Hey so I've been playing that Starfield video game for the last couple of weeks. I'm about 25 hours in and have completed MAYBE 4 main storyline missions and haven't completed any faction missions. I'm having a wonderful time exploring the various worlds that Bethesda has created. I'd like to tell you about some of the things I'm enjoying. There won't be any spoilers beyond vague descriptions of specific events.
-Lockpicking
The lockpicking in Starfield is fantastic. It's the best lockpicking I've ever experienced in a game. I get giddy every time I see a lock that needs picking.
Imagine a set of circles with small gaps missing. That's the puzzle. On the right side of the screen you have a set of notches with which to fill the gaps in the circle(s). The more difficult a lock is, the more circles to solve and the more pieces you're provided. Once you start a puzzle, if you make a mistake, you lose one digipick. Fortunately, you are free to cycle through each set of notches and rotate them freely to pre plan your notch placements before even starting the puzzle.
It's extremely satisfying to cycle through and pre-set all your notches to then slot them into the circles back to back to back to back, solving the lock. This mechanic could legit be its own mobile game. It's that unique and fun.
-City Exploration
I'm the type of person who has to explore every nook and cranny and talk to every person in an area before moving on. Starfield's cities and settlements are a playground for me. The number of buildings to explore and people to talk to is staggering. So far, NPCs have all felt unique and like real people who live in their cities. The cities feel lived in and laid out like an actual city would be. It really helps me feel like a part of the world.
Last night I scanned a random planet and was surprised to see that it had a settlement. After landing and talking to the people there, I learned the history of the settlement. Decades ago, it served a certain purpose during a wartime. With the war long over, the settlement lost its purpose. People moved away and buildings began to fall to disrepair. Recently, various corporations have begun moving into the settlement, hoping to use it as a new hub for their own purposes.
While exploring, two NPCs I talked to previously struck up a conversation between themselves. One of them asked the other on a date. They planned the date, made a few jokes, and went back to work. It was a conversation on their own that didn't involve me at all.
This planet, that I found by total chance, has a settlement with decades of history and people who have lives. None of it effects me in any way, and yet it exists in this world. It's amazing.
-roleplaying
In Fallout 4, my most played Bethesda game, I took on any and every side mission or faction quest offered to me. I wanted to see and experience everything the game had to offer. With Starfield, I really wanted to feel like a part of the world, so I decided to create a backstory for my character and make choices based on what that character would actually do in the situation.
This has changed how I play and experience the game for the better. I've turned down around 75% of the side missions that are offered to me. Most of them are for illegal or illicit tasks that my character would absolutely never do.
This leaves me so much free time to do what I actually want to do. I'm not picking up and scavenging every corpse or box in the galaxy because I don't really need money for anything. I'm not scanning every plant or animal i see on a planet because that doesn't really advance me on any of my goals.
I'm having way more fun in conversations with NPCs by picking dialogue options my character would pick as opposed to what I would pick.
I'm not running into things I don't want to do because I say no to the things I don't want to do. It's quite freeing to just be doing what j want to do all the time.
-Shipbuilding
The shipbuilding in Starfield was something I wasn't even considering getting involved with before I played. I was assuming I would buy or find a new ship whenever I would have need of one, but I wouldn't need to mess with the manual ship building. Boy was I wrong!
Around 25% of my time playing has been spent building and rebuilding my ship. It started with me wanting to change one part, and it created a domino effect of having to upgrade EVERY part.
My brain is constantly saying things like "It wouldn't hurt to have more storage." "Let's set the hab units horizontally instead of vertically." "I wonder what this cockpit looks like." "Oh I hadn't even considered changing the color of all the parts."
Every once in a while when exploring, I'll have an idea for how to improve or change my ship in some small way and I can't wait to get to the nearest spaceport to try it out. I'm hooked.
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I'm actually hooked on a lot of Starfield's systems. I've barely done any missions because I'm having such a joy just exploring the worlds and roleplaying my character. When you meet Starfield where it's at and become a member of it's world, you truly feel like you belong. It's a testament to the time and effort the developers of Bethesda put into this massive, massive game.
