Like previous open-world games developed by Bethesda, Starfield obviously has its share of bugs. But according to Pete Hines, editor-in-chief of the studio, keeping some of these quirks helps maintain the charm and “chaos” of the title.
If you have already played the previous open worlds developed by Bethesda, whether Skyrim or Fallout 4, you know that the studio’s teams are renowned for creating detailed universes in which we like to get lost… Universes that are also particularly buggy. This reputation Bethesda has been dragging around for years and years, earning it the nickname Bugthesda from gamers.
Inevitably, with the event release of Starfield this September 6, 2023 on PC and Xbox Series X / S, their brand new license for more than 20 years, the American studio was expected at the turn on this point. And if technically, the game will not be officially released until this Wednesday, the title is already in the hands of the press, influencers without forgetting the players who have pre-ordered the Collector’s editions of the game (early access from September 1) .
Starfield is buggy, that’s undeniable
For our part, we have also had the game for a few days, and after about ten hours spent exploring the solar systems, we can confirm it: yes, Starfield has bugs. Nevertheless, and let us render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s, Starfield remains the most accomplished and polished Bethesda production released to date.
Yes, we encountered a few bugs, like objects suddenly flying around a room, NPC heads suddenly disappearing during dialogue, enemy bodies flying all over the place once killed. … Our companions have also found a way to breathe in the voidsince it happens very, very often that they go out into space without putting on a suit.
Also read: Starfield – a nasty bug prevents players from launching the game even if they are entitled to early access
For Bethesda, bugs are part of the charm of their games
In our opinion, all these bugs lend more to smile than anything else, and never really ruin the gaming experience (no crashes or corrupt saves for example). Immersion obviously takes a hit, but that’s it. And for Bethesda Editor-in-Chief Pete Hines, bugs are part of the charm of their productions. In an interview with our colleagues at Gamesindustry.biz, the framework suggests that bugs are less important than the feeling of freedom offered to players:
“Bethesda Game Studios is famous for the things that happen in its games, it’s true. What people too often forget is that some of these events are intentional, which means we accept chaos. We could make a safer, less buggy, less risky game if we wanted to. But what we try to highlight is the freedom of the player. Yes, there will be a few things here and there where your mate will sometimes stand a little too close to you, but the freedom you get and the things that happen because of it, we absolutely love and embrace” , assures Pete Hines.
He pursues : “Of course, there are bugs. But does it hurt your experience? Or do you have a consistent, fun game that you can’t stop playing and experimenting with? And you, what do you think of Pete Hines’ point of view? That bugs are a deliberate part of Bethesda games or that it’s a nice show on the part of the manager to justify the quirks present in Starfield and the studio’s previous titles? Tell us in the comments.