Bethesda Softworks is an American game publisher.
Formed in 1986 under the wing of ZeniMax Media, Bethesda Softworks was created as a video game developer who self-published its titles. In 2001, Bethesda Softworks created a new branch, Bethesda Game Studios, and became only a publisher.
Bethesda Softworks boasts a number of both its own IPs and acquired property. The main focus of the studio is the open-world role-playing games, such as Fallout and The Elder Scrolls and military shooters like Wolfenstein and Doom. Most of the games published by Bethesda are the in-house production by its Game Studios or acquired ones, like MachineGames, id Software, and Arkane Studios.
Bethesda Softworks does not release a lot of titles annually, instead focusing on the quality of their games and the support of their existing titles by releasing expansions on a monthly basis.
The company is often criticized for the number of DLC packs released.