The month of September promises to be cold, get your wetsuits. BETHESDA GAME STUDIOS
It’s a moment that could sum up the Starfield experience. After a fierce battle in the heart of a planetary outpost under attack by space pirates, we come across religious writings in a chest full of contraband items. These are sold at a very high price, but trading them is apparently forbidden. Without really knowing what that means, we take them on board anyway and, without giving it a second thought, head towards the Alpha Centauri system. The Ace! The local authorities scan our ship, discover the contraband and arrest us.
The beginning of a five-hour tunnel in which we will complete so many missions and at the end of which we will no longer know exactly why we came there in the first place. But that’s not a big deal: American studio Bethesda’s games have always been odes to chance, making the player put the scenario aside and get lost in the twists and turns of their virtual worlds.
With the exception of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Nintendo), no game in 2023 has been more anticipated than Starfield, which launches on Xbox and PC on September 6th. It’s the first time in almost thirty years that Bethesda Studio, known for its role-playing games set in massive open worlds, is venturing into a new universe. After Tamriel (The Elder Scrolls) and the destroyed Earth of Fallout, the new target of the giant now bought by Microsoft is our galaxy.
A classic formula
We live in the 24th century and the earth has long since become an uninhabitable desert. Humans have colonized a number of solar systems, founded cities, developed new space technologies and, of course, had time to wage war and sign peace treaties. Certain systems are thus under the control of the Colonial Union, others are grouped under the auspices of the Liber Astra Confederation, while numerous pirate gangs operate, such as the Scarlet Fleet, a kind of space mafia.
In this regard, we join the ranks of Constellation, a small, amazing and lovable group of explorers who tirelessly strive to unlock the mysteries of the universe. Among them, a wealthy industrialist, a religious enthusiast or even a former soldier, all gathered in a box decorated like an old English manor house.
The Constellation explorer team. BETHESDA GAME STUDIOS
As for form, Starfield won’t bother those used to the open worlds developed by Bethesda. The player first creates a character by choosing various traits, most notably his initial profile (diplomat, farmer, soldier, etc.) which determines his starting abilities. After that, it’s easy to progress and unlock new ones to build a balanced character. The missions are classic and the clashes on the ground very successful, thanks to the movements made possible by the jetpack, the variable gravity from one planet to another or even certain supernatural powers that are hinted at in the game’s promotional videos – and which we don’t reveal too much. Space combat is more difficult to learn and has the interesting feature of being able to link up with weakened enemy ships in order to board them.
Be prepared to walk through many poorly lit caves. BETHESDA GAME STUDIOS
Uneven writing
The main task is to investigate the “artifacts”, strange metal fragments scattered across the four corners of the galaxy that are believed to hold the mysteries of the universe. We regret that some of the most interesting ideas are sometimes introduced but never reappear, at least not during the nearly sixty hours that Le Monde has been able to devote to the game. The same observation also applies to certain plot elements that remain unresolved after the end credits. Unless, who knows, they’ll find their answer in the New Game + mode, which we haven’t been able to explore thoroughly. Nevertheless: This common thread is very convincing on the whole and gives the successful production twists and courageous moments.
The results are more mixed in the so-called “faction” quests, which are carried out on behalf of the game’s various political entities – a great classic among the studio’s games. Some are exciting and very fast-paced: The story of the Scarlet Fleet, for example, easily fits into the pantheon of the best Bethesda gaming moments. But other storylines also get lost in less imaginative missions or end abruptly despite a promising initial idea. Whatever. The heart of the studio’s games has always been offside. For example, if we happen to come across this gigantic ship in the orbit of a distant planet and its communications stop responding. Or the unexpected encounter with a monstrous alien on an otherwise deserted planet. And not to mention the teeming cities or certain planets with particularly well-done environments, highlighted by very pleasant graphics.
Thank you for the photo mode that allows you to take beautiful shots of space battles. BETHESDA GAME STUDIOS
But paradoxically, sometimes Starfield suffers from too much. As Todd Howard, director of Bethesda Games for twenty years, promised, there are a thousand stars to explore here – though most of them are deserted. But there is a price to pay. In the studio’s previous games, part of the fun was wandering around at will, gradually discovering the world map. In the gigantic Starfield, exploration is less spontaneous: it goes through a huge star map where you have to choose a system, then a planet, then a point where you want to land your ship, to which you’ll be instantly transported – without actually doing so had the opportunity to wander or get lost. On the other hand, Starfield is full of game systems to spend your time with: decorate apartments in the city, customize ships from A to Z or even build bases on the planets of your choice.
The big cities in the game are surprisingly big and rich, like here the cyberpunk city of Neon. BETHESDA GAME STUDIOS
A weakness and a strength
Given the magnitude of the title and Bethesda’s liabilities, those dissatisfied may be concerned about potential technical issues. In fact, we have not observed any major incident. Rest assured: we have still faced a series of absurd mistakes, like this time when we ourselves were wanted by the police and were arrested when we had to hand over a thief to the authorities. Unable to complete the mission, the criminal then reappeared in the most unlikely places, first alive, then, after receiving a stray bullet, in the form of a corpse, haunting our hero like the ghost of our past failures.
The world
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This is the weakness and strength of Starfield, a video game that offers the player a huge sandbox where they can choose to play sheriff or thief, tell their own stories and explore the universe at their own pace. Technically and graphically well done, it’s one of those titles where you can’t help but keep playing until you’ve discovered all of its secrets.
Pixel’s opinion
We would like:
- Completed the main quest;
- Very fun ground fights;
- The randomness specific to Bethesda games;
- A reassuring technical conclusion.
We liked less:
- Some less exciting side quests;
- A sometimes daunting exploration.
It’s more for you if…
- You’ve already spent two hundred hours with Skyrim and Fallout 4;
- You still have two hundred hours to kill;
- You like to forge your own path in open worlds.
It’s probably not for you if…
- You need a managerial adventure;
- Space bores you.
Pixel’s note:
24 out of 30 light years