Starfield on PC and Xbox Series S/X on September 6, 2023.
Starfield: Shattered Space expansion released on September 30
Photo Credit: Bethesda
It's safe to say that Starfield, the space RPG from Bethesda that released in 2023, has underwhelmed. While the expansive game has found a lot of players, the overall sentiment towards the game remains mixed. It seems, however, that Bethesda could try to right the wrongs in a potential sequel. A former designer at the studio has said that Starfield 2 would be “one hell of game” and build on groundwork laid down by the first game.
Speaking to Video Gamer, Bruce Nesmith, a designer who left Bethesda in 2021, said that a Starfield sequel would address issues players had with the first game.
“I'm looking forward to Starfield 2. I think it's going to be one hell of a game because it's going to address a lot of the things people are saying, ‘We're quite there. We're missing a little bit.' It will be able to take what's in there right now and put in a lot of new stuff and fix a lot of those problems,” Nesmith was quoted as saying in a feature published Friday.
According to the developer, new IPs often have a rocky start despite their good ideas, and subsequent sequels expand the scope of the first game and bring marked improvements. “If you look at the first Dragon Age, the first Assassin's Creed, the first game in a lot of IPs, they tend to show off flashes of brilliance amid a lot of other things that don't quite catch everybody's eye,” Nesmith said. “No, they're not quite as hot and popular. It takes, sadly, sometimes a second or third version of the game in order to really enrich everything.”
The former Bethesda designer said that Bethesda's Elder Scrolls franchise had evolved over several iterations, as well, with The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion improving upon The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind, before The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim brought “tremendous advantage” over Morrowind.
Bethesda has not shared any plans for a Starfield sequel yet, but the studio will likely launch a follow up at some point. The developer is currently working on multiple projects, including The Elder Scrolls 6.
In September, Besthesda released Shattered Space, the first major expansion for Starfield. The expansion, which is set on a single planet and introduces new factions, weapons, armour and more features, was not received well, especially by players. While reviews for Starfield sit at “Mixed” on Steam, Shattered Space reviews are currently “Mostly Negative” on the platform.
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