Bethesda
It’s been about a year now since we got our first glimpse of it Star field‘s “No one Skyrim” game. Today, ahead of the game’s scheduled launch on September 6, Bethesda is 45 minutes long Star field Direct Presentation offered a deep dive into the game’s galactic scale and many of the systems that enable exploration on and between “more than 1,000 planets”.
The presentation opened with game director Todd Howard narrating Bethesda’s first completely new universe in 25 years. Howard said Bethesda wanted to keep the company’s trademark “feeling of being who you want to be and exploring a new world” but wanting to take it into space.
Art Director Istvan Pely was on hand to talk about the game’s “NASA punk” aesthetic, which he said was meant to evoke “the romance of the golden age of early spaceflight.” That means a kind of retro analog touch to the ships where everything feels used, worn and ‘lived in’.
An exercise in character building
The game’s core plot seems to center – at least at first – on Constellation, a legendary group described as the “last true explorers in the galaxy.” This villain’s gallery features a number of archetypal characters ranging from a space cowboy to a theologian to a businessman who finances everything.
Bethesda
Individual members of Constellation can serve as crew members on your ship, unlocking unique quest lines and awarding their skills to help complete those quests. You can also pick up new crew members from spaceports or simply meet enthusiastic crew members exploring inhabited worlds. And Bethesda promises that the friendships you make with crew members can even “grow into romance” (looking at you, Mass effect fans).
With the help of Constellation, you hunt down pieces of a mysterious artifact that seems to hint at the existence of a previously unknown intelligence. But that core mission line will be littered with Bethesda’s usual character-based missions, driven by individual NPCs you encounter throughout the galaxy.
The story takes place in a galaxy divided into three main groups. The United Colonies consider themselves “the true children of the Earth” and are centered around the city of New Atlantis, which Bethesda calls “the greatest city we’ve ever created.” Outside the Colonies, the Freestar Collective presents more of a frontier, with a sci-fi take on an Old West aesthetic. There will also be unclaimed systems full of hostile factions like the Crimson Fleet, which are under the control of the Colonies.
For Star fieldBethesda’s character creation engine says it scanned faces of different age groups and ethnicities to create a system that the developers themselves used to create every character and NPC you see in the game. After choosing from one of the 40 preset characters to get started, you can change everything from piercings to tooth settings to skin imperfections using a series of sliders.
Bethesda
In addition to physical traits, you can also choose a background for your characters with options ranging from cyberneticist to chef. These can come in handy at unexpected times during missions; maybe someone asks for a specific dish during a certain quest. You can also choose from a number of optional ‘features’, each of which has its own advantages and disadvantages. Being an “adored hero” means that fans might give you gifts, but it will also annoy you with non-stop praise and commentary.
Completing in-game challenges will earn you the usual set of points that can be applied to an extensive set of skills to customize your playing experience. Specific builds highlighted in the presentation include using a boost pack to fly over enemies and plunge them into explosive mines; polishing up “neurostrikes” to punch through combat; build up stealth skills to fight your way through challenges; or talk your way out of the scratch with charisma.
