Starfield

 PC
User Score
5.6

Mixed or average reviews- based on 5711 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2,635 out of 5711
  2. Mixed: 612 out of 5711
  3. Negative: 2,464 out of 5711
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  1. ScruffyDJanitor
    Sep 8, 2023
    5
    This game is fun and would rate it a 7/10 under normal circumstances. This biggest issue I have is the bugs, lags, and the experience I had with it. I have the game on gamepass and it's disappointing that I have to buy the game full price to install mods in order to actually play the game and immerse myself into it. There shouldn't be any excuse as to why this game isn't optimized to PCThis game is fun and would rate it a 7/10 under normal circumstances. This biggest issue I have is the bugs, lags, and the experience I had with it. I have the game on gamepass and it's disappointing that I have to buy the game full price to install mods in order to actually play the game and immerse myself into it. There shouldn't be any excuse as to why this game isn't optimized to PC and telling people to upgrade their PC when using a high-end PC in unacceptable. I had to restart the tutorial twice because of a game breaking crash as one of the major cutscenes was loading. Every time I talk to an NPC or one of the essential characters in the game their animations lag and sometimes the screen will freeze and you have to wait for the game to catch up. This is after I reset the display setting multiple times. I'm so glad I didn't buy this game at full price because it's not worth it right now. I'm considering dropping it altogether until patches are out.… Expand
  2. Serumpert
    Sep 8, 2023
    5
    Horribly un-optimized soulless mess of a game. Gets boring and repetitive very quickly. Average to the extreme.
  3. vondom
    Sep 8, 2023
    5
    Do not buy this game, play it on gamepass first to see how it in no way lives up to the fanboy hype - 5/10 at most.
  4. RitasPin
    Sep 8, 2023
    5
    When everyone is moving forward and you're standing still, it's still degradation.

    loading screen
    quests are repetitive and uninspired
    loading screen
    poorly optimized
    loading screen
    No space travel
    loading screen
    No weapon modularity
    And more,and more
    That's not what Bethesda showed
    Disappointment
  5. Diogovalm
    Sep 8, 2023
    5
    Insane, this game come whit just small Bugs ( for me ) . And this is crazy game !
  6. PotatMasterRace
    Sep 8, 2023
    5
    I have played Mass Effects, The Outer Worlds and No Man's Sky prior and Starfield feels just like a botched copypaste of those games. Mass Effect had a better plot, a better developed world and better developed characters. No man's Sky had better "space exploration", The Outer Worlds had better companion and social system, and even a better plot, not to mention the styling was a lotI have played Mass Effects, The Outer Worlds and No Man's Sky prior and Starfield feels just like a botched copypaste of those games. Mass Effect had a better plot, a better developed world and better developed characters. No man's Sky had better "space exploration", The Outer Worlds had better companion and social system, and even a better plot, not to mention the styling was a lot better. Bethesda should've just concentrated on developing TES6.… Expand
  7. Sheoloch
    Sep 9, 2023
    5
    Everyone is trying to throw the blame for the middle of the road or bad reviews on the console wars nonsense or anti-woke sentiment. The reality is that no company should be rewarded for stagnating in every aspect of their game development process and its end result. I like the game as I have liked previous Bethesda titles warts and all but I cannot in good conscience say it is a step inEveryone is trying to throw the blame for the middle of the road or bad reviews on the console wars nonsense or anti-woke sentiment. The reality is that no company should be rewarded for stagnating in every aspect of their game development process and its end result. I like the game as I have liked previous Bethesda titles warts and all but I cannot in good conscience say it is a step in any direction except maybe a step back from previous titles. The engine they refuse to update looks worse with each new title released, better lighting and shadows, sure, but to me it just looks like lipstick on a pig. Endless loading screens instead of a seamless experience of exploration and true role-playing. NPC's and facial animations are a real disappointment after playing games like Witcher 3, Death Stranding and Baldur's Gate 3 and one of these is from eight years ago. Just nostalgia for Bethesda games shouldn't excuse their sloppiness. They have the massive backer that is Microsoft now so they really have no excuse (not that they had one before in my opinion) as a AAA developer to deliver such a sub-par product for 2023 while other much smaller studios with a fraction of their resources deliver something amazing both in looks and feel!… Expand
  8. Jeffasaurus
    Sep 9, 2023
    5
    I came in really wanting to like this game since elder scrolls and fallout are some of my favorite game series. But in the end it just felt like a soulless experience. There 100% is a great game here and I hope one day Bethesda can fix it up. But at release there's just to many bad feeling experiences that outshine the good experiences. The companions are stale and lack any charm (they areI came in really wanting to like this game since elder scrolls and fallout are some of my favorite game series. But in the end it just felt like a soulless experience. There 100% is a great game here and I hope one day Bethesda can fix it up. But at release there's just to many bad feeling experiences that outshine the good experiences. The companions are stale and lack any charm (they are just pack mules to deal with the horrid weight limit).
    The gunplay is improved over fallout but the enemy AI is atrocious.
    Most of the game is pregenerated (I hope you like seeing the same enemy bases over any over again).
    And while the game does get better after you beat it, you shouldn't have to beat a game for it to finally become enjoyable. While in years past I could see starfeild being much better , in a year of such quality the stinkers really show.    … Expand
  9. KOSOTA
    Sep 9, 2023
    5
    Honest review after 40+ hours of gameplay. *Disappointment and Deception*

    The main story is disappointingly short, riddled with clichés, and lacks engagement, particularly in the initial 10-12 hours. The script writing often veers into laughably bad territory, with voices and dialogue feeling somewhat generic. Space combat feels basic and lacks excitement. Outpost building lacks    Honest review after 40+ hours of gameplay. *Disappointment and Deception*

    The main story is disappointingly short, riddled with clichés, and lacks engagement, particularly in the initial 10-12 hours. The script writing often veers into laughably bad territory, with voices and dialogue feeling somewhat generic. Space combat feels basic and lacks excitement. Outpost building lacks inspiration, demanding too much time and initial investment.

    Graphics are passable at best, with facial animations and overall animation feeling stiff and outdated. Performance issues, especially in the UI and inventory, are unforgivable. The game's performance on powerful configurations is embarrassingly poor.

    The portrayal of the entire Galaxy as distinctly American, from architecture to mass culture, feels out of touch with the potential for diverse and rich world-building.

    There is little noticeable progress from previous titles like Skyrim or Fallout 4. The same engine-related bugs, loading screens, and AI issues persist. Interactions with the environment are often comically flawed, with players and companions frequently getting stuck. Companion AI is surprisingly ineffective, serving more as a bullet shield than a useful ally.

    The engine's outdated status since 2015 is painfully evident, with reused assets and ideas contributing to a sense of creative stagnation.

    This release falls far short of what one would expect in 2023. I give it a modest 5/10 rating, perhaps future updates or modder contributions will breathe new life into this title, but for now, it feels like an archaic, poorly optimised product.

    For a company of this magnitude, the state in which this game was released is inexcusable.    … Expand
  10. Diegleo07
    Sep 9, 2023
    5
    Es un juego divertido y entretenido lleno de contenido pero no esta ni de coñ* a la altura de sus expectativas es un fallout en el espacio con mecánica anticuadas y que carece de detalles y esta lleno de pantallas y carga y de abrir el menú y perder toda la inmersión
  11. Leftbrig
    Sep 9, 2023
    5
    Probably the worst UI I’ve seen out of a modern game. Certain mechanics are poorly explained. Lack of a local map and an ultimately boring gameplay loop. Some interesting quests, though most ultimately lack any form of impact. Ultimately Starfield is a disjointed experience that may provide some entertainment, but I doubt it’ll be many’s favorite game of all time. On the upside the gamesProbably the worst UI I’ve seen out of a modern game. Certain mechanics are poorly explained. Lack of a local map and an ultimately boring gameplay loop. Some interesting quests, though most ultimately lack any form of impact. Ultimately Starfield is a disjointed experience that may provide some entertainment, but I doubt it’ll be many’s favorite game of all time. On the upside the games surprisingly is probably the least buggy out of any Bethesda title.… Expand
  12. nordita
    Sep 9, 2023
    5
    BORING.

    Bethesda have gotten lazy riding the success of Skyrim for too long and it shows. Starfield is a disappointing game that falls flat on multiple fronts. Overall the game is a bore, it often feels like a chore than a game as I try to find some resemblance of immersion or fun. The entire world is bland and it feels like the game was designed by committee with very little of a    BORING.

    Bethesda have gotten lazy riding the success of Skyrim for too long and it shows. Starfield is a disappointing game that falls flat on multiple fronts. Overall the game is a bore, it often feels like a chore than a game as I try to find some resemblance of immersion or fun.

    The entire world is bland and it feels like the game was designed by committee with very little of a unifying vision which never shines through.

    The main story lacks excitement, and the characters are lifeless and forgettable. I don't think I can remember even one name. The dated AI and gameplay mechanics leave much to be desired, making it feel like a relic from a bygone era and it relies too much on a cheap looter shooter mechanic gameplay loop. Seeing a gun with random stats and a fancy colored name just doesn't cut it as engaging gameplay if the entire game around that is lacking.

    The role playing aspects are seriously barebone and the Bethesda team need to consider finding some fresher and more passionate writers. The story is boring and the entire attitude of the game is milquetoast. The dialogue is a cross between millenial writing and marvel avengers-esque which leaves a sour taste in my mouth and makes me feel the writing team are too old and out of their depth or lack any imagination or talent.

    Exploration is virtually non-existent, since the game relies heavily on a tedious menu-driven fast travel to get about. As a player I was expecting to fly in space to different worlds. This is not the case. You do not explore space in this game in your ship. You fast travel to different planets and run in a straight line in a 100m x 100m square patch to one of the dozen randomly generated sci fi dungeons which you soon memorise the layouts by heart. Exploration is perhaps its most disheartening aspect of the game as it was heavily marketed as "The Skyrim" in space. Unfortunately they never innovated their old game engine and the studio relies too heavy on randomly generated content rather than the hand crafted world building the studio was known for.

    The ship building is my favorite part of the game and I think the team did a great job making it. It's cool how you can drag components together and this reflects to an actual walkable and liveable space in the gameworld. Too bad the ships serve very little purpose apart from a space dog fight minigame.

    A lackluster and mediocre experience for those seeking an engaging sci-fi adventure.    … Expand
  13. IOWANEWTYPE
    Sep 9, 2023
    5
    Probably the most over hyped game I’ve played in a very long time. This is a glorified walking/flying simulator. By flying simulator I mean it feels like you’re in a flying simulator instead of actually flying a ship. The flying is awful and most of the time you use the ship just to fast travel. It’s a cut and paste Bethesda game. If you’ve played elder scrolls or fallout, you’ve playedProbably the most over hyped game I’ve played in a very long time. This is a glorified walking/flying simulator. By flying simulator I mean it feels like you’re in a flying simulator instead of actually flying a ship. The flying is awful and most of the time you use the ship just to fast travel. It’s a cut and paste Bethesda game. If you’ve played elder scrolls or fallout, you’ve played this game. Graphics in bulletstorm full clip edition are better than this game which is sad. Gun play is slow and clunky, movement is clunky, menus are terrible, and as usual you spend 90% of the time talking to NPC’s and running errands for them they could easily do themselves just to get to the actual task at hand. 90 % filler. Glad I only played on game pass cause it would have been a waste of $70.… Expand
  14. Taigo42
    Sep 9, 2023
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Parece que está em beta ainda, o jogo é legal e tem uma boa história, mas falta muito pra ser realmente incrível, tá cheio de bugs e a exploração é bem medíocre.… Expand
  15. Cagallone
    Sep 9, 2023
    5
    Have to be short cause it's not worth it to spend so much time writing a review for this game:

    - performance is really bad, the worst optimized game of 2023, had to go through multiple tweaks just to make it playable, go look up the benchmarks. - UI is straight garbage and confusing, had to install some like 5/6 mods to not get a headache everytime i open a tab. -The game is    Have to be short cause it's not worth it to spend so much time writing a review for this game:

    - performance is really bad, the worst optimized game of 2023, had to go through multiple tweaks just to make it playable, go look up the benchmarks.

    - UI is straight garbage and confusing, had to install some like 5/6 mods to not get a headache everytime i open a tab.

    -The game is missing basic features that are considered standard in every **** rpg and some videogames, like FOV, Gamma and Texture settings; no local map, so looking for whatever shop you need is a **** nightmare. let's not forget that you can't change the piss yellow tint, so unless you install mods, you're stuck with bad color grading and washed out blacks .

    -No tutorials, like, wtf? the ship builder tutorial is basically " yo this the ship builder, have fun".

    -Main quest is easily the worst one bethesda has ever put out, you get shoehorned into the story with no nuance and it doesn't get any better as you progress, it's basically get artifact, report back to npc, go get another artifact, until you have all of them and you can start the most unsatisfying and unrewarding NG+ to ever exist; the writing is trash, unimaginative and lacks depth, it's just so funny that some secondary quests are leagues above the main one when it comes to all these factors

    -Facial animations are dated and so jarring that they can't even make an attempt at helping the, most the times, poor VA, and it doesn't help that many times you can't skip dialogues cause you're not part of the conversation so you just stand there watching basically animatronics talking bout **** that you don't even care about. BG3 facial animations, while not perfect, are miles ahead.

    -Some Features are just straight up useless, for example, do you want to sell a ship you just stole? Cool, you sell the ship for 11k credits, but first you have to register it for 80% the original value, so you get like 2K and maybe you can get a couple med packs with those. Oh, you want to cannibalize the stolen ship and remove maybe the weapons so you can install them on your ship? too bad, you can't do that.
    Fuel is Aesthetic and just a number that represents how far you can get with your Grav drive, there's no actual fuel mechanic; subjective? maybe, but for me it's a wasted opportunity and it breaks immersion

    -Talking bout immersion, loading screens and fast travelling for every **** thing that you do is easily the worst design choice of the entire game, it's immersion breaking in the worst way possible; you want to travel to another solar system? brief cutscene of the grav drive engaging and then loading screen. you want to land on that planet? you get the last 5 seconds of the landing and then a loading screen; space is just another instance where you have ship combat and that's it, and the worst part is that they didn't even try to hide or mask it.

    The perk system is a **** joke and locks basic mechanics that previous BSG games had already at the start; you want the stealth meter or the ability to use your jetpack, which you get from the beginning? spend a point. you want to combat slide? spend a point. the worst part is that to level up perks you have to beat challenges that get more unfair the further you get with the ranks, to get to the "more settlements" perk rank 4 you have to go to 10 different planets and place a beacon and an airlock, if it sounds fun to you, cheers. you want decorations to cost 50% less to build? better get ready to fill your outpost with 50 tables and waste your precious materials. Weight feeds into the perk system, as the base weight is very low and just 5 minutes of looting makes you cumbersome, so even more perk points lost.

    -XP gets crazy low after completing the main quest which gets you to just around level 20 or some. apart from like 4/5 secondary quests which are actually good and the best content of the entire game, the rest of them is item fetching garbage that barely gives you any xp, so good luck leveling basically anything after a while.

    -There's no land vehicle, which according to mr Howard, is a design choice. so cool to walk 1km across empty, barren wastelands just to get to a POI that I will probably see again on the next planet that I land on, with exactly the same layout and loot.

    So, the only standouts of the game is It's aesthetics and the ship builder, and even that has its flaws. Anyway, im reaching the character limit.

    Just get it on gamepass if you want to play it, otherwise go play other SCI-FI games which are way more fun and immersive, like no man's sky, mass effect or outer worlds. Better yet, go play BG3 which came out last month and it's worth playing

    I fear for TES 6 And this **** company that refuses to grow and seems to be stuck in 2008.    … Expand
  16. Wick5
    Sep 10, 2023
    5
    It's a great game other than a few small bugs I came across. The game have a slow start, but once it opened up It gets really good.
  17. netabatarya
    Sep 10, 2023
    5
    Summary: Worse than Fallout 4

    Ancient mechanics and animations left from Fallout 4. Story and its way of telling is poor. Dialog options are going only one way meaning you dont have any options to impact the story. We see faces of NPCs as a cinematic thing but mimics are poorly recorded, worse than Fallout 4. There's nothing to explore in the space. Flying spaceship doesn't satisfy the    Summary: Worse than Fallout 4

    Ancient mechanics and animations left from Fallout 4. Story and its way of telling is poor. Dialog options are going only one way meaning you dont have any options to impact the story. We see faces of NPCs as a cinematic thing but mimics are poorly recorded, worse than Fallout 4. There's nothing to explore in the space. Flying spaceship doesn't satisfy the player. Also taking down on planets is actually punishemnt to the player because many of them are just empty.    … Expand
  18. dacterframe
    Sep 11, 2023
    5
    Que álguien le diga, por favor, a bethesda que en un rpg no puede haber una forma que es objetivamente mejor de afrontar los problemas, y definitivamente no puede ser la más a prueba de idiotas, que eso le quita profundidad a un rpg. O si no, que le pregunten a cyberpunk y su sistema de hackeo, que estaba ahí por cumplir, porque tenía que estar, porque nadie con un arma mínimamenteQue álguien le diga, por favor, a bethesda que en un rpg no puede haber una forma que es objetivamente mejor de afrontar los problemas, y definitivamente no puede ser la más a prueba de idiotas, que eso le quita profundidad a un rpg. O si no, que le pregunten a cyberpunk y su sistema de hackeo, que estaba ahí por cumplir, porque tenía que estar, porque nadie con un arma mínimamente competente consideraría afrontar ninguna situación con hackeo a no ser que intentara muy fuerte rollplayear como un netrunner. Igual pasaba en fall out 4 y lo rota que estaba la elocuencia, y en Starfield lo mismo que en cyberpunk, ¿para qué voy a querer dialogar con unos bandidos cuando de por sí no suponen ningún desafió? Cuatro balas y a volar.

    Los personajes siguen siendo un pedazo de cartón, y no hablo de las animaciones, que esa es otra, hablo de que en lo que llevo de Starfield, y al igual que en Fallout 4, no he encontrado ni un personaje mínimamente interesante, y no es como si el que los personajes sean una panda de siesos fuera cosa del género, hasta el comerciante de carne humana de los primeros fallouts tiene más carisma que ningún npc en starfield y no hablemos ya de Joshua Graham del Fallout New Vegas. Ahora que lo pienso todos esos juegos tienen en común que no fueron desarrollados por bethesda como tal, los primeros por Tim Cain y New vegas por Obsidian... Igual es que Todd Howard no sabe lo que hace a un buen rpg, o se le ha olvidado, no sé, no le importa a él, imagínate a mi.

    Y por cierto, muy bueno el sistema de elocuencia basado en tres emociones básicas, hasta el Persona 5 en 2017 hacía lo mismo pero mejor, y no es que en P5 fuera malo, pero los jrpg tienen sus virtudes y los crpg occidentales las suyas y no puede ser el primero le patee el culo al segundo en lo que se supone que es su terreno.

    En una escala del 1 al 5, le daría un 3, es decir, mediocre, no pasa nada si lo juegas pero tampoco te pierdes de nada si pasas de ello, pero como esta página puntúa del 0 al 10, pues se queda con un 5.    … Expand
  19. Splatz
    Sep 10, 2023
    5
    Do not buy this game, its a buggy mess with characters wandering off during dialogue screens, vibrating and flickering cause they get stuck on something making it so bad the game should have en epilepsy warning. Sometimes your follower will get stuck and when you go to talk to another npc where your follower has is supposed to be part of the dialogue, the screen will start teleporting backDo not buy this game, its a buggy mess with characters wandering off during dialogue screens, vibrating and flickering cause they get stuck on something making it so bad the game should have en epilepsy warning. Sometimes your follower will get stuck and when you go to talk to another npc where your follower has is supposed to be part of the dialogue, the screen will start teleporting back and forth because of the stuck follower. The base building and cargo shipment system seems completely redundant, which was one of the things i was most excited about for the game. Theres very little point in even having a base besides the upgrading benches you can find in the lodge anyway. Theres barely any customization, you have 4 pre set shapes of rooms you can have, instead of building your own shaped house, you only have the option to choose a square or a circle and connect to the same looking square and circle shaped rooms. The next issue is resource gathering, i went all out on resource gathering on the skill tree, which turned out to be completely pointless because even fully specced into it, going to the various cities and buying out the resources from vendors (which by the way costs close to nothing) turned out to be about 50 times faster than grinding it yourself. This also made the cargo transportation system you can have completely pointless too. The combat is equal to a 2005 FPS game and theres no mob variety at all. The main quest was miserable for 95% of it and the first half of it was basically doing the same quest 20 times over and over again, even 2 of the quests taking you to a location with identical building, identical mobs and an identical underground bunker location. Only during the last 3-4 hours of the main story did the quests get somewhat interesting. Those are just some of the issues, the game has a lot of problems, the potential is there after 4-5 patches or letting modders do their thing. All in all its just an okay game, nothing special and wouldnt recommend anyone buying it until it goes on sale.… Expand
  20. Oso_Guapo
    Sep 11, 2023
    5
    Part of me wants to say that the only thing holding Starfield back from GOTY is the fact that it was released in 2023, instead of 2015. The other part of me says that even if it was released in 2015, that Fallout 4 would still be my personal choice for GOTY. There is some real ambition here, but the game is so hit or miss some times that it is difficult for me fully give it my support. IfPart of me wants to say that the only thing holding Starfield back from GOTY is the fact that it was released in 2023, instead of 2015. The other part of me says that even if it was released in 2015, that Fallout 4 would still be my personal choice for GOTY. There is some real ambition here, but the game is so hit or miss some times that it is difficult for me fully give it my support. If you like space+BGS, it might be the game for you, but it is extremely middling for a 2023 release.… Expand
  21. Entisy
    Sep 11, 2023
    5
    I was quite disappointed.. every night I turn on my pc and start playing it, after an hour I'm on time to sleep on my desk.
    This only happens to me when a game is boring and this unfortunately is. I've waited years for starfield and so I can only be very disappointed. The flaws have already been mentioned by many others. But the thing that bothers me the most is that it lacks action.    I was quite disappointed.. every night I turn on my pc and start playing it, after an hour I'm on time to sleep on my desk.
    This only happens to me when a game is boring and this unfortunately is. I've waited years for starfield and so I can only be very disappointed. The flaws have already been mentioned by many others. But the thing that bothers me the most is that it lacks action. After 30 hours of playing I'm still waiting for some fights! especially the secondary quests,..just uploads and blablabla
    Maybe I'm getting old, but then why do I like games like no man sky or cyberpunk2077 so much?    … Expand
  22. Canliberk
    Sep 11, 2023
    5
    Playing this game makes me want to play other games.

    It is like a combination of Fallout 4, Mass Effect and No Man's Sky, but taken all the mediocre aspects of each game. Combat / Exploration / Looting worked much better on Fallout 4. Space Theme and world building was much better on Mass Effect series Space exploration / combat was much better on No Mans Sky. Performance is    Playing this game makes me want to play other games.

    It is like a combination of Fallout 4, Mass Effect and No Man's Sky, but taken all the mediocre aspects of each game.

    Combat / Exploration / Looting worked much better on Fallout 4.
    Space Theme and world building was much better on Mass Effect series
    Space exploration / combat was much better on No Mans Sky.

    Performance is sadly not good at the launch state. UI is clunky and gets in the way too much. Graphics are good - not masterpiece but good.    … Expand
  23. cquint
    Sep 12, 2023
    5
    "I'm sorry, but this RPG isn't on the same level as other Bethesda games. It's only better than Fallout 76, which is a disaster in itself. It offers many hours of gameplay, but menu navigation disrupts immersion, there's an excess of endless dialogues, characters that seem like cartoons, and a lack of character customization options without Fallout's SPECIAL system. In the end, it's just"I'm sorry, but this RPG isn't on the same level as other Bethesda games. It's only better than Fallout 76, which is a disaster in itself. It offers many hours of gameplay, but menu navigation disrupts immersion, there's an excess of endless dialogues, characters that seem like cartoons, and a lack of character customization options without Fallout's SPECIAL system. In the end, it's just another game that revolves around managing the character's inventory, which can be a hassle. I'm playing it through a subscription, but I wouldn't really buy it for more than $10. We'll have to hope that modders can improve the game because if it depends on Bethesda, it's not going well. The visuals are dated, and the game feels sluggish and clunky."… Expand
  24. CoreDave
    Sep 7, 2023
    4
    Bethesda's ethos has been to make game in which you can "Live another life". Sadly Starfield seems to have abandoned this for "live another mediocre scifi show" because that's what it feels like. Gone is the expansive, immersive open world previous titles have had you emerge blinking into. Worlds in which you could see a distant mountain and set off with the goal to find it and climb it,Bethesda's ethos has been to make game in which you can "Live another life". Sadly Starfield seems to have abandoned this for "live another mediocre scifi show" because that's what it feels like. Gone is the expansive, immersive open world previous titles have had you emerge blinking into. Worlds in which you could see a distant mountain and set off with the goal to find it and climb it, discovering along the way countless adventures. Replaced with a quest log, cut scenes and loading screens whisking you from one soulless level to another, sure many technically exist on open world maps but you would be forgiven for not noticing as the relevance it has to the gameplay. If you do decide to "explore" a planet you find nothing but endless tracts of randomly scatted rocks, plants and critters separating icon marked copy pastes of the POIs.

    There is no sense of distance or scale, no permanence or solidity to the world the game proports to put you in. All of which I might forgive if the writing, hand crafted locations and characters were more memorable or coherent but even here the game fails to impress. I can't help but feel like the hard working and skilled folks at Bethesda just didn't have their hearts in this game. I hope they can find their passion and grove again in time for TES6.

    Honestly it isn't terrible and I would give it more than a 4 if it were from a different studio. But this is a Bethesda game, it has to be judged in relation to the likes of TES and Fallout and in that respect it falls so far short of those greats its rather a sad state of affairs.    … Expand
  25. kamgeforce
    Sep 8, 2023
    4
    Midfield it is. Bethesda has been on slow decline after Morrowind, simplifying their games and systems to appease larger crowds, but Oblivion and Skyrim still had souls, exploration was a blast and every dungeon or shrine had some history or lore behind it. Story was worth following as well.
    In the same vein, Fallout went from having robust rpg systems and learning curve, through F3 which    Midfield it is. Bethesda has been on slow decline after Morrowind, simplifying their games and systems to appease larger crowds, but Oblivion and Skyrim still had souls, exploration was a blast and every dungeon or shrine had some history or lore behind it. Story was worth following as well.
    In the same vein, Fallout went from having robust rpg systems and learning curve, through F3 which changed the formula to fallout 4 which was stripped of most of its rpg elements and turned into a shooter with vats, still it was worth exploring cause the world was hand crafted and there was **** to discover.
    That leads us to Midfield, with which Bethesda completely abandoned any pretense of trying. Either they dont care anymore or they simply dont have the people who brought quality to their games. Nothing that made Bethesda games good or enjoyable is here. Exploration is a waste of time, most planets are straight up empty and added only to increase size of the shallow puddle. There is no world/universe building or history to speak of. No deep systems to engage with, other than building your own ship if you are into that, but why would you if the space battles are mostly skippable and the space combat is attrocious and ship travel between and within planets is just a cutscene. Skill tree would be good enough if the skills worked as they are supposed to. Combat itself is horrid, melee isnt viable at all and gunplay has no weight behind it, plus the variety of gun types is pathetic. Even more pathetic is the variety of enemy types, its pretty much nonexistent, there is no intelligent non human life btw, few useless monster types, but 90% of the time you are fighting humans, in case of bosses, they are half humans, half sponges, some teleport. Writing is dog****, the dialogues are waste of time, following the "story" is a waste of time, trying to get to know your companions is a waste of time and the twist at the end is the most cliche scifi trope anyone could imagine. And its full of ugly npcs and ESG slop bethesda gladly servers you in excess of whats mandated to meet the quota.
    In other words, there is no way to play starfield and make it enjoyable, if you have any standards for quality of anything. Be it the story, worldbuilding, exploration or combat. Unless you are proffesional ship designer, starfield has nothing to offer you.
    Oh and everything I said concerns only the vision and idea of the game itself, even if the game was polished and technically sound, it would still be mediocre in every way, but ofc its not technically sound, its plagued with bugs and disgusting optimazation.    … Expand
  26. rfz88
    Sep 9, 2023
    4
    The performance is bad even at a high end system. Console peasants might be okay with 30 fps but PC players with high-end systems settle for nothing less than 60 (144+ should be the norm in AD 2023)

    Add to these problems, the woke hysteria - one of the worst games i've seen this woke, it's sickening. There's also several features missing; where is the diving? Why almost no    The performance is bad even at a high end system. Console peasants might be okay with 30 fps but PC players with high-end systems settle for nothing less than 60 (144+ should be the norm in AD 2023)

    Add to these problems, the woke hysteria - one of the worst games i've seen this woke, it's sickening.

    There's also several features missing; where is the diving? Why almost no blood/gore? Why no vehicle to traverse on land? Why no free flying in space, only fast travel? Why no maps?

    Has potential to be good though, but that is assuming BGS or modders fix the performance, removes the woke and adds missing features (it will probably not be BGS doing these things....)

    4/10    … Expand
  27. Trypsinogen
    Sep 7, 2023
    4
    I usually like Bethesda games (though never tried 76). I also liked the Mass Effect games (though never tried Andromeda). Unfortunately though, I can not say that I like Starfield. It just misses the mark. There are SO many issues I could talk about - I actually wrote out a list. I doubt anyone wants to read that though so the main points are that
    1) The narrative of the quests and    I usually like Bethesda games (though never tried 76). I also liked the Mass Effect games (though never tried Andromeda). Unfortunately though, I can not say that I like Starfield. It just misses the mark. There are SO many issues I could talk about - I actually wrote out a list. I doubt anyone wants to read that though so the main points are that
    1) The narrative of the quests and companions are not engaging enough. That is to say, most of the game is quite boring. Occasionally there is an interesting character or interesting event, but it's not enough
    2) The performance is not good and the game doesn't even look that good
    3) The combat is too bare bones. It's just too boring. The AI is bad, itemization isn't interesting, etc.
    4) There UI and systems are too much of a mess. I have to Google things WAY to much. There needs to be WAY more tutorials.
    5) The planets are too ridiculously similar to each other and too ridiculously similar to Earth
    6) Surveying the different planets is too ridiculously tedious and unrewarding. So are building outposts. There not being any kind of grav bike or other land vehicle to use is also very stupid.
    7) The NPCs are so ridiculously unrealistic and dialogue is poorly done. This is especially embarrassing when you compare it to works by Larian and CD Projekt Red    … Expand
  28. Doan
    Sep 9, 2023
    4
    The menu system is so blatantly designed for controllers, it is incredibly awkward and unintuitive to use with mouse and keyboard.

    Ship-building is a frustrating experience, because the game does not explain the features or functionalities of the different ship parts
  29. Deadalon
    Sep 10, 2023
    4
    My recommendation on Starfield right now is to wait 1 or 2 months and see what Bethesta can fix in terms of bugs and issues. Some of the issues might sadly be too problematic to even fix. Combat AI for example. But until these issues are sorted, the game is simply not worth playing - knowing it could be done better. The game is only 4 out of 10 until these fixes go through.
  30. angmarec
    Sep 8, 2023
    4
    This game is bad. It looks like game from 2013 and i some places like from 2005, but has horrible optimization, and requires top hardware for such **** graphics. Also old engine has tons of loading screens almost everywhere. It is shame, that large studios with giant budget doing such crap in 2023. Fail of the year. And they say it is "next gen" game. This is mockery on players.
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Awards & Rankings

30
#30 Best PC Game of 2023
3
#3 Most Discussed PC Game of 2023

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
85

Generally favorable reviews - based on 75 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 65 out of 75
  2. Mixed: 10 out of 75
  3. Negative: 0 out of 75
  1. Riot Pixels
    Jan 28, 2024
    76
    There's a lot of flaws in space in Starfield. But that does not prevent me from exploring our galaxy again and again.
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  2. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Jan 22, 2024
    80
    I fell in love with Starfield. It's my cup of sci-fi and I can't wait to spend the next thirty, fifty, maybe seventy hours here. I enjoy the exploration, the shootouts, the art style, the ship building, and the diverse worlds. I gratefully acknowledge the good optimization and the absence of major bugs. But I can't overlook the flaws. There are bad animations, ugly faces and repetitive moments.[Issue#329]
  3. RPGamer
    Oct 23, 2023
    60
    In a year dominated by sequels to franchise favorites, there was a hope that Starfield would carve its own path to success. While the team at Bethesda should be commended for taking such a big swing, there’s no denying that the game doesn’t feel like a cohesive work. Maybe continued support and future sequels will make something more meaningful out of a work that is clearly deeply enamored with both science fiction and space exploration. Unforunately, this first launch has had far more mixed results than desired.
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