The next Fallout game from Bethesda will hopefully be a two-to-five hour, linear, on-rails ‘aim for you’ shooter with a bit of story, but most of the story will be comic relief rather than a more series take on a post-apocalyptic world.
Wait Blizzard isn’t making the next Fallout? It’s still Bethesda so I don’t have to massively lower my expectation and will still likely get a game that reflects previous quality deliveries from the studio? Sweet.
Hardcore Casual 
Only problem is you will get the only game Bethesda knows how to make. I wonder if they will have a cool assassins guild you can join, or maybe even a quest where you become a vampire.
Like wondering if the next FF with have a character called Cid or crystals?
Yeah, I get your point. I think it mainly bugged me because it spanned from TES to the Fallout world. A little “one trick pony.”
To me Fallout and TES feel completely different, and I love how Bethesda jumps from one IP to the other. Just as I’ve got my fix of fantasy, here comes some Sci-Fi with FPS gameplay. And when I’m good with that, back comes some more traditional fantasy and less FPS-ish combat.
Now both IPs are open-world RPG-style games with repeating tropes/themes, but I’ll never complain about getting more of those from Bethesda. Hell, the LAST thing I want them to do is ‘branch out’ and attempt something different, like an MMO…
Now back to the main point of your post, I agree, Blizzard is quickly eroding their IPs and reputation.
I’m immensely glad Bethesda will make Fallout 4 be Fallout, and not try to Break New Ground. Bethesda’s recipe works well, and the make exactly the games I want to play (then mod and play again; repeat this cycle probably a dozen times over the years).
And like you, Syncaine, I love how they alternate between TES and FO. Its good to get both sci fi and fantasy in turn, and as both use the same base engine modders can get a head start each time bringing content forwards.
I don’t mind at all that they have “traditional” content: when you’re building games with _this much_ content, there’s going to be some well travelled roads repeated. Some becomes sort of traditional, a homage to prior titles.
They’re exactly what I want them to be, and I can’t wait. Let someone else make a Shiny New Thing, TES and FO are awesome and unique in the gaming world.