‘Skyrim’ DLC Release Date: What Will ‘Dawnguard’ Mean For The Upcoming Content, Return To Oblivion?

Fans of Bethesda's newest addition to the Elder Scrolls series Skyrim have been anticipating a downloadable content package since the game's November release. Although the never-ending game offers many side missions and quests to explore in addition to the main objective, for many players the story has just begun.

Bethesda excited fans when it revealed that an announcement would be coming this week, posting a screenshot on the company's official Twitter. But the game publisher was referring to a trailer launch for Dishonored, not Skyrim DLC. But the company has been assuring fans that the new content is on the way. On Monday, a fan tweeted at the account asking if the Kinect reveal was the only surprise in store for fans.

Stay tuned! was Bethesda's vague yet somewhat promising response.

The speculations began to brew when the company filed a patent for the term Dawnguard at the end of March. Dawn Guards are characters that appear in a previous Elder Scrolls game called Oblivion, and are members of the game's Mythic Dawn cult.

The first DLC pack is said to be exclusive to the Xbox 360, but no official release date nor any other information has been revealed. Some evidence insinuates that a Thalmor conspiracy could play a major role in the plot, or an additional island continent in Morrowind known as Vvardenfell could be involved.

Xbox Magazine says Dawnguard seems to be a perfect fit for Bethesda's next expansion.

But Dawnguard does seem an appropriate title for an 'Elder Scrolls' product, pointing as it does to the Order of the Mythic Dawn, a shadowy group of demon-worshippers thought extinct by Skyrim's timeline, the Xbox news site wrote.

If the upcoming DLC is centered on the Dawn Guards, what does this mean for Skyrim? For those who haven't played previous titles, the cult creatures appear when completing the quest Pieces of the Past. Dressed in red robes, the Order intends to further the ends of Mehrunes Dagon, which are to turn the mortal realm into hiw own personal treehouse, clad with elf-skin curtains and a rope ladder crafted from human bones. In Oblivion, players needed to persuade Dagon to relinquish his claim on Tamriel using violent means. The Order of the Mythic Dawn was then destroyed in the process, but their writings still remain.

This means that the DLC package could possibly include trips to Oblivion, Xbox Magazine writes. Oblivion is split into various realms, and the one that Dagon inhabits is called the Deadlands, a sea of lava with speckled with spiky towers. This would mean gamers can look forward to some tower ascent missions and perhaps an encounter with Dagon's pet, the Daedric Siege Crawler.

Some have also predicted that the new DLC will include new abilities, such as dragon mounts, according to NowGamer. Toward the end of the main Skyrim story, Dovakhiin jumps on the back of a dragon known as Odahviing and flies to battle Skyrim's final boss. This could point to more dragon mounts in the DLC , which would make the world of Skyrim even more exciting.

It is unclear exactly what the DLC will include until Bethesda makes the big announcement, but players are sure to be anticipating the release.