Starfield has received much criticism for being a boring game. I understand that many gamers have gotten used to certain kind of gameplay since many games are put on assembly lines and put out to the public. The criticisms are stemming from the inability of Bethesda to match up with what is on the assembly line. While the game is some sense is too big to some, this size is important to help flesh out the game’s story and gameplay mechanics. Setting it on one world would have been criticized for being too conservative and making a compromise between small and huge would have been seen as not having a vision. Starfield maybe boring to some but it isn’t to me.
There is great hope I have in the modding community, one of those bastions of the gaming culture that still has creativity and is not just about consuming batches that are given to players in order to placate them with nostalgia hits. As a young man, I have never really given into nostalgia. I think about it, but I do not allow it to control me, which is why I am looking forward to what the modding community has to offer us. Starfield has a great foundation as a game, and I hope that the modders will continue to improve the game. I think that criticism will continue as the gaming community is well known for being outspoken on the internet. This is double-edged sword in many ways, but this community is much livelier and more energetic than other community except for sports communities. However, in comparison to sports communities, gamers are more creative and interesting to engage with than other group of people in my view. That’s why I confident the modding community will continue to enhance this amazing game.
A screenshot of New Atlantis, taken on the outskirts of the city.
The expansion for Starfield has just been put out into the gaming wilds and it is great to see Bethesda is still on trying to make this game great. While Starfield has suffered issues of reception among gamers, there is a base of gamers who still support the game and enjoy it. While many point to Baldur’s Gate 3 as a masterpiece and that Starfield was essentially a sign of Bethesda’s inability to innovate, these two games are not the same. Baldur’s Gate 3 was the sequel for a game that game came out 23 years before. Starfield on the other hand was a new IP and was creating its own style, Nasapunk and wasn’t trying to ride on the branding of another game. This isn’t to say that Baldur’s Gate 3 has been an inspirational game, but it is game that is really emphasizing its earlier aspects rather than creating something new. Starfield is attempting to be a foundation in the next Elder Scrolls game and I think it has many great ideas within.
Starfield: Shattered Space will greatly enhance the game and I believe that the story within Starfield still has much more to offer to players. I have started playing the game again and it looks like visiting House Varun’s planet is going to be a treat.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim was released some 12 years ago this year and yet it seems to be no less than relevant than today. The game has sold millions upon millions of copies, putting it up there as a gaming phenomenon that can hold its own with Street Fighter and Super Mario Brothers. It has been truly a game of the Millennials who have often been in the shadow of the Gen Xers. However, unlike the games in the 1990s, the games today seem to be taking longer to have sequels. The length of time between sequels is getting longer and longer and it is taking a toll on video game development. Some of my favorite games are taking so long that I am wondering whether these games will ever be released before being cancelled by executives who are trying to show their stockholders that the company will actually make money. This is the great dilemma that all big video game companies face. While smaller companies can make quirky games that enhance the medium, it is very difficult now to have a small company be able to make a game that will move the medium. It is very important to not be overly cynical about the Rockstars and the Bethesda’s in the gaming industry; they play vital roles in making video games even more important in the eye of the public, especially among more skeptical parts of the public who still believe that video games are simply electronic toys.
I believe that this issue is often overlooked by many gamers. The video game industry had to overcome many stereotypes and hurdles after Atari was flooding the market with poor games in the early 1980s. In spite of all the advancements, video games are still given this treatment of being a something that is immature and not worth the attention of adults who are serious. Independent video game makers are responsible for helping the industry breakout of its dependency on massive teams, corporate meddling and obsession with graphics. However, we still need the AAA games. Many independent games are nostalgic rather than moving the medium in another area. We need both AAA and independents, but it is truly the games with the big budgets that will change how people perceive video games.
However, the issue arises when a game has not had a sequel for so long that people seem to attach so many sentiments to that game. People no longer seem to have a rational opinion on the game and seem to think that the game was the holy standard upon which every game was built. This is the problem that Rockstar Games faces with Grand Theft Auto VI. The previous game has been out for so long that the expectations are really high for the next game. I worry that Rockstar has peaked with the previous game, Red Dead Redemption II and that they won’t be able to meet expectations.
Oblivion excels at creating a magnificent environment to play in.
The YouTube Aristocracy and Video Game criticism
This is same problem that Starfield faces. The game was a passion project of Todd Howard and people are constantly criticizing the game for not being Skyrim. It isn’t supposed to be Skyrim and I think that people are unfairly comparing the game to Skyrim.
Skyrim was produced long before Starfield and I think people have got to give Starfield a chance. This is one of the reasons that I continue writing about this game no matter what people say about it. It is important that people who love this game speak up about this game.
Skyrim has been with us for so long that it seems that the whole RPG genre seems to revolve around it. Rockstar’s games are also contributing to this idea that the genre needs to be prefect and that every imperfection means that the game is not worth playing. People have to stop having such unrealistic expectations.
Bethesda did release the Elder Scrolls Online but players are waiting for the real sequel to the Elder Scrolls. By spending so much time on developing this game, Bethesda may setting up for even greater issues with the release of Elder Scrolls VI.
Starfield has had to deal with the YouTube aristocracy trying to call this game a mediocre game that will go nowhere. People have to understand that Skyrim was being heavily criticized in 2011 and 2012 by the YouTube critics as well. There were many people on the forums who were saying that this game was terrible and wasn’t anything like Oblivion.
Of course, it seems that the people who love Skyrim now and the positive vibes that it gets from people are probably Millennials who seek to claim Skyrim as a part of their popular culture identity. This is one of the reasons that Skyrim has been so dominant for so long in the imagination of the Millennials. Starfield is having to go up against years upon years of people trying to hold to onto this ideal of Skyrim and what it meant to them.
The Elder Scrolls Oblivion has incredible architecture that is much better than Skyrim’s rather rustic approach.
Appreciating an Imperfect game and supporting it.
Skyrim is a great game, but I find that it is inferior to Oblivion in many areas. People are going to need to give up on the symbol of Skyrim as being this prefect game to compare everything to and start thinking realistically about how games are made. Whenever a new game is made, there are going to be changes to it. Not everything can be made into the most realistic game ever made. Skyrim even at the time was considered to have poor quality graphics compared to some other RPGs on the market.
I think in general that we players have become more and more cynical about the type of games that are coming out these days. I just wish that people would give Starfield a chance instead of constantly criticizing the game. Starfield may have NPCs that may look strange, but we have to understand that this is a game that has a lot going on under the hood. We have to respect that. When we consider that this game was released at all. We have to respect the endurance of the game developers who brought this game to life. Starfield could have easily been cancelled. Instead, it has been released into the public’s hands and we are having some very interesting mods being made.
We should try to look at the positive of what Starfield has managed to accomplish rather than tearing it down. People who are doing that do not understand how difficult developing games are. We need to stop criticizing Starfield so much and start appreciating it for what it has. We have a complete game, and we should proud of the work that Bethesda did on this game. We should be hopeful that they will continue supporting the game and working to make sure that it appeals to everyone out there is willing to take a chance with it.
My Game Reviews 