It’s not an exaggeration to say thatStarfieldis one of the most contentious AAA games of the past few years. Much like when opinions were split over the hotly anticipatedThe Last of Us 2,Starfield’s public reception seems to oscillate between love and hate, with very few stances falling in the middle ground. Such strife has called into question Bethesda Game Studios' ability as a developer, as well as the validity of certain game design choices in general.
Starfieldmay not be terrible, but it has certainly been enhanced by post-launch updates. Perhaps the most substantial content drop was the REV-8, which deftly and appropriately addresses the problems of slow and arduous planetary exploration; REV-8 being a free update for the game certainly helped as well. Then, there was the 60FPS patch for Xbox Series X, which further polished the experience and staunched criticisms about poor optimization, which seem to follow BGS games wherever they go. It would be nice to say that the more prestigious and costlyShattered SpaceDLC attracted the same praise, but this is sadly not the case. Learning from this dichotomy could be the key toStarfield’s continued growth, and perhaps even redemption in the eyes of its detractors.
Starfield May Want to Grow Incrementally, Like Minecraft
Whether it was fair or not, many gamers viewedShattered Spaceas similar tosomething likeCyberpunk 2077’sPhantom LibertyDLC, orNo Man’s Sky’s many revolutionary updates. That is to say, there was an expectation thatShattered Spacewould redefineStarfield’s legacy, sanding down the game’s rougher edges, implementing fundamentally different gameplay and quality-of-life features, and just generally bringing the game closer to what audiences had in mind ahead of its release.
This wasn’t really the case, ultimately. One can debate the merits ofShattered Spaceas much as they like, but the truth is that it was not a revolutionary update. It wasn’t joined by, say, a total overhaul of the game’s progression system, likePhantom Liberty, nor did it institute major new features likeNo Man’s Sky’s free DLCs. Rather, it was more akin to a mission pack, with a few new pieces of gear and a smattering of fresh side content. But it wasstill moreStarfield, not fully addressing or fixing what many viewed to be major shortcomings.
In terms of optics, the fact thatShattered Spaceis a premium-priced DLC, when more dramatic content drops like the REV-8 were released for free, certainly didn’t help manage player expectations for the expansion.
Smaller, Steadier Updates Could Be a Better Fit for Starfield
Starfieldobviously has regular maintenance patches, fixing specific bugs and the like, but its bigger, more noticeable updates have been positioned as big events. Sometimes, like in the case of the REV-8, the updates live up to this lofty expectation, but other times, like withShattered Space, they just don’t. Thus, launching these updates as smaller, more regularly paced patches could wind up being better for both the game and its community.
Minecraftmay serve as a good blueprint in this regard. Known as a game that is “never finished,“Minecraftreceives regular updates with new content, like biomes, creatures, and resources, that meaningfully change the gameplay experience. The cadence of the updates has slowed over the past few years, but in the mid-2010s, the game saw as many as three a year. Naturally,Starfieldwon’t beas ever-evolving asMinecraft, but launching many smaller updates rather than just a few over-hyped ones could be the key to its longevity, helping to improve the state of things over time while effectively managing expectations.
Starfield
WHERE TO PLAY
Starfield is the first new universe in 25 years from Bethesda Game Studios, the award-winning creators of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and Fallout 4. In this next generation role-playing game set amongst the stars, create any character you want and explore with unparalleled freedom as you embark on an epic journey to answer humanity’s greatest mystery.The year is 2330. Humanity has ventured beyond our solar system, settling new planets, and living as a spacefaring people. From humble beginnings as a space miner, you will join Constellation – the last group of space explorers seeking rare artifacts throughout the galaxy – and navigate the vast expanse of the Settled Systems in Bethesda Game Studios’ biggest and most ambitious game.
