At this point, Bethesda is a relic. They were given New Vegas as a direct template and learned nothing. Now with Starfield, I have no hope of them ever improving their craft.
While the combat, traversal, menuing, aesthetic are all leagues below industry standard at this point -- even below their own previous games -- the real death knell is the writing. It's incredible how rote and lifeless nearly everything in this game is rendered by speaking to almost any NPC. I wanted to care, but I just can't anymore when Bethesda refuses to improve while their contemporaries are blowing them away.
Don't play Starfield. If you still want to, pick up the new Cyberpunk DLC or do another New Vegas run. If you still want to after that, I'd strongly recommend branching out. The original Fallouts were gold. If you're looking for exploration and player agency Fallout 2 is some of the best out there.
Here's some bullets for my feelings:
High point:
- Ship builder was alright
- The concepts for some quests, tho well worn, were still enjoyable
- Enemies did have some hit reaction
- Interiors were very detailed, and some cities looked nice
- Mag minigun was cool
- Very occasionally the NASA aesthetic hits (like on the moon)
Disappointments:
- Enemies were less fleshed out than any previous Bethesda game
- Skill tree was almost entirely raw stats or unlocked recipes
- Space combat was shallow, needlessly lagging behind 25 year old games
- Writing had very few sparks of interest or emotion
- Companions were barely distinguishable
- Very little support for lasers or particle weapons. Why is the cutter the only beam?
- Vasco is the only robot companion / pet, no customization
- No radio... wtf
- Randomly generated "POI" have 0 interest in a game with weak combat
- Nothing effects anything. Betray the UC to give pirates a huge leg up? No one cares, and nothing changes.
- Bounty system is fucked. Witnesses, paying it off elsewhere, randomly getting some for nothing. All weak.
- Crafting and base building feel pointless. The only mods I saw that sparked some interest were for the grenade launcher, since they altered how the weapon worked in a meaningful way.
- Most of the aesthetic was an emotionless modernist style that just felt soulless.
- Waaaaay too much wasted time in menus and fast traveling.
- The ending was totally whatever. Not a culmination of my travels, not a moment with any philosophical pull, just another weak gesture at the multiverse theory like we've had so many of already.
While the combat, traversal, menuing, aesthetic are all leagues below industry standard at this point -- even below their own previous games -- the real death knell is the writing. It's incredible how rote and lifeless nearly everything in this game is rendered by speaking to almost any NPC. I wanted to care, but I just can't anymore when Bethesda refuses to improve while their contemporaries are blowing them away.
Don't play Starfield. If you still want to, pick up the new Cyberpunk DLC or do another New Vegas run. If you still want to after that, I'd strongly recommend branching out. The original Fallouts were gold. If you're looking for exploration and player agency Fallout 2 is some of the best out there.
Here's some bullets for my feelings:
High point:
- Ship builder was alright
- The concepts for some quests, tho well worn, were still enjoyable
- Enemies did have some hit reaction
- Interiors were very detailed, and some cities looked nice
- Mag minigun was cool
- Very occasionally the NASA aesthetic hits (like on the moon)
Disappointments:
- Enemies were less fleshed out than any previous Bethesda game
- Skill tree was almost entirely raw stats or unlocked recipes
- Space combat was shallow, needlessly lagging behind 25 year old games
- Writing had very few sparks of interest or emotion
- Companions were barely distinguishable
- Very little support for lasers or particle weapons. Why is the cutter the only beam?
- Vasco is the only robot companion / pet, no customization
- No radio... wtf
- Randomly generated "POI" have 0 interest in a game with weak combat
- Nothing effects anything. Betray the UC to give pirates a huge leg up? No one cares, and nothing changes.
- Bounty system is fucked. Witnesses, paying it off elsewhere, randomly getting some for nothing. All weak.
- Crafting and base building feel pointless. The only mods I saw that sparked some interest were for the grenade launcher, since they altered how the weapon worked in a meaningful way.
- Most of the aesthetic was an emotionless modernist style that just felt soulless.
- Waaaaay too much wasted time in menus and fast traveling.
- The ending was totally whatever. Not a culmination of my travels, not a moment with any philosophical pull, just another weak gesture at the multiverse theory like we've had so many of already.