Starfield: First Impressions
Added 2023-09-02 21:04:48 +0000 UTCIf the above embedded video isn't playing for you, you can find it here.
I don't do hype. I learned that lesson in 2004 with Half Life 2, and you really only have to learn it once. Games can be good, bad, or just okay until time passes and they get better. All you can do is try to play it on its own terms and with an open mind.
That was my feeling going into Starfield early access. I preordered because I wanted to see the game before everyone's half-baked hot takes saturated the space, and because at this point these are only games to me until they become coding platforms. And that will start happening in the coming weeks and months.
Starfield is ambitious. It's big. What it isn't, is Fallout 4 or even Skyrim. If you go into it with the expectation that Starfield is going to be Fallout 4 with all your complaints addressed and hopes met, you're going to be disappointed. But if you can approach it as Starfield, you'll likely find a lot of value there.
I also don't do clickbait. This video was done on day one of early access, playing through roughly the first hour of the game, and I wanted to offer my honest first impressions (with special attention to the AI). If you're looking for dramatic Bethesda bashing - or slavish fanboying - this isn't that. But hopefully I've provided a reasonably realistic take on the game Bethesda actually shipped.
Short version: I enjoyed it. Good, with potential perhaps to be great in time, but not flawless and that's okay. And it'll likely be a terrific mod playground.
But I won't be leaving Fallout 4 for Starfield anytime soon. They're completely different games and will attract completely separate audiences.
- G.
