June 11’s Xbox Showcase and Starfield Direct revealed a huge amount of upcoming titles in the video game world, as well as the most in-depth dive into Bethesda’s upcoming space epic yet.
From the exhaustive character creation system to incorporating the help of NASA themselves, Bethesda are leaving no martian stone unturned in their quest to create the most immersive space exploration title ever.
One of the most staggering details from the showcase was the sheer number of possibilities the game’s planet system will offer. In true No Man’s Sky style, there’ll be over 1,000 planets for players to explore, with each generated specifically for the player in question.
Game Director Todd Howard explained in the game’s deep dive: “Starfield is our first new universe in over 25 years… Where you step into a new world and you get that feeling of unlimited possibilities. But this time it’s not just one world, it’s over 1,000 worlds… We realistically simulate the galaxy around you.”
Adding to the detail was Jean-Francois Levesque, Lead Technical Producer at Bethesda. He said: “The hand-crafted content itself comes as the player explores. Our system builds a planet as the player approaches it. We stitch together a block of terrain. After that we have a system that adds interesting locations for the player to explore, creatures to encounter [and] plants to pick up.”
“It allows us to add that touch of environmental storytelling that Bethesda is known for. Even if your friends were to visit the same planet that you have, you’d have a different story to tell.”
It’s actually difficult to fathom the level of detail Starfield is promising, as is the number of possibilities on offer in a game that produces over 1,000 planets. We’ll be sure to keep you updated on everything Starfield as we approach its release date. Barring any delays, it’s set to drop on 6 September 2023.
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