What a difference a year makes.
I was in no way disappointed when Starfield gameplay was first revealed at Not-E3 2022, but I think I have to be fair with myself and say I was just whelmed. Starfield looked like a solid new addition to Bethesda's incredible pedigree but we didn't get a good look at the full array of connecting systems like we did this past weekend.
After the annual Microsoft Showcase, Starfield was given its own 45-minute 'Starfield Direct' which you can check out here.
I'll start with a bang.
Combat looked way better than last year. Players can grab different perks like one that gives them access to a jetpack (and seems like a no-brainer to me) and other game changing abilities. AI seemed sharper, if not perfected, and everything just had a nice smoothness to it. Last year, enemies bumbled around not reacting to being shot in the face and that put some water on the fire more than anything else I saw so it was good to see that improved. Weapons can be modded in numerous ways just like Fallout 4. Grenades come in different flavors like one that freezes enemies in place. The variety of guns was also impressive, coming in different forms like magnetically assisted, ballistic, heavy, energy, and more. Your chosen battleground will play a big part in what weapon you might want to bring with you. Using ballistic weapons in low gravity will force your character to fly backwards, where energy weapons will allow for more control. If spacewalking is a thing, Bethesda didn't show them off but I'm hoping we get a chance to hop around space.
The environments presented looked sharp. Given another year to spit shine, the so-called NASA-Punk aesthetic popped better than ever. I have seen a few grumblings about 'space cowboys' and other supposedly clashing aesthetical styles but I can't see a reason why those concepts can't coexist. If everything looked like the incredibly clean and polished city of New Atlantis it will be a very boring universe indeed.
When I'm ready to leave my space cowboy city I'll be sure to use Bethesda's insanely feature-packed ship building system to craft a space ship shaped like a horse and name it Silver just to spite the critics. The different ways Bethesda is opening up ship building for the players is absolutely insane. Ships can be customized with different modules, some for aesthetic purposes and other that actually function, like for crafting or storage, and this will change the interior of the ship.
Bethesda produced an internet star by letting Bethesda Producer Jamie Mallory get on camera for the showcase. Her ship, the H.M.S. Platypus was the star of the show with its wide bridge that was reminiscent of the aforementioned mammals bill and thick tail. Just after we got the Playpus, we saw a user created ship that looked straight out of Transformers. Malllory would later return to show off her massive stolen sandwich collection in her pirate ship which harks back to dropping 300 wheels of cheese at the top of a mountain and watching them roll down to the bottom and knowing they'll be there a year from now.
The less sandwich-pirate inclined players can build light fighters loaded with guns or huge freight haulers for hauling missions. Not content to just be Skyrim in space, it seems like Bethesda had to also grab concepts from Elite: Dangerous, Star Citizen, and more. After I hop in my ship, Silver, and ride away holding tight to my cowboy hat with a cargo hold module full of illegal space-Skooma, can I then smuggle that into New Atlantis for a huge profit? It sure sounds like you can. If things do go south while making a run, the space combat looks great. There is a power adjustment system so players can enthusiastically yell "more power to the shields!" and then throw a few more gigawatts over to make sure they don't explode. Players can decide to disable the enemy ship instead, board them, and take them over to add to their fleet. Star yards and other dock able locations like huge battleships can be found out in space as well. Random ships can be hailed out in space and the player has a lot of freedom to decide whether they want to engage in friendly trade or rob them blind.
While out in space smuggling drugs and having dogfights, players will be able to land on procedurally generated planets that are defined by their relation to the universe. If players land on a planet further from the sun with a lower core density they can expect it to be cold and the gravity low. What exactly is procedurally generated is a lingering question Bethesda has yet to really explain. With around 1,000 planets available to explore, I can't image all of them will have crafted content but that's okay. I do hope they strike a balance between natural exploration and outright telling the player not to expect to find a huge storyline on some random planet.
Players will be able to scan planets before they land, kind of like Mass Effect, to get an idea of what's there and then land near those points of interest. Loading screens are unfortunately going to be present when landing and taking off but that's no big deal, especially if Bethesda does manage to pack in some great content. If these planets are filled with 'radiant quest' it will eventually get old, just like it did in Skyrim, but Skyrim had the advantage that even if a radiant quest was boring it would still most likely take you to an interesting locale. As of now, we can only hope that is the case for Starfield. Even if things do get boring at times, if there is enough real meat to explore and quest through, I'm okay with boring at times. Our very own moon is cool but from what we know of it right now it will be the same big, cold, rock no matter where you go.
Outpost are back in Starfield and can be built on suitable planets and customized like the player's ship. Huge modules can be placed and then the interiors can be customized as needed. From what we saw in the presentation, farming, storage, science, crafting, and more will be available. I'm hoping we see some more interesting ones as well. Outside of the outpost itself, resource collectors can be placed much like No Mans Sky. While I doubt we'll see any wacky outpost locations at launch I hope we can get some variety in locales available for outpost building. If Starfield allows me to build my very own Kamino or an underground Vault-style outpost the denizens of Starfield might never see me again. I'll be too busy watching the waves roll in.
Speaking of waves, we didn't see or hear much about water. Whether they did that because they ran out of time or because the universe's oceans are going to be incredibly boring is yet to be seen. I'm not expecting Subnautica, but I would like to see the seas given some attention. So much cool stuff was left to the imagination in the waters of the Commonwealth in Fallout 4. If water ends up being a boring joke, that's not a deal breaker, but it will probably mean we don't get many water planets or larger bodies of water at all and if that's the case that's a shame. Not only would it be disingenuous in a universe full of wacky non-aquatic animals, but it will utterly crush my Kamino ambitions.
While some questions remain, what was shown at the Direct was enough to reignite my enthusiasm for Starfield. The game drops on September 6 for Xbox Series consoles and PC. Game Pass holders will be able to download and play it day one. Bethesda also announced some cool gear, like a Starfield themed controller (which I purchased day one) and a headset. I can't wait to jump in and see it for myself. I don't know who my character will become yet, which is fitting because I still don't know who I want to be when I grow up. Good thing I'll have Starfield to hold me over while I figure it all out.
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