The Elder Scrolls: Legends will be swapping development teams entirely, according to a statement to IGN from Bethesda. The original developer, Dire Wolf Digital, will be transitioned off of the project and replaced by Dropzone developer Sparkypants Studios.

Bethesda is, of course, still publishing the game, as well as assisting directly with the transition. Bethesda’s Pete Hines tells me that they’ve essentially already “been developing this new version of Legends for months under Bethesda’s guidance and direction.”

A sneak peak at The Elder Scrolls: Legends' redesigned play area.

While Hines says the transition won’t result in a complete and drastic overhaul of Legends, it will bring an entirely new client made by Sparkypants, a refresh of the UI, menus, and visuals, and the ability for the development team to iterate better to address balance issues and community requests faster. You can take a first peak at part of the redesigned board above.

Hines says 'Legends is a very strong game with a lot of untapped potential.'

A lot will change, but the game will still be the Legends people know at its core, as Hines says “I think the overall game design and mechanics are solid, and that’s not changing.” He also explained that “When players get their hands on the new version it will still play like the game they know and love. Their collections will be intact, the in-game store will offer the same items, the keywords and mechanics will all still be there.”

Hines says he sees the decision to switch teams as “an opportunity to alter the direction” of the game and what it could be in the future rather than a comment on its current quality, saying that “Legends is a very strong game with a lot of untapped potential.”

An early look at the The Elder Scrolls: Legends' new main menu.

He also stated clearly that this was not because Bethesda was unhappy with the work of Dire Wolf Digital, saying “Dire Wolf made an excellent game in Legends.” He maintained that this decision was “more about the future and where we are headed.”

Dire Wolf Digital is also developing their own digital CCG called Eternal, though Hines tells me that didn’t have anything to do with the decision to part ways with them either. However, he did admit that “having a singular focus from our new team will only help the game.”

Hines is optimistic about the transition, saying “it’s a really exciting time for Legends,” and explaining that we’ll see more of whats new coming to the game at the Bethesda E3 show.

You can read our full Q&A about the the developer swap below, as well as watch our original review of The Elder Scrolls: Legends.

IGN: First off, why change development teams?

Pete Hines, Bethesda: We feel like Legends is a very strong game with a lot of untapped potential. We have a passionate and dedicated community that isn’t shy about expressing their requests and things they want to see changed. We have a similar vision for the direction of the game and what it could be moving forward. This was an opportunity to alter the direction and foster a community that wants to see the game succeed as much as we do.

Were you unhappy with the results or direction Dire Wolf Digital was taking Legends?

No, not at all. I think Dire Wolf made an excellent game in Legends that people have really enjoyed. It's won game of the year awards and has been praised by the community. This is more about the future and where we are headed.

Did the fact that Dire Wolf is also developing a competing digital CCG with Eternal have anything to do with this decision?

No, but having a singular focus from our new team will only help the game.

I can’t think of many examples of a live game completely changing hands like this, what are the challenges involved in a switch of this scale?

Well, we have essentially been developing this new version of Legends for months under Bethesda’s guidance and direction. Sparkypants has engineered a brand-new client from the ground up. This will allow us to do a lot of the things we felt were important down the road, such as the flexibility to iterate more quickly, add new features, bug fix, and make changes to cards at a much faster pace. You can see we’ve hinted at some of the changes and features we'll be talking about at E3 and throughout the rest of the year. It’s a really exciting time for Legends!

Will it be hard for a new team to jump in and start working with unfamiliar assets/balance challenges/design philosophies? Is the plan to have them drastically shake these things up?

There will certainly be challenges, no question. But the core of the game is there and is very, very good. That said, we’re taking this opportunity to refresh a bunch of elements, like visuals, UI, menus, and so forth. But we don’t want to stop there. We want to continue iterating and improving on all aspects of the game going forward. I think the overall game design and mechanics are solid, and that’s not changing. When players get their hands on the new version it will still play like the game they know and love. Their collections will be intact, the in-game store will offer the same items, the keywords and mechanics will all still be there.

So, I don't know about "drastically shake things up" as much as refining the experience, responding to community requests, balancing the meta, and continuing to push out new content that changes and evolves the game over time.

Why choose Sparkypants Studios to take over?

We chose Sparkypants because they are a really talented team of developers. They have tons of experience across multiple genres and are continuing to build an outstanding team we think will do great things with Legends. They’ve been fantastic to work with and they’re just down the road from us which certainly helps when it comes to a transition of this magnitude.

What’s the overall goal behind this transition? What do you hope it will do for Legends?

I’ve touched on this already, but it’s really about laying the foundation for the future. We think Legends is a world-class strategic card game that offers content for every type of player, from casual to hardcore to people who just want to experience an awesome single-player adventure in the Elder Scrolls universe. We want to build on that foundation at a faster pace and allow the game room to grow and evolve with the community, regardless of platform.

What’s the roadmap for Legends look like going forward? Are you still planning on doing regular content expansions and the like?

Absolutely. This is obviously something we've had in the works for a while and part of a plan to make Legends move more quickly going forward. We want to be more responsive, quicker to add new features and functionality, add new content at a predictable cadence, and so forth.

Tom Marks is IGN's PC Editor and pie maker. You can follow him on Twitter.