LogFAQs > #975772605

https://opencritic.com/game/14907/starfield
https://www.metacritic.com/game/xbox-series-x/starfield?ref=hp

Hey you like the Skyrimz or dem Falloutz? Yo what if it was in space that would be pretty good, right? I'm not really sure where people were expecting Starfield to fall. I'm slightly intrigued by it, but I'm split because I don't care much for the Elder Scrolls games and I adore Fallout so I have no idea if I'll like this or not.

Reviews are mostly positive, but the big sites are mostly scoring lower than the smaller sites which is interesting to see. We got an 87% through 71 reviews so far

Destructoid - 10/10
I wasnt sure if it could be done, but Bethesda has managed to raise the bar for sandbox games even higher. In the end, Starfield is an epic sandbox open-world RPG with a beautifully immersive universe, a captivating story, and fun and compelling gameplay the whole way. Im so happy to have experienced Starfield organically, and I really hope you get to as well.

VGC - 5/5
Starfield is the ultimate Bethesda game. It takes what people loved about Fallout and Skyrim, and casts it across an enormous galaxy filled with captivating characters.

Worth Playing - 9/10
Starfield both hits and misses the mark. Starfield has both improvements and steps backward from the previous games, and whether you consider it to be better or worse than Fallout is dependent on what you prized from those games. If you're looking for more Fallout 4 with bigger and more detailed environments and quests, then Starfield is pretty much everything you could hope for and more. If you're looking for No Man's Skyrim, however, it's disappointing. Almost everything on the ground feels good, while the space travel and exploration feels lackluster. If you're looking for a Bethesda-style, open-world RPG, Starfield scratches that itch, and Bethesda fans will lose countless hours in scouring every nook and cranny.

Game Informer - 8.5/10
It took me a long time to fall in love with Starfield, and even after I did, certain aspects didnt work for me. But the things I didnt enjoy are vastly outweighed by my enthusiasm for this new, original science fiction universe, the breadth of its adventures, and the appeal of its many interwoven stories. Go in with the expectation that it will take some time to find your footing in such a vast gameplay space, and theres a universe well worth discovering here

Noisy Pixel - 8/10
Starfield is a true space adventure that only Bethesda can deliver. It's an experience catered to the fans of large expansive RPG narratives, but this one takes it a step further to stretch across an entire universe. There are minor systems and menus that cause confusion, and the lack of real tutorials paired with a flimsy opening holds back the opening hours. Still, the experience is undeniably memorable, and the writing for NPCs makes up the best moments. Although the many systems can be overwhelming, this is a game full of discovery for all who play.

IGN - 7/10
Its never a great sign when someone recommends a game on the grounds that it gets good after more than a dozen hours, but thats very much the kind of game Starfield is, and I do recommend it. There are a lot of forces working against it, and the combination of disjointed space travel, nonexistent maps, aggravating inventory management, and a slow rollout of essential abilities very nearly did it in. It was the joys piloting a custom spaceship into and out of all sorts of morally ambiguous situations in a rich sci-fi universe that eventually pulled it out of a nosedive. Im glad that I powered through the early hours, because its interstellar mystery story pays off and, once the ball got rolling, combat on foot and in space gradually became good enough that its momentum carried me into New Game+ after Id finished the main story after around 60 hours. Like Skryim and Fallout 4 before it, theres still an immense amount of quality roleplaying quests and interesting NPCs out there, waiting to be stumbled across, and the pull to seek it out is strong.

Gamespot - 7/10

Accounting for all its ups and downs, the main thing I wrestle with is that Starfield is missing an overall sense of purpose. My favorite RPGs have their fair share of shortcomings and limitations, but the best ones always leave a lasting impact that comes through having a clear purpose. Even my favorite Bethesda RPGs do this well. Morrowind, Oblivion, and Skyrim have intricate magic systems, cultures to familiarize yourself with, and rewards for exploration in whichever direction you wander in. Obsidian's Fallout: New Vegas drops you in a barren desert wasteland as a nobody, yet is so full of personality, humor, and sobering examinations of the human condition in the wake of a societal collapse. I can't help but feel Starfield banked on the intrigue of space exploration and the vastness of the cosmos, and forgot to create an identity beyond that.

Despite the nigh-limitless possibilities the final frontier offers, Starfield's version of humanity remains largely homogeneous--300 or so years into the future across the galaxy, and the game's imagination rarely extends beyond the sci-fi archetypes we've seen many a time. It doesn't have much to say about humanity leaving Earth behind and doesn't really reckon with the realities that dictate the world--our world--that inspires its very premise. In the periphery, you can learn about how life is sustainable across the galaxy or tease out lore on how governments and religions evolved, but Starfield struggles to integrate that into its core ethos. I didn't come in expecting something poetic like the Carl Sagan books I read growing up, awe-inspiring like The Outer Wilds, or as intricate as the sci-fi lore built over the course of the Mass Effect trilogy. But I did want something more than the pared-down Bethesda template transposed over a space setting.

Starfield has its moments, for sure. Its satisfying gunplay makes combat exciting, especially when it's integrated into setpieces within its better, more captivating questlines. And although limited in its conception of space exploration, there's a novelty in poking around the galaxy to see star systems up close and personal, and occasionally finding side content worth chasing. However, it struggles to deliver a cohesive and memorable RPG experience amid the seemingly boundless sea of stars. For all its reverence for scientific philosophy, its stories and characters paint a rather tame and sterile vision for what our spacefaring future could look like. When you strip Starfield down to its essentials, it relies on a tried-and-true, but well-tread formula while missing some of the depth of the games that came before it. Starfield is a game more concerned with quantity than quality, and leaves the experience at the surface level.