UPDATE: 2023/03/08 10:14 EST BY KYLE GRATTON
Starfield Release Date Confirmed For September 6, 2023
Bethesda Softworks has confirmed via the Starfield Twitter that the planet-hopping science fiction RPG is now planned to release on September 6, 2023. Previously, the release date had been delayed from its original - November 11, 2022 - to an indefinite window in the first half of 2023. Screen Rant's original story, which was published shortly after news of the original November 2022 release date, continues below.
Bethesda and Microsoft knew what viewers expected when opening their E3 2021 presentation with the highly anticipated Starfield and The Elder Scrolls VI were revealed to be in development at Bethesda's E3 2018 showcase. At the time, almost no information was given about the spacefaring RPG, but it was noted that Starfield would be the first original IP created by Bethesda in over two decades. Although no Starfield gameplay was shown this year, fans do at least know when they'll be able to get their hands on the game.
Starfield is launching on November 11, 2022 for the Xbox Series X/S and PC. Last year's Microsoft buyout of Zenimax, Bethesda's parent company, secured console exclusivity to Xbox platforms for Starfield, which was reportedly in negotiations to become exclusive to PlayStation. Though they take a long time to develop, Bethesda's RPGs, like The Elder Scrolls and Fallout, are generally landmark releases, and could certainly be a major contributor to pushing gamers toward the Xbox ecosystem from here on out.
Speculation never seems to stop in the video games industry, and it had recently been rumored that Spring 2022 might be the release window for Starfield, but that has now been proven a bit too optimistic. Bethesda's brand new universe in Starfield is reportedly one of the largest the developer has ever created, so it's not entirely surprising that fans will have to wait over a year from the release date announcement to the actual launch.
There's Still No Starfield Gameplay Footage
It's nice to finally have a release date and Game confirmation for Starfield, and an end to the constant speculation, but many fans won't be satisfied until Starfield's gameplay has been revealed. That said, there's some fairly easy guesswork that could be used in envisioning what Starfield might be like. Bethesda Game Studios has a very refined formula. Skyrim and Fallout 4 are structured quite similarly apart from their different narrative genres. Fallout 4 expanded on Skyrim in a few ways, including more diegetic looting menus and a much more expansive crafting system, so similar advancements can be expected of Starfield.
Although Starfield is an ambitious new undertaking for Bethesda, it's doubtful they will make a significant gameplay departure from what they've become well known for. However, the interplanetary setting does offer some room for innovation in locomotion. The Elder Scrolls has ridable horses, but Starfield has the potential for even something as big as flyable spacecraft. The exact scope Bethesda is hoping to achieve with Starfield is still unknown, but the jump to entirely next-gen is an exciting prospect for the celebrated RPG creators.
Source: Starfield/Twitter
