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Why is Starfield Such a Divisive Game?

Why is there such a divide in opinion on Bethesda's massive sci-fi RPG?

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gamingbolt.com
shinoff2183908d ago

I bought a series x finally specifically for this game. It didn't live up to my expectations, lacking lore, exploration, some other things I don't care to get into. Anyway I think some like it cause they genuinely liked it, some like it because they had to save face. It's clear from the game in my 25 30 hours of playing before deciding to wait, that it needed more time in the oven. There's no way around it. I'm willing to wait, it is what it is and I've got a backlog from hell(in a good way). I'm also sure some of us ps guys are hating on it but that goes full circle for every game released on every console lol. Id also like to point out though it was xbox users and pc users killing the game to. Some really enjoyed it and some expected more(not as bad as cyberpunk but bethesada set our expectations high).

It'll get better with time just like the big names before it, nms(maybe not as big as the others but still) , and cyberpunk. I'd bet my dollar on that atleast. I'm looking forward to playing at some point atleast.

porkChop908d ago

I really like the game, I just think it needs some QoL updates to really make the game shine. There's just a bunch of little annoyances that hold the experience back for me. But I'd poured over 300 hours into it before deciding to wait for patches, and I still felt like I was just scratching the surface. There's so much content in the game, and there's a ton of potential to build on with updates and expansions.

Armaggedon907d ago

Downvoted to hell for liking the game.lol

907d ago
sagapo907d ago

Yeah, I’ve waited with NMS for 2 years after getting it day 1. Waited with Cyberpunk until v1.6. Still waiting for Starfield to shape up, haven’t bought it yet.

gigoran8906d ago

TBH i must have been extremely lucky with cyberpunk. From day 1, 50+ hour playthrough, and the only bug I got was a t pose from one of the guards at the entrance to setup the ending. loved it from day 1, and it only got better as the years went on.

Christopher908d ago

It's not divisive. People's opinions of the game are divisive. Why? Because people have trouble accepting opinions for specific games. The game could be any other game by Bethesda of a similar quality and it would be just as 'divisive'.

BrainSyphoned907d ago

There was only one other Bethesda Studios "dream game" released at the quality level of Starfield and 76 twas its name.

Flawlessmic907d ago (Edited 907d ago )

Simply comes down to, for years it was hyped as game of the generation without doubt, then it came it out and it was so far from game of the generation it wasnt even close to game of the year.

For a next gen game hyped to the heavens it simply played and looked like a last gen game.

Not a bad game but not great game and for starfield being middling just isn't good enough.

I played a good 30+ hrs then stopped, I'm waiting for a few more QOL patches to come through before jumping back in.

Unfortunantly the constant loading screens can't be fixed, hope bethesda ditch this crappy engine for the next elder scrolls although I'd say there are better chances of pigs plying then that happening

Crows90907d ago

We've been hoping for that since after oblivion

porkChop906d ago

"hope bethesda ditch this crappy engine for the next elder scrolls"

If they do that the game would need a lot more dev time or wouldn't have nearly the amount of content and quests. People don't seem to understand why Bethesda uses that engine, it's what makes their style of games even possible.

I had watched a YT video a year or two ago that explained it. He went into each engine and programmed the same quest. It took just 6 minutes in the Creation Engine vs (iirc) more than a day in UE5.

A lot of what makes Bethesda games different are only possible because of that engine and its tools. It's also significantly easier to support mods and build mod tools, something that's always been far more difficult with other engines.

With that said, I do think Bethesda really needs to bring in some more of the id Tech team to rebuild and significantly upgrade Creation Engine 2. They did some updates for Starfield but they need to do a lot more.

Christopher906d ago

***If they do that the game would need a lot more dev time or wouldn't have nearly the amount of content and quests. People don't seem to understand why Bethesda uses that engine, it's what makes their style of games even possible. ***

Ridiculous. They won't improve because the only way to do the same amount of content is if they don't. There are tons of games out there that prove otherwise.

Tapani907d ago (Edited 907d ago )

Because you have diehard fans coming from games like Skyrim and Fallout 4 that defend Bethesda and then you have more objective people who can call what it is, a mediocre and behind-the-times restrictive RPG with a semi-new coat of paint.

Armaggedon907d ago

Its a mix of peoples expectations. People have a laundry list of “issues” with Starfield, but the issues are the result of it being a different game rather than a bad game.

Nyxus907d ago

The expectations are also Microsoft's fault, because they overhyped the game to ridiculous proportions. They actually went on stage and declared it 'one of the most important RPGs ever made'.

Armaggedon907d ago

Good point. A friend of mine made a good point as well. He said: Bethesda market as a big AAA game, but they are AA at heart. And we all know that AAA games have certain expectations. As much as I love Starfield, it does not meet those expectations. But thats okay. Just market the game appropriately.

MrBaskerville907d ago (Edited 907d ago )

Well, some if is quite bad. Like everything related to the vase building mechanics. I refuse to believe that anyone finds fun in looting resources on empty planets.

Most quests are also kinda shit. A lot of running back and forth between loading screens. I didn't have to be this way, they knew that there would be loading when they planned these quests. Don't send me back and forth through 4 of them repeatedly.
Don't get me started on the temple quests.

gigoran8906d ago

as a space sim player I was watching this game since announcement. The thing that disappointed me the most wasn't that ships were used as a fast travel option in the end, it was that they waited until it was close to release to disclose how bare bones space travel was going to be. So I understand there were expectations people had that were never confirmed, but it's also on them for waiting so long to disclose how limited their game was going to be.

shinoff2183906d ago

Some ofbthese issues though are due tonwhat bethesada sold us on , rather then gave us in the end. I'm confident the game wasn't finished.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 906d ago
mkis007907d ago

I mean if you just look at what it has going for it you should be able to say that a game with this budget should have done more. Skyrim and Fallout all "feel" much bigger even though they are much smaller

Armaggedon907d ago

Starfield did alot, and that may actually be apart of the “issue”. They dallied in so many different systems that none of them are above mediocre at best

Crows90907d ago

Very true. So much potential but not of it ever comes close to meeting any expectation in quality.

FinalFantasyFanatic907d ago

Most people seem to have wanted Skyrim in Space, this is what I expected of it, but looking at the trailers, I knew they probably wouldn't deliver that, and that's exactly what happened.

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20°

Starfield Update 1.000.004 Released on PS5 to Mitigate Crashes; Players Still Reporting Crashing

Starfield on PS5 has just been updated to 1.000.004 to fix crashing issues, but players are reporting it didn't take.

90°

Starfield Was the Best-Selling Game in the US Following PS5 Release

Senior Director and Video Game Industry Advisor at Circana Mat Piscatella has revealed Starfield was the best-selling video in the US based on dollar sales for the week ending April 11th.

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vgchartz.com
jznrpg85d ago

For the week that nothing else of note launched.. I’m sure it will sell some copies but look at what released that week

85d ago Replies(6)
z2g84d ago

It’s not a requirement to buy games every month or whenever one is released. I don’t think people are going to spend $70+ on something they don’t care about.

GotGame81885d ago

I have talked about not being able to get into this game at launch. I still haven't given it another go, even though I think it looks great and has come a very long way since launch. Some people just want it to fail, even if it is a great game. I know why, we all do.

Starfield didn't just have the best sales for a week, but it was pre-ordered on PS store, with very nice numbers. I really need to start it again, on my PS5 though. So I can see how it is now. It has had some major updates.

I am looking forward to it all over again now.

Huey_My_D_Long85d ago

Its not that people want the game to fail. Its that Bethesda wont ever improve their games if you guys keep calling slop like starfield great games. Pure as that. Formulaic, chasing the trends, slop.

Like Bethesda has fallen off since FO4.

Ive a PC 4070, no interest in Starfield since the beginning since despite Bethesda owning some serious FPS legacy within their ranks...They just like seem to hate good shooting mechanics.

I dont see whats the appeal and thats ok. But how can you guys call it great? By what metric? The story? The Gameplay? The package all together? Hell I'm enjoying Crimson Desert, but I've got my issues with some design choices, but I do think the game is better as a whole than its individual parts. Is that the case for Starfield?
To be honest alot of you starfield stans dont make a great case for yourself, since I've never heard a starfield say what it is they enjoyed about it other just it being another Bethesda game that feels familiar yet new to them. Yall dont make the case on whats so great about starfield that keeps you coming back.
What does it do that makes it great that everyone like me is missing?

Like I wanted to like the Starfield, but after seeing its first trailer, it pretty much came out like I thought it was. Bethesda has been coasting off prestige for years now. and honestly starfield is proof of that.

CrimsonIdol84d ago

I'm fine with the game being janky Bethesda-core etc. For what it's worth it's more polished than previous games have been and the shooting mechanics are fine, feels pretty good even.

What I'm not fine with is it just being completely dull in every way. Even if they managed to resolve the structure of the game constantly sending you back and forth through maps and loading screens it's still going to be dull. The original The Outer Worlds did Fallout in space better, and that was hardly perfect (I haven't played the second one so I can't comment on that). At least The Outer Worlds had some interesting characters, enemies and locations. Starfield has none of that. They can argue that it's more grounded/going for realism or some nonsense (yet it's still doing Star Wars/Firefly style space travel) but it's fundamentally dull.

I dropped loads of money on a copy of this game at launch and I've no desire to get my money's worth out of it, I pretty quickly cut my losses and moved on. I don't know what happened to the writers for Bethesda, I presume they all moved on and have since been replaced by Jenny from accounting.

sweatyrich84d ago

I agree with @CrimsonIdol
I played the game to completed, but it's version of NG+ simply didn't appeal to me, so I never went back to it.
There's base-building, but it really serves no point, other than, there's base building. If you're into that, you have it, but I didn't touch it at all, as it wasn't part of the story ... At all.

The main character models are "ok", but the NPCs are just bad.

And IMO, people shouldn't be OK with a Bethesda game being janky. They're a big company, and should be jank-free by now!

MrBaskerville84d ago

I've given it another go and with the new more modular difficulty i managed to balance it a bit like Stalker 2 and it has been a lot more enjoyable this time around. The free roaming in space also helps a bit. Still prefer older Bethesda games, but it's growing on me
ever so slowly.

Jin_Sakai85d ago

Curious gamers. They’ll soon find out soon enough how trash it is.

Reaper22_84d ago

I dont think so. The games has been well received on PS5. Getting good scores too.

Jin_Sakai84d ago

Digital Foundry showed how bad the game runs even on PS5 Pro and crashes. It can’t even hold 60fps and not a looker to begin with. 🤷‍♂️

Grilla84d ago

I found out. I loved FO4 and wanted to judge Starfield for myself. I should have waited for a sale.

Putte85d ago

It's still as Bad as it was on Xbox. Of cause some playstation user's are curious and because there is a lot of them then the sales are gonna be somewhat okay for small time period. But still a very sad story what starfield turned out to be. Maybe the biggest disappointment in my gaming life.

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40°

Starfield: Free Lanes Trophy Guide & Roadmap

The Free Lanes update has arrived! Earn every Trophy in the DLC with the help of our Free Lanes Trophy Guide & Roadmap!

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daynglsgameguides.com
phongtro123_com85d ago

Solid, practical guide overall. The roadmap structure makes it easy to plan a clean run, especially by separating missables from cleanup. I also like that it flags potential grind points and suggests when to tackle them.

A couple of things that could make it even stronger:

Clarify any missable trophies/achievements more explicitly (and whether manual saves are recommended before certain choices).
Add estimated time for 100% completion and note difficulty settings if they affect progress.
Include brief build/loadout suggestions for tougher segments or challenges.
If applicable, call out any bugs or tracking issues in the update that players should watch for.

Overall, helpful for both newcomers and completionists, just needs a bit more detail in a few areas.