Starfield

(Based on Patch 1.8.86) Pros

• Art design suitable for the concept of space exploration.

• Exceptional soundtrack quality.

• Large volume of game.

• Fresh new type of new game plus mode.

• Large selections of weapons.

• Significantly improved game engine.

• A procedural generation system that operates more naturally than other games.

Cons

• Boring main quests
• Not a good AI
• An uncertain game concept that is neither a space opera with a rich story nor an adventure where exploration is the main goal.

• Awkward character animation.

• Still bad optimization and frequent stuttering.

Conclusion The game that sparked doubts about the future of Xbox.

Starfield is a jack-of-all-trades and a master of none. It desperately needs an editor to cut through all the idealistic but useless features to remind the developers that quality always trumps quantity. A rich world and fantastic side quests clash with an uninspired main quest and a plethora of performance issues that render the game's push for exploration anything but. It's a mix of the studio's Skyrim with the genre-defining Mass Effect series, but never quite satisfies those itches and leaves the player thinking of stronger experiences. I ran into a plethora of issues from glitches to outright crashes, spent an inordinate amount of time troubleshooting issues I shouldn't be worried about on console, and doing my best to accept that Bethesda doesn't seem to care to learn from lessons that have hurt them for decades.

While Starfield seems stuck between generations and intentions, it's still fun (frustrating fun, sure, but fun nonetheless). Its side quests shine and its crisp combat only gets better the more skills you unlock. Character creation and crafting your journey are both solid in design and execution, and the game does reward your investment. With all my criticism, I am excited for the universe's future and the undoubted refinements to come, but quality control needs a firmer, more moderate hand.

Never before has a video game been able to give that sense of depth that space as a starfield can give. I'll say it right away for the most demanding, this is not a game that is worth its high expectations but it is so vast, complex and original that it is still worth a high rating and a purchase. Unfortunately, a fluctuating frame rate and 30fps resolution have weakened Starfield to the point of making some define it as a big disappointment, but that's not the case. Bethesda certainly promised something unattainable which was not achieved but the production remains solid, original and well studied, with an exaggerated amount of things to do and secondary missions to discover. Not excellent but certainly excellent, worth trying!

Starfield is a typical Bethesda game which is fine for 10+ years ago. I wanted to like it... I still want to like it but I can't. I can't entirely place my finger on all the issues. I can tell you several of them. The world is large and empty... really empty. Like I know you were "trying for boring" so we could experience what space is like. Well... let me say it is a video game! It isn't real life. It isn't supposed to be. May be try for quality over quantity in the next game.

The game starts slow. I would love to say it gets better but for the most part it doesn't. When you finally get to the part that starts explaining everything, the game is pretty much over. Not to forget to mention (at least for me) that the game got super buggy. Like crash on load screens (and there are way to many of those) and frame rate issues. Oh my ship didn't render properly for half the game so every cut scene showed me floating through space or hovering down to the planet. Once again many many many many many load screens. (I under exaggerate.) Like I play the game while doing other thing there are so many load screens.

When it does come down to the action, it is ok as a first person shooter aside from the AI ammo passing through solid objects and I really like the dogfighting but good luck trying to dogfight on the regular. As a RPG I didn't feel it. I just kept getting the feeling that I'm not improving my character as much as I am being less punished if I can just get the next level and then the next level comes and you are still bored.

Like seriously who played the game to be a space pirate. That was sure on my list of things to do and then came the bounties. Steal a ship worth 14k (3k after registration... why yes I'm sorry let me register my my pirate ship) and then 45k in bounties for stealing it. Aww I see Bethesda make sure you drain all the fun out of it.

Then there is their morality standards... not sure what they are since I accrued fines for nothing multiple times through the game. Bounty system broken. Sneak system... is there a real one? Morality harping from story line character. (Hint Bethesda this is a role playing game. I play with different morality laws based on my role and you pulled me right out of role playing with your game.)

Don't get me wrong I put hours into the game with hopes that I would like it more but every time I started to think it was getting better the game just stopped me and was like 'NO'.

If you are a hardcore Bethesda fan then play the game. You might like it. If you didn't care for their previous work, run cause this is one of their worst so far considering how far technology and gaming have come. I played the game on game pass. I bought it for a month. I am glad I didn't buy the game. Don't. It is worth 1 month of game pass. Play it. Push through it if you can and drop it and forget about it like so many other are doing.

Oh Bethesda how far you have fallen or is it your Microsoft overlords? We may never know now.

It has been 1 month and 26 days since the release of Starfield, and in that time, I have logged 6 days with a total of 144 hours, give or take.

Now after the debacle of Fallout 76 it was important that Bethesda had a win in a major way for this title, and with all the time I logged I can confidently say it's kinda better?... ya that's what I want to say better.

Oh, Bethesda, Bethesda. What happened to you? Why have you become so lazy and complacent?

I'll start with the good...

The game is pretty and has a lot of interesting things to look at and explore, good questlines (sometiems), and ya, you know there are guns and then space guns... and I can't keep up this charade.

Starfield is the biggest game with the most restrictions I have ever played! Soo many game mechanics and decisions are made in this game purely for the sake of wasting your time!

The story is boring, uninteresting, and dull, and the writing here is just as bad. Admittedly, some questlines were interesting, but everything always just led to "Is that it? Oh, ok." Then this games "ending" is the biggest slap in the face I've felt from a games conclusion. I would give details on it, but to avoid spoilers, all I'll say is completely unsatisfactory.

All this sucks because the game is actually fun. The gunplay, the guns, and the ships. I can't begin to describe how many hours I've spent building and customizing my ship.

But the games' starkingly surprising limitations hold back everything. Also please Bethesda PLEASE dump this engine! It's time to put it to rest.

Yet still, for some inexplicable reason, this game receives high praise and scores! How? Why? The game has the worst ui, maps, and downright stupid enemy npcs.

Character customization is good, but clothing is extremely limiting in variety. There's basically one style and almost no women's apparel. This leads to another complaint: Why is there like no fashion for women in this game? Even when I want to role-play going out with my companion wife, I can't dress her up because there's absolutely no style for women, and that lack of variety led into many of my other role-playing experiences.

Finally, I'll speak about characters. They are ok. They are all just not at all well written. Now if like me you choose to take on a female companion as a wife, then get ready to be criticized for almost every little thing you do or don't do! If you want to be a space pirate, then you'll be hated. Unless I was Mr. Perfect all the time, I would hear about it from Sarah. There is no companion who is like down for anything or everything. It's just another limitation and lack of variety in personalities.

I'm sure there are plenty of other mechanics and systems in this game I'm forgetting to mention, but honestly, I'm tired and a little disappointed to review this any further.

I really wanted to love this game being the massive Bethesda fan I am, but because of the games limitations, restrictions, lack of variety, and subpar writing, it detracts from the experience. Though even after all that, I can not deny the amount of fun I did have, and the game does contain that Bethesda charm, so for that, I can be a bit lenient. But Bethesda, you have used up the last of my good graces. You are better than this. You have done better, and you should do better. So please, please don't screw up Elder Scrolls VI.

Final score: 6/10 3/5

Played on Xbox Series X and PC.