jaynaylor
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Starfield Impressions After 32 Hours
🕑 Added 2023-09-09 17:55:16 +0000 UTCSome asked for this so here you go.
This is not Skyrim in space. This is more like Bethesda's take on a Mass Effect game, with more Bethesda elements, like expanded exploration and customization options. It's the first BGS game I've played where the main story (so far) overshadows the world exploration for me.
I haven't done any faction quests even though I want to, because of how pressing the main story feels by comparison.
It's the smoothest Bethesda game at launch I've ever played. It runs better on my PC than Elden Ring did at launch. The graphics are an impressive leap from Fallout 4.
Explorability feels limited mostly because points of interest in space feel disconnected compared to past BGS games.
Combat feels easy, but maybe I'm just good at video games. Difficulty sliders don't change enemy behavior, just statistics like old BGS games did.
If you like it will depend on what you like in games. I'm loving it a lot because I love space, exploration, and the themes are interesting to me. The gameplay flows once you learn the shortcuts allowing you to minimize loading screen cuts. There's a lot the game doesn't tell you about this that you just end up learning by paying attention to options within the interface.
I haven't delved into crafting and building very much. It feels like it has a lot of obstacles in the form of required research and resources as a barrier to entry. This is obviously gamified, where in a real market you'd be able to just purchase upgrades like suppressors from shops, here you either find them on existing weapons (they aren't transferable btw) or have to do research to stick them on your weapons as mods.
Enemy drops of unique items are so numerous as to make crafting feel unnecessary.
Overall, great impression. Don't go in looking for Skyrim or No Man's Sky. Go in looking for Starfield and you'll probably like it too, unless you just really dislike these kinds of games.
Comments
Curtis Thompson
Definitely appreciate the review! I think I'm going to wait for sales and a good amount of mods to come out before I jump into it.
Thomas
Gotcha. I haven't bought the game yet, trying to get a feel. I bought The lies of P this pay cycle, but remember being a kid and playing Starflight for years
Jay Naylor
Uhhhhhhh they're so different. Tonally, maybe Starfield is more like Starflight in that it doesn't have traditionally "cool" things in it like blue alien tits and butt hugging armor.
Thomas
Would you say that Starfield or Mass Effect is better influenced from the Starflight series? (Showing my age a little bit here)
Quintus Aurelius
ok, you got me, i do like to complain..... but i also feel that many of my criticisms are valid. there's a lot of issues that bethesda games have had for a long time and they've never felt the need to address any of them. this game is their debut title under their new game engine and while it did address a number of long standing issues, several other serious long standing problems got ignored. making a new game engine would have been a perfect opportunity to fix some of those issues. i don't expect a perfect game, but i do expect that when a company makes the same style of game over and over that they learn from the problems of the past and correct those issues. is that really too high of a bar to set?
Jay Naylor
They're games are very fun for me. I'd also wager they're very difficult to make. I get the negativity bias is in full swing, but you sound like you just like to bitch. You should just stop buying their games because you'll never be happy with one of them.
Quintus Aurelius
honestly, that angers me quite a bit. they make all the money knowing that other people will spend hundreds of hours fixing major flaws in their game for free.
Puppeteir
Gonna pass got to get that Celeste plat
Øyvind Larsen
The Game is Great Love Playing it
Scott Heavilin
Give em time and the modding community will eventually add everything that you currently find lacking. It's been my experience that the Bethesda devs do a pretty decent job of creating the foundation for a good game and can patch the truly game crashing bugs, but leave minor bug fixes and the feature developement that make their games really enjoyable to the modders. That's why I'll be waiting a bit longer before buying it.
NitroP
I'm gonna pass on this game. I'm still messing around on Destiny 2
Vawlkus
*sigh* even with your take on the game, I _STILL_ can't figure out if I'm gonna like this game or not. Not having played almost ANYTHING by BSG, I'm in the dark on this. Probably won't know until I buy it and try playing it myself.
Vawlkus
NaylorSays :P
IamUnknown
A well balanced and measured take. Not going to purchase for a bit yet (New Vegas fans know) as Bethesda games usually take about six months of patching to be solid, but I'm glad to hear they pulled through after the gilded turd that was Fallout:76. Here's hoping the community can have it modded to the tits by the time I dip my toes in!
IamUnknown
That stompy robot is in Battletech (2016). Still the best game for big robot smash that isn't Titanfall.
Tam Barlas
I fully expect a Power Armor Bunnies spoof
Quintus Aurelius
i've felt extremely disappointed by the game to be honest. theres been almost nothing new by bethesda standards except for the space combat which has been done much much better in games that are 10-20 years older. having to walk everywhere, sometimes for kilometers to get to things that are almost entirely pointless seems incredibly stupid. i've got a ship that can instantly do a geological survey of an entire planet, can jump lightyears at the drop of a hat but i have to walk a couple clicks to find evidence of an eroding glacier, why can't i just hover over the surface and ID shit at the very least? my inability to transfer stuff to my ship remotely is also a huge sticking point. go through a random enemy stronghold and just picking up the bad guys drops you easily overburden yourself. why can't i build a drone module on my ship to ferry stuff? why can't my utterly useless companions do that? speaking of companions, all the problems with them in previous games are still there. bethesda hasn't changed their ai in any way as far as i can tell, they still like to stand directly in front of me when i'm fighting or looting and often will run up to enemies and then stand there and do nothing. bethesdas new game engine just feels like the old one with updated graphics. lighting still tends to reflect off of everything like its been dipped in oil and people and objects clip through everything (particularly funny when an enemy sticks their gun through a locked door and dumps the mag in your general direction). just about everything i've seen in the game feels like they were going for 'meh, it's good enough'. I didn't expect bethesda to reinvent the concept of gaming, but i did expect them to provide something new as well as solutions to the common problems they had in their old games. as a side note, on a moon i found a mech graveyard that is filled with old derelict battlemechs. WHERES MY FUCKING STOMPY ROBOT BETHESDA?!?!?!
Lonewolf561
I’m happy you posted this I might actually download it when I get home
ColdTruth247
Waiting for that elden ring dlc tho
Reptiles of Lustria
I feel you did a very good review of this. I've played for just under 30 hours myself and have found that pretty much everything you have written is correct. The one thing I would definitely draw attention to as a positive is the fact that this game offers a lot of option to travel. Just like in Skyrim or fallout you don't have to follow the main storyline if you don't want to but I understand what you were saying as feeling compelled to do so. Being a space sim guy since the old days, I love this game and am glad you do to. It got me back into space games after a long while (I played a LOT of Elite Dangerous with a full voice control suite. If you don't use voice control yet for Starfield I would recommend you check out my old friends at HCS Voice Packs. Makes Starfield, Elite Dangerous, Star Citizen incredibly immersive and the best thing is that they have many sci-fi legends that have done voiceovers for their voice control system). Cheers, and see you out in the black, CMDR. o7, over and out.
Blastering
Welp an honest review finally, ill be looking forward on getting the game since i was waiting a month to let the sand storm to calm down. Heh a stream of the could be nice if you interested tho :0
pokediginut
“But maybe I’m just good at video games” low key humble brag hahahaha I’m very pleased the game is a fun experience that’s not horribly broken. Bethesda has its issues and it’s history’s of stumbles but I’ve loved their products overall for years and I knew I’d love this one And I’d say it’s similar to mass effect minus the heavy hot aliens to romance sadly. Bethesda has always kept romance mechanics at arms length which i find unfortunate
Jay Naylor
Witcher is for story. Elden Ring is for combat gameplay and atmosphere. Skyrim is for exploration. Starfield is for going on a space adventure. Whatever you like.
Justice Taylor
I also ran around in public in my space panties as soon as I discovered the option.
xKIL13Rx
I'm a huger Witcher fan but have never played skyrim or elden ring. I've been thinking of giving this a try. What are your thoughts?
Justice Taylor
As soon as my discord friends said it had a free option on gamepass I clowd played it and had fun in minutes! Me and my robot buddy cleared out some space pirates. But I almost lost the 1st space dogfight.
Dalton Wong
Damn first JayReview, or NaylorReview? Idk but I like it!
