Starfield (2023)

So this is kind of weird, because it's not like I'm super into Starfield or anything, but I did order one of the Series X console wraps:

I actually ordered it well before Starfield launched, and it's because it's the closest I think I'll get to having a white Series X (I miss my Series S 😢). Also, I can pretend the little rainbow means my Xbox celebrates Pride!

There are apparently two other Series X console wraps, but when I try to view them on the Xbox site they just seem to come up as blank images.

Really impressed with the facial animations and lip syncing in Starfield. It borderlines the uncanny valley often, but when the animation blending is smooth it really shines.

Maybe I just haven't played enough AAA games lately, but it's the first time i've really just sat and stared at a characters lips and face... sounds weird now I've said it out loud. Even the way their mouths move when forming words is pretty impressive. Their emotions come through very well in their facial and body language too.

Here's a heavily compressed gif I made that hopefully illustrates it well:)

Few hours in and i'm really loving the atmosphere and NASA-Punk style. The story that kicks off your adventure has grabbed my interest but it isn't phenomenal. I'm just loving the music and exploration at the moment. The soundtrack swells at just the right moments and I get the feeling that Inon Zur, the composer (all hail fallout 3s theme), really understands what makes John Williams work in Star Wars so atmospheric - some brilliant Star Wars-esque pieces here whilst also feeling unique to Inon.

The standout for me though is the graphical fidelty especially in the indoor environemnts. The photo mode really highlights how nice the game can look and I have a feeling that i'll be using it non-stop.

Didn't think i'd be saying this but shoutout to this misc prop object. I love the misc and non misc items you can find laying around in Bethesda games and this seemingly random object caught my attention and reminded me of a minature lightsaber.

My only gripe with the game so far is that there's a lack of draw and desk rumaging. Can't seem to open many desks or drawers and I've got that looting itch! You can open lockers and other containers though. Also not being able to fully loot an enemy of everything they have including their outfits is a bit weird to me. Hope we aren't getting a watered down scavenging system.

Around 3.5 - 4 hours in, and I think Starfield is actually pretty good. I love the visual design, it's like Interstellar meets a more realistic Mass Effect. The story thus far is kinda rote but I like the explorer's society and how the world is being built as they drip feed information. I'm not a shooter fan but I put up with it for interesting exploration and stories, so I can't really speak to the shooting being good or bad because it's not my taste so guns all taste kinda bad.

God the price was right though; Game Pass is too good a deal, I just love how many different things I get to play for "free" with the membership.

Oh man, what a day already.

Just woke up, checked twitter (I'm not gonna say X) and people are already complaining about the game. "nO waTeR sPlAshY SpLasH like other oPeN woRlD gAmEs!" "iTs booOOOooRiNg" "GrAphIcZ bAD" "bG3 bEtTer".

that's without opening Reddit. I then opened up Youtube, and its even worse. people posting videos where they're genuinely mad, screaming their lungs out! and I'm just laughing and having fun with the chaos.

This is, truly, a Gamer day. don't open social media for your sanity and safety. enjoy your game people. this is gonna be a wild day on the internet.

I had an extended weekend with Labor Day and I spent the whole dang thing playing Starfield. Now, I'm at work and just want to play more Starfield. I think it's a big step up for Bethesda in most ways. The action, dialogue, quest variety, and side activities (I'm putting starship combat, surveying, etc. in here) are all the best Bethesda has put out. I'll have to see how I feel about the larger plotlines -- I'm still fairly early in the main quest and the major factions, but the side quests have definitely had much better writing in general. There are some annoyances with the inventory system, travel on land being a bit too slow, running into repeated locations in the procedurally generated portions, and so on, but they just aren't that big of a deal to me compared to how much I'm enjoying the game overall.

All that said, I don't plan on doing a mega-playthrough right now. I'll probably be playing for another week or two to do the main quest, a major faction, and whatever sidequests that tickle my fancy and then calling it for now. I want to leave myself plenty of meat from the base game for future playthroughs to go along with the paid DLC, creator's club content, and, most importantly, free mods. I'm sure I'll be back every year or two for a very long time to come.