyrim all won Game of the Year awards from multiple outlets.

The series focuses on free-form gameplay in a detailed open world. The Elder Scrolls is a series of action role-playing video games primarily developed by Bethesda Game Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks. MS-DOS, Microsoft Windows, Xbox, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, N-Gage, J2ME, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, macOS, Nintendo Switch, Android, iOS, Stadia, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S