Xbox CEO plays Elder Scrolls VI as union protests layoffs outside Bethesda

Xbox CEO Asha Sharma visited Bethesda's Rockville, Maryland, headquarters on August 11, 2026, for a live playthrough of the highly anticipated The Elder Scrolls VI, while unionized workers staged a protest outside the office to highlight recent layoffs. The demonstration, organized by the Communications Workers of America and the OneBGS union, featured a giant inflatable rat and hundreds of small red flags planted in the ground, each representing a worker laid off by Microsoft in its recent restructuring.

Sharma shared her impressions of the game on social media, writing, "Live playthrough of The Elder Scrolls VI this morning. The scale and grandeur are incredible. The story is even greater." Her post included eight asterisks following the game's title, which many speculated could be a cryptic clue to the game's subtitle. The official Bethesda Game Studios account responded, thanking her for the visit and her kind words.

The protest was timed to coincide with Sharma's visit. According to a statement from Nathan Hahn, a technical producer at Bethesda and a CWA member, the union decided to "make our presence visible at the office to show how our developers have been impacted by...