Bethesda talks about Starfield like no RPG has come out since Oblivion.
Starfield is Bethesda’s next major RPG. It is similar to The Elder Scrolls or Fallout but in space. We haven’t seen much yet, which is a concern considering it’s due to arrive on PC and Xbox Series X/S in November. However, Bethesda released a quick roundtable video with developers discussing the game. While I understand that any developer would be excited about what it offers, the way they discuss common RPG features in 2022 sets the expectation that Starfield will be like every other Bethesda title since The Elder Scrolls Oblivion.
The five-and-half-minute video features Game Director Todd Howard, Design Director Emil Pagliarulo, Lead Quest Designer Will Shen, and Lead Artist Istvan Pely all talking about their goals and ambitions for Starfield. It’s got many marketing buzzwords; RPG developers love to tout out in 2022. Talking about “immersion”, “giant open universe”, and how video games are capital B better than other media because you don’t follow the “dotted line”.
The group then discusses the various factions that the player might encounter and possibly side within the game, including a corpo-style team and space pirates. They even discuss how a player can be a double agent and report pirates to police if they consider themselves a “good” person. Mkay.
To make it positive, I will say that I like Howard’s quote about how RPGs such as Starfield are so meaningful to players because they care less about what the developer is creating and more about what they create in their heads and project into the game world. It led to conversations about companions and persuasion, and relationship building. That’s the kind of shit I hope to see in Starfield. It then veered off into discussing Starfield as if nothing else has done that. This means having a dialogue where there’s no “right” way to talk and situations that feel flexible and not restrictive.
My problem is Cyberpunk2077. I remember it as a game I was hesitant to play, but I now realize that many of its systemic problems were because it felt like an isolated, almost closed-off video game developed over the years. Even though games from years ago had solved the same issues, it felt like it was still trying to figure out the solutions. Bethesda presents many but not remarkable concepts as big leaps forward. Maybe they are.
Starfield isn’t a surprise if you compare it to BioWare, CD Projekt Red and Larian Studios. This sounds more like what RPG enthusiasts expect. Eight months into the game, we haven’t seen much. I hope that this will be an opportunity for Bethesda to review how they talk about it and start showing more than just telling.
