Microsoft has confirmed last week's rumor that it will host an online event with Bethesda Softworks in June, announcing that the Xbox and Bethesda Games Showcase will take place on Sunday, June 13 at 10 a.m. PT/ET.

The event is technically an Xbox event, as Microsoft has invested $7.5 billion in Bethesda's parent company, ZeniMax Media, in 2020. However, Bethesda has always had a strong solo presence during the E3 season, and 2021 could be one of the biggest shows in years. Rumors abound that this year will see the long-awaited sci-fi RPG Starfield announced in some form: late 2022 is the most likely guess, but some sort of release target (and hopefully gameplay) could be shared much sooner, even if E3, in its slightly confusing current form, is "the only place where the game will be released." is the natural home for that kind of big reveal, and dropping such a bomb during an Xbox conference would be a real power move by Microsoft.

And in case there were any doubts about Starfield's potential at the Xbox event, industry analyst DomsPlaying noticed this:

Here is the original header image from Xbox Wire:

During the 90-minute event Of course, Starfield is not the only game that will be on display at the According to Microsoft, there will also be details about other games coming out of the Bethesda partnership, as well as details about "great games coming to Xbox this holiday season, including those coming out on Xbox Game Pass."

The addition of the Xbox and Bethesda events will make June even more crowded (it was already terribly crowded); the June 13 date falls right in the middle of E3 (also online only), which runs from June 12-15 this year, and Geoff Keighley's Summer Game Fest just three days later, and one day after Ubisoft Forward. Also taking place in June are the PC Gaming Show and the Future Games Show. Fortunately, we have the entire E3 2021 schedule to keep track of.

The Xbox and Bethesda Games showcases will be streamed on Twitch, YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook.