As the first new IP from Bethesda Game Studios in 25 years, there was a lot of anticipation building up towards the release of Starfield. But sometimes this anticipation can lead to disappointment. Thankfully, that doesn't appear to be the case here.
Initial reviews for Starfield landed this week and they are mostly positive across both Xbox and PC. With 50-plus reviews accounted for with each platform, Starfield currently sits at an 87 for Xbox Series X|S and an 88 for PC on review aggregator Metacritic.
Game Informer scored it an 85, acknowledging that it takes a while to find your footing, but it's ultimately a universe "well worth discovering."
IGN was a bit more critical, scoring it a 7/10. Similarly, though, the site noted that Starfield "has a lot of forces working against it, but eventually the allure of its expansive roleplaying quests and respectable combat make its gravitational pull difficult to resist.
GameSpot scored it similarly, a 7/10, praising its solid gunplay and impressive breadth of content while criticizing its uninspired main story and shallow RPG mechanics.
While some of these larger publications were a bit more critical of Starfield, many small to mid-tier sites scored it in the upper 80s to 90s. There are even quite a few perfect scores, including Game Rant, which called it the "ultimate sci-fi game."
Starfield is a sci-fi role-playing game that has often been simply described as "Skyim in space" or "Fallout in space." While there are certainly similarities with those other Bethesda titles, Starfield feels much grander in scale. I had the opportunity to play through it early as well and felt it's a return to form for Bethesda Game Studios' top-notch storytelling and compelling narrative.
In the game, you create your own character -- customizing everything from their looks to their background and traits -- and embark on an epic journey to answer humanity's greatest mystery. Of course, as you explore the universe, you'll discover thousands of planets and uncover intriguing mysteries. In typical Bethesda style, your journey will include the ability to join multiple factions, complete side quests and further customize your character through an assortment of skills. There's also ship building and modding, outpost building and more.
Starfield is currently available on Xbox Series XS and PC in early access for those who purchased the Premium Edition of the game. For anyone who purchased the Standard Edition or plans to play it for free through Xbox Game Pass, it will be released on September 6. If you do have Xbox Game Pass, you can pay a small upgrade price to the Premium Edition in order to start playing now.