Bethesda is finally making big announcements after a lengthy moment of silence, but Starfield fans who have been hoping for a 2.0 update are probably going to be left disappointed. Starfield isn’t a bad game by any means, but it failed to meet a lot of gamers’ expectations, which ultimately soured what was anticipated to be the next great sci-fi RPG. Bethesda’s ambitious space adventure was met with critiques regarding its empty world, stiff NPCs, and a story that didn’t quite inspire players to see it through until the end.
Despite its shortcomings, Starfield is a game that still harbors a lot of potential. Bethesda just has to make the right moves and give it the overhaul it needs in order to have just as much longevity as The Elder Scrolls and Fallout games. If Bethesda ever wants to turn Starfield into a franchise that spans multiple titles, then the game that started it all needs to see some major improvements. Unfortunately, that may not be part of the long term plans.
Honestly, this isn’t exactly that surprising. Starfield‘s status as a day one Xbox Game Pass release helped it draw in a lot of gamers, but the overall player reception compared to Fallout and The Elder Scrolls entries was lukewarm. Granted, there are plenty of die-hard Starfield fans out there who have put an impressive number of hours into the game, but it simply hasn’t had the same impact as Bethesda’s other releases.
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Starfield is far from the only game to have faced a rocky launch that was largely defined by mixed reactions. One of the most notorious game launches of the 2020s has been Cyberpunk 2077. It took three years for CD Projekt Red to come out with the 2.0 update and Phantom Liberty DLC, and it completely changed many gamers’ perception of the dystopian RPG. Now, Cyberpunk 2077 is seen as one of the best RPGs of the decade, and many have been hoping that Bethesda would eventually take the same steps to ensure that Starfield gets a second chance.
Starfield’s Free Lanes Update Was a Solid Step Forward, But Players Deserve Even More
Bethesda released Starfield‘s Free Lanes update earlier this year, and it was a strong improvement overall. The update finally added features like autopilot and introduced more dynamic in-flight encounters that helped the game’s main issue of feeling empty. As good as the Free Lanes update features were, though, Bethesda could still do more to bring Starfield to new heights.
More meaningful roles for crew members that have a greater effect on gameplay, more interesting and unique POIs, and even a DLC that has as robust of a story as Cyberpunk 2077‘s Phantom Liberty would be great starting points. Starfield‘s two expansions take less than 10 hours to beat on average and have fairly shallow stories, while Phantom Liberty’s main storyline has around 13 hours and features a deeply compelling narrative. Players who want to explore every aspect of the DLC can even stretch that time as far as 30 hours. CD Projekt Red came out swinging with Cyberpunk 2077‘s DLC, and Bethesda is hopefully willing to take notes.
Bethesda games aren’t exactly known to feature strong storytelling, but Starfield could have changed that reputation. RPGs like The Witcher 3 and Baldur’s Gate 3 have raised the bar when it comes to storytelling within the genre, and future Bethesda games may continue to feel outdated if the stories and worlds can’t keep up with the quickly evolving standards.
One of the main things that has hurt Starfield so much is that a good chunk of its content feels surface level. Whether it’s the gameplay or the story, the sci-fi RPG simply falls short of the grand concepts it teases, which makes it nearly impossible to compete with games like Mass Effect and Cyberpunk 2077 that excel at implementing RPG mechanics. Bethesda doesn’t necessarily need to expand Starfield. It needs to go deeper.
Starfield 2.0 Probably Won’t Ever Happen, But Bethesda Still Has Plans for Its Future
Leading up to the Free Lanes update and Terran Armada DLC, Todd Howard made it clear in interviews that the two were not intended to bring about a Starfield 2.0 era. Frankly, Todd Howard doesn’t really seem interested in bringing drastic change to Starfield. That might be disappointing to gamers who played it and were hoping for something more, but those who have loved it from the start at least have future content to look forward to.
Despite its shortcomings, Starfield is a game that still harbors a lot of potential.
Even though Bethesda’s recent big announcements mainly focused on things like the Fallout 3 and New Vegas remasters and The Elder Scrolls 6, the developer still had a little bit to say about what’s in store for Starfield down the road. Bethesda’s memo specified that “Starfield remains an important part of our future.” Upcoming updates like new stories, upgrades to gameplay, and even new Starborn content are expected to be part of the Year 3 plans, so that at least sounds promising. However, these added features need to break Starfield‘s cycle of feeling surface level.
In addition to Fallout 3 and New Vegas remasters, it has also been confirmed that Bethesda has begun pre-production on Fallout 5. New Vegas developer Obsidian Entertainment is also returning to work on an unnamed Fallout spin-off. As exciting as these four Fallout projects are, there has yet to be a release date revealed yet.
There is plenty of depth in Starfield‘s ship building and character creator, but that makes the lack of depth elsewhere that much more noticeable and frustrating. Starfield may be a one-off for Bethesda, and that’s a shame if that ends up being the case. There is still a strong base that can allow the studio to build something deeper and more compelling, but only time will tell if these planned future updates will do the trick and help Starfield get closer to reaching the same level as The Elder Scrolls and Fallout.
- Released
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September 6, 2023
- ESRB
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M For Mature 17+ / Blood, Suggestive Themes, Use of Drugs, Strong Language, Violence, In-Game Purchases
