Roger’s $0.02 - Starfield: A Stellar Adventure

Space has always been a popular subject for computer and video game RPGs, and for me, it's one of the primary reasons why I spent most of my formative years video gaming on a PC and not on a video game console. Unlike fantasy games which often take place in some variation of a medieval landscape strewn filled with clichéd archetypes and all too familiar story plot-lines, I was and still am drawn to the expansive possibilities a space backdrop provides in RPGs to explore questions of humanity, religion, government and science.

My first space romp was Electronic Arts Starflight. It was a game that combined elements of an RPG, starship combat, and trading. You assembled a bridge crew similar to a mix of eight different alien species with each species offering certain benefits and weaknesses. Certain species do not get along with each other adding an element of strategy to your crew's composition. The goal of the game is to explore the universe, collect resources, find new habitable words, and solve the mystery of solar flares that threaten to wipe out the galaxy. It exposed me to key elements of space-faring RPGs that still make up the core gameplay of many contemporary space games. Exploration, meeting and talking to alien races, resource collection/trading, and combat. On top of that games like Mass Effect added romance and multiple endings, while space flight simulator games like Space Rogue integrated resource trading and RPG elements into its gameplay.

Starfield takes all that and expands it into an open-world space exploration game. I’ve played about eight hours worth of the game and find it incredibly engrossing. Now it could just be the early stages of the game that are compelling enough for me to boot up my PC late at night when the kids are asleep. I know there are some critics of the exploration, physics, and plot of the game. But I haven’t run across any major issues besides some mild drift when I use my Xbox 360 controller’s left thumb stick to move the character about a room or the ship. But Bethesda is sort of known for having less than dialed-in controls on a game’s initial release. So I’m assuming the issue will clear up after a patch or two.

My biggest issue so far has been the time it takes to set up a character. It’s a bit of a conundrum when it comes to RPGs and character selection. The more customization you get the longer it takes to start the game. But it seems there should be an express mode that dumps up right into the game with a randomly generated name, face, and background. The other issue I have is the problem with making your own face. You’re given rather expansive options to make your eyes, mouth, or nose. But when it comes to hairstyle, color or body shape your options seem to be limited. If you go all in on letting players make the look like theirs shouldn’t that extend to the body and hair? These small nitpicky elements but something that I’ve seen incorporated in other games by different publishers.

In terms of gameplay, a majority of my time has been shooting and collecting stuff. Which is the bedrock of many open-world FPS/Third-person RPGs. I do find the dialogue system a little clunky compared with BioWare’s Mass Effect but it's also mercifully short. No four-tier dialogue tree here. The NPCs so far seem a little canned but I’m eagerly awaiting the ability to buy, sell, and outfit ships and explore New Atlantis, the largest in-game city. I’m a little less interested in building my own outposts, something that I did way too much of in Fallout 4. There’s a balance of what I should be playable in a game. From my experience when playing games involves too much of what I consider “work” I suddenly become less interested in playing. Mostly because I’m a narrative game player. I’m interested in the way a story plays out. It adds weight, texture, and interest to the game's story and character plot-lines. Making a virtual space isn’t too compelling for me, although I understand it's a crucial gameplay element for many players.

I’ve said in a previous post that broken games are unacceptable. At $70, which is Starfield’s price point, games should not be so buggy as to be unplayable or unenjoyable. I’m happy to report so far the game hasn’t manifested any fun-ending issues. Ultimately after another 20 hours of play if I find myself engrossed by the storyline and the non-outpost building game mechanics I will consider the game a worthwhile buy.