Bethesda’s latest RPG,Starfield, has been watched keenly by the gaming community for some years now. Departing from the typicalFalloutandElder Scrollsfranchises,Starfieldmarks an entirely new IP for Bethesda, taking the player on a journey across space rather than a nuclear wasteland or fantasy continent. With a lot of fans having high expectations forStarfield,Bethesda has been hard at work ensuring that the game has enough ambition and scope to meet those expectations, as shown by its first proper gameplay reveal in June.
Starfieldshowed off its first few minutes of gameplay at the2022 Xbox and Bethesda Games Showcase, including a look at some of the game’s combat, a glimpse at the story, and plenty more for fans to get hyped over. With everything described by Bethesda Director Todd Howard and shown in multiple pieces of in-game footage,Starfieldlooks to be an expansive title, likely giving players hundreds of things to do across countless hours of content.
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However, for some, the ambition ofStarfieldis going too far, especially when it comes to how many planets will be available to explore. Todd Howard stated that there will beover 100 solar systems and 1000+ planets to explore inStarfield. To some, this is an exciting prospect, but to others, it indicates a potential lack of human touch on the level design ofStarfield, as it is highly unlikely that Bethesda hand-crafted over 1,000 planets.
The problem for those againstStarfield’s1,000 planets stems from procedural generation, which can mean that rather than a dozen or so planets that feel like meaningful, detailed worlds, the AI generation required to make hundreds and hundreds of spaces will leave them feeling less compelling. Many criticizedNo Man’s Skywhen it first launched for similar problems, with the game’s many planets feeling devoid of life and diversity. Even some prominent figures in the gaming industry have shown their leeriness for procedural generation and “massive game spaces,” with formerDragon AgeLead Writer David Gaiderspeaking on the matter in a recent tweet.
Even with the promise of over 1,000 planets to explore, it is unlikely that the level of detail will be spread equally amongStarfield’sworlds. Some, like the world of Jemison, clearly have some more focus placed on them. It is possible thatStarfieldcould takeinfluence fromMass Effect 2as well, allowing the player to explore planets but with only a limited area that is playable. Either way, fans will be able to find out howStarfield’splanets work when the game finally launches.
Starfieldis scheduled to release in early 2023 on PC and Xbox Series X/S.
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