OS Neutral StarField (Bethesda 2023, Spoilers)

[Huntn]

I'm doing an NG+, where I skipped the main quest and I'm focusing my time on the side quests. I've largely enjoyed the side quests over the main quest anyways. With the side quests underway, I'm opting for a completely evil play through. I stole something to get drafted by the UC SysDef to infiltrate the Crimson fleet (instead joining the vanguard).

The first assignment where you need to kill the former member or warn the Astraea - I blew it out of the sky, Ikabe was pissed at me.

I then killed the galbank executive on the Sirens of Stars (everyone on that ship turned hostile and I had to shoot my way out of it), Ikabe was going to arrest me, so I shot my way off the UC Vigilance and of course SysDef is now hostile to me. I'm interested to see how this questline plays through now.

I guess that means you can’t access the UC simulators? Or could you kill everyone who gets in your way and hijack them? Does the Crimson Fleet hate you too?

This is something I’ve not been able to do, play bad person. It’s why I disliked Postal, Carmageddon, and Grand Theft Auto. I have a Grandson who in Red Dead Redemption 2 would ride into a town and just start murdering people which caused me to inquire, WHY? I usually play from a perspective of morally good. In Fallout 4 there were certain characters who needed killing, where I feel it is morally justified, survival morality. I remember Kellogg the mercenary who wanted to make a deal with me. Ha Bastard! Not after what he did. And Dr. Chambers, the one who experiments on Synths, I was searching for Amelia Stockton, honestly, I can’t remember, but I want to say because of a unnamed choice I made, Dr.Chambers attacked me, and I had to kill her, but maybe not (?) anyway, then the entire Covenant Settlement became hostile…and some unfortunate deaths occurred there. 😳

 

[maflynn]

I guess that means you can’t access the UC simulators? Or could you kill everyone who gets in your way and hijack them? Does the Crimson Fleet hate you too?

Sysdef hates me, not UC. I think I should be able to join the Vanguard. I'll try that after I finish the crimson fleet quest.

I've sided with the pirates once before, and there's some interesting dialog options when finishing up the terramorph vanguard quest. I'm curious to see how that plays itself out as well.

 

[maflynn]

Starfield Releases Update 1.11.36
The update includes some new options to the difficulty setting, and performance modes for the Xbox. I've largely stopped playing but I may pick it up again. There seems to be frustration building over the DLC not showing up, people have been expecting the DLC and getting angry that it hasn't arrived.

Player counts seem to be largely stabilities for the time being around the 5k range

 

[Mackilroy]

I downloaded the update and tried it out - the ground maps are a nice addition, but I’ll wait to play through again until there’s official mod support, ground vehicles, and the DLC has released. I’m patient.

 

[maflynn]

I was curious as to how Starfield has fared on steam particularly when compared with Bethesda prior RPG games. Links are to the steam chart data. I think this hammers home how badly Bethesda misjudged what the players wanted and how different starfield is compared to the last prior RPG games that Bethesda Game Studios produced.

I may pick the game up, but by and large I've stopped playing it, I think I'm 1/2 through my 5th or 6th NG+ playthrough.

Starfield is seeing between 4,000 to 6,000 players

Fallout 76 was considered a failure though it found a dedicated niche, but now is enjoying a resurgence. Its player base is prior to the amazon series is higher then Starfield's

• Prior to the amazon series 7,000 to 8,000 player base.
• After the series 20,000

Fallout 4, wildly popular but largely panned by fallout fanboys/purists, its crazy to see even prior the major update it had 13,000 to 15,000 people playing it at any given time. Its a 9 year old game, and imo, one of the best Fallout games to come out

• Prior to the series and major update 13,000 to 15,000 players
• Afterwards 59,000 to 86,000 players

Skyrim 17,000 to 20,000 players which is crazy considering this game came out 13 years ago, Bethesda has refreshed/updated this game continually but its a masterpiece of depth, storyline and features.

Fallout 76

 

[Huntn]

Bethesda reaped what they sewed at least as far as Starfield and companion mechanics…

 

[maflynn]

Bethesda reaped what they sewed at least as far as Starfield and companion mechanics…

Companions are the least of their issues with the game. The shear lack of detail, and POIs, the boring redundant act of going to the temples are the two major issues as I see them

 

[jb310]

I made it NG+4 earlier this year in Starfield, and as much as I want to like it, it's just... kind of underwhelming? I've grown addicted to the Bethesda open-world formula, but the fact is that there's so little to do in Starfield once you get past the major quests and the repetitive repeatable side-quests.

For a game about exploration, there's just not a lot of genuinely interesting places to actually explore, and even the randomly-generated dungeons are laid out almost the same each time. 😅

...though as much as I complain, I know I'm almost certainly going to get the DLC as soon as it's out. Oh well... maybe I'm part of the problem. 🤷‍♂️

 

[Huntn]

I made it NG+4 earlier this year in Starfield, and as much as I want to like it, it's just... kind of underwhelming? I've grown addicted to the Bethesda open-world formula, but the fact is that there's so little to do in Starfield once you get past the major quests and the repetitive repeatable side-quests.

For a game about exploration, there's just not a lot of genuinely interesting places to actually explore, and even the randomly-generated dungeons are laid out almost the same each time. 😅

...though as much as I complain, I know I'm almost certainly going to get the DLC as soon as it's out. Oh well... maybe I'm part of the problem. 🤷‍♂️

I was initially really impressed by the planets, their feel and quality, but as mentioned, it will not take long to start running into copies of the same facilities, and not really much of significance to discover. Yes, it was the companions that initially annoyed me, but I liked building ships, i liked dogfighting although in the simulator it was a bit formulaic, but then things as spread out as they were seemed disjointed, not a lot to do on each planet… and being surrounded by shallow people with limited conversation skills finally got me to quit. 😳

 

[maflynn]

Starfield Update 1.12.30 Update

I'm downloading the update now, but looking on reddit, and steam its not being received very positively. One could use the phrase review bomb for this update.

 

[Huntn]

Sep 2024- I started a new game, I have not pre-purchased the DLC. I did not finish Starfield the first time. Take this post as coming from someone who is approaching this game in a critical manner, somehow hoping that I like it more this time. And I’ve invested several hundred hours in this game. Note, I’ve grown to dislike the music, which is in stark contrast to every Bethesda game before it. The music reminds me of the Institute in Fallout 4, which in that setting, I did not mind. 😳

That said, I like my original character, so I just rolled back to one of the first saves at the mine. I made my way to Constellation and what struck me is how shallow the setup for this story is. You find a mysterious object, in a mine on a planet, a stranger flies in followed by bandits (which is ok), but then basically says “oh you found an object, here, it’s not really my ship, but you take it while I hang out here, and and go talk to Constellation about it, ok?” Then when you get to Constellation, it’s basically “you found an object and saw a light show, we don’t know zip about you, or your scientific knowledge, that’s enough to join our band of explorers.”

Well, ok, and somehow scrapping by as a mine grunt, I have a mortgage on a decent house (not really a dream home) on a different planet. Yes, I choose this as one of the available starts, but it still strikes me as a bit disjointed.

I don’t want to sound overly critical, but maybe…🤔 This doesn’t mean I’ve quit it, but it’s on shaky ground.
Another observation, this game despite my critiques makes it much more difficult for me to ever return to X4, which has zero relationships, that’s all about ships, combat, and trade routes, which was ok for X3… 😜

 

[Huntn]

Save Often, check points are not permanent, and don’t kill the wrong people or else! 😬
I know the danger of killing an innocent by accident with companion Sarah Morgan. At the first wrong shot she screams, “I can’t be part of this!“ and flees so I try to be careful. 🤔

I’m now on a recently started game, I completed a sequence where I found a relic and Andrej, returned to Atlantis to turn it in, pick her as a companion. I previously made best friends with Sarah, she’s not my type for romance, but she is very friendly as in close friends. We leave Atlantis, and go to the Eye for some relic talk with Vladimir, I had Sarah, Barret, and Matrika on the ship. Apparantly none of this generated an auto save. Keep reading.

Raging Sarah
So to the point, I decided to do 2 Freestar bounty quests, one was to rescue a hostage in a hijacked ship. I swear every target I shot at was red (aggroed), but apparantly I killed the ship with the hostage on it, not exactly sure. I did not see a blue quest marker on it. Getting out of my seat, Sarah literally raged at me with disgust, “What You Have Done!!!” On a curious note, there is a dialog option, “What did I do?” and that was really me at the time , and the reply: “YOU KNOW WHAT YOU DID” (YOU POS ) and “DON’T PLAY GAMES WITH ME!”, lol. 😳

Starfield: Why Is Sarah Morgan Mad At Me? (Answered)

Wondering why is Sarah Morgan mad at you in Starfield? Check out our guide to find out all the reasons why Sarah Morgan is really angry with you.

gamertweak.com

She managed to say, “We in Constillation only have the highest standards, and I question if I should be traveling with you!“ Damn, I messed up, AI could fix this! 🤔 And this is nothing that a previous save can’t fix, right? Kind of…with the loss of a hour of game play.

Somehow I was able to roll back to the beginning of this fight, “last checkpoint” but apparantly there was no permanent save of this, keep reading. Rerolled and got through this without a Snarling Sarah.

Went on to (seperate quest) kill a Crimson Fleet Captain, and here I disabled the ship, killed the crew, got a quest complete message and then took the new ship to The Den to register in my name. If you know the drill, when you capture an enemy ship in this game, some magic happens, your crew auto transfers to the new ship and your old ship disappears into the ether until you recall it.

So I walk into The Den (space station) and notice Andreja is not with me, so returning to the ship, it’s the same thing all over again, Sarah raging, Barret being sarcastic, Andreja no where to be found. I have no clue. 😳

The icing on this cake is that when attempting to revert to a save just before this, there are none, going back to the point where I first meet Andreja, but we still need to retrieve the relic, I already turned in. Apparantly ’check points’ are not permanent. 😡

Finally, for the devs, if your crew members are monitoring the fight and know who you are shooting at, and will get furious, a little warning from them, ”that’s a friendly” would be nice. 🙃 After the fact, there is no way to get them to describe what you did wrong, and at that point if you want to continue, all you can do is apologize, but I assume your companion will still hate you, or revert to neutrality with all good will flushed and it’s not easy to get back.

 

[Queen6]

Doom, Super Shotgun, done deal LOL. NPC's are either with you or against you, the latter BOOM... Play more S.T.A.L.K.E.R. the NPC's will off you if your not careful with your words & actions...

Q-6

 

[Huntn]

Doom, Super Shotgun, done deal LOL. NPC's are either with you or against you, the latter BOOM... Play more S.T.A.L.K.E.R. the NPC's will off you if your not careful with your words & actions...

Q-6

So the Devs set you up to be killed if you’re too much of an *******! 😂

 

[Huntn]

Save Often, check points are not permanent, and don’t kill the wrong people or else! 😬
I know the danger of killing an innocent by accident with companion Sarah Morgan. At the first wrong shot she screams, “I can’t be part of this!“ and flees so I try to be careful. 🤔

I’m now on a recently started game, I completed a sequence where I found a relic and Andrej, returned to Atlantis to turn it in, pick her as a companion. I previously made best friends with Sarah, she’s not my type for romance, but she is very friendly as in close friends. We leave Atlantis, and go to the Eye for some relic talk with Vladimir, I had Sarah, Barret, and Matrika on the ship. Apparantly none of this generated an auto save. Keep reading.

Raging Sarah
So to the point, I decided to do 2 Freestar bounty quests, one was to rescue a hostage in a hijacked ship. I swear every target I shot at was red (aggroed), but apparantly I killed the ship with the hostage on it, not exactly sure. I did not see a blue quest marker on it. Getting out of my seat, Sarah literally raged at me with disgust, “What You Have Done!!!” On a curious note, there is a dialog option, “What did I do?” and that was really me at the time , and the reply: “YOU KNOW WHAT YOU DID” (YOU POS ) and “DON’T PLAY GAMES WITH ME!”, lol. 😳

View attachment 2436454

Starfield: Why Is Sarah Morgan Mad At Me? (Answered)

Wondering why is Sarah Morgan mad at you in Starfield? Check out our guide to find out all the reasons why Sarah Morgan is really angry with you.

gamertweak.com

She managed to say, “We in Constillation only have the highest standards, and I question if I should be traveling with you!“ Damn, I messed up, AI could fix this! 🤔 And this is nothing that a previous save can’t fix, right? Kind of…with the loss of a hour of game play.

Somehow I was able to roll back to the beginning of this fight, “last checkpoint” but apparantly there was no permanent save of this, keep reading. Rerolled and got through this without a Snarling Sarah.

Went on to (seperate quest) kill a Crimson Fleet Captain, and here I disabled the ship, killed the crew, got a quest complete message and then took the new ship to The Den to register in my name. If you know the drill, when you capture an enemy ship in this game, some magic happens, your crew auto transfers to the new ship and your old ship disappears into the ether until you recall it.

So I walk into The Den (space station) and notice Andreja is not with me, so returning to the ship, it’s the same thing all over again, Sarah raging, Barret being sarcastic, Andreja no where to be found. I have no clue. 😳

The icing on this cake is that when attempting to revert to a save just before this, there are none, going back to the point where I first meet Andreja, but we still need to retrieve the relic, I already turned in. Apparantly ’check points’ are not permanent. 😡

Finally, for the devs, if your crew members are monitoring the fight and know who you are shooting at, and will get furious, a little warning from them, ”that’s a friendly” would be nice. 🙃 After the fact, there is no way to get them to describe what you did wrong, and at that point if you want to continue, all you can do is apologize, but I assume your companion will still hate you, or revert to neutrality with all good will flushed and it’s not easy to get back.

I’ve gotten past this, and am now more vigilant about who I’m attacking in orbit. Usually I pop into orbit and the bad guys are red, which means they are aggroed on me. However, There are cases where I pop into the scene, and there is a mix of enemies and friendless. Typically enemies are red icons, but not always, not until they notice me. My mistake, here’s a case were without paying attention to ships, I targeted a friendly, who shoot back, turning red, and earned the ire of my crew. 🫤

 

[Homy]

 

[Huntn]

Thanks! You just convinced to me stay away from Shattered Space. 🫤

My favorite comment from this video, describing your companions as “planks of wood“. I can confirm.🙃 Of note this video describes Cyberpunk 2077 as a game with many technical issues at launch, that were fixed. I played near launch and never had any problems with it. That said…

Starfield instead has fundamental structural issues. When Fallout 4 came out, I fell in love with almost everything about it. For 2015, the companions are good. At that time, I did not mind not having a conversation with my companion unless they were compelled to lay their troubles in my lap. Glad to help!

SPOILERS Poor Starfield writing and terrible conversation dynamics.
Yesterday, in Starfield, I pursued Andreja’s (a companion) quest. There are some eye opening things revealed. She was a spy for House Vu’Ruun, spying on Constellation, if this was a situation in my real life, I would have turned her in, in a heart beat, but this is a game, and she is the best romanceble companion, 😉 so I gave her some slack.

A decade prior, HV decided to have them eliminated for unclear reasons and she, “close” friends, some were killed and some escaped, including her and she hasn’t talked to them for 10 years and now she feels guilty about this. Gee Sarah, another companion, also felt guilty about crew mates she abandoned too. 🤔

So we search, one friend has been murdered by Vu’Roon zealots, another now a UC Officer, hates her guts for deserting them, and then her old handler Tomisar.

We make contact with the UC officer, she rages at Andreja, but after a sudden space ship ship fight, we save her and the resulting dialog is god aweful. No “thanks for saving my ass, let’s talk about our past.” It’s “get lost“.

For the handler, Tomisar, the betrayal, and manipulation and unapologetic murdering of these operatives just because their usefulness was deemed to have expired is the grounds for serious conflict. The rage Andreja feels, but this Tomisar is her “only link” back to her home world. She does not know where it is, because it’s a secret, and she was never told. Because he’s the only link, I talk her out of killing him. But when he threatens her, I shoot him. And when I turn to her and engage dialog, she looks at me and asks the typical “how are you?” What? I’d expect a reaction, being upset, a hug, and acknowledgement, or a post-violence discussion or reflection. NOTHING. It’s as if she’s already been comparmented out of this drama.

Of note, I rolled the game back and tried again, this time I did not shoot him, but punched him, (he needed a good punch), but apparantly that’s enough to kill him. 🤔 So I gave up and stuck with the ending where he lived, so she might have hope of seeing her home world and family again.

Back at the lodge, I have a ♥️ to ❤️ with her and am given the opportunity to tell her I love her. She tells me she feels the same and that she’s a one person relationship type, no messing around. Agreed. So do we fall into bed, a kiss, a hug, hold hands? 😳 No nothing. Arms length, no lovey dovey talk, and when I select “sleep” in the morning I’m rewarded with her fully clothed as she climbs out of bed, in her same old space ship clothes and she rewards me with “I learned some things last night, maybe I have more to learn” but by all means don’t kiss me! 😝

In this regard CP 2077 leaves Starfield in the dust, no comparison in social interaction, where there, not only can you actually get PG-13/R laid, but after, your girl or boy friend actually wants to talk to you, even if it is via text messages. 🥰

 

[txa1265]

My favorite comment from this video, describing your companions as “planks of wood“. I can confirm.🙃 Of note this video describes Cyberpunk 2077 as a game with many technical issues at launch, that were fixed. I played near launch and never had any problems with it. That said…

In this regard CP 2077 leaves Starfield in the dust, no comparison in social interaction, where there, not only can you actually get PG-13/R laid, but after, your girl or boy friend actually wants to talk to you, even if it is via text messages. 🥰

Similar experience - and I think that PC gamers saw something that was unfinished with some issues ... but for consoles (PS especially) it was a nightmare, and so that was largely the image that stuck. For me it was cool but it wasn't until I replayed last year on Steam Deck with Phantom Liberty and 2.0 patch that I totally fell in love - could have been me as much as the game.

But playing Starfield and replaying chunks a few times over the last year has convinced me that Starfield will simply never be remotely as good of a game as CP2077. The infrastructure is just mediocre to the core.

 

[Huntn]

Similar experience - and I think that PC gamers saw something that was unfinished with some issues ... but for consoles (PS especially) it was a nightmare, and so that was largely the image that stuck. For me it was cool but it wasn't until I replayed last year on Steam Deck with Phantom Liberty and 2.0 patch that I totally fell in love - could have been me as much as the game.

But playing Starfield and replaying chunks a few times over the last year has convinced me that Starfield will simply never be remotely as good of a game as CP2077. The infrastructure is just mediocre to the core.

Yeah, when I played/playing CP2077 on my PC, no real issues for me. As you know, I’m currently schlepping through Starfield, despite holding my nose when it comes to poor companion interactions (it’s the writers/developer’s fault), I enjoy shipbuilding, kicking other ship‘s asses in short order, and I’m actually looking forward to this big mystery with the artifacts. And the Crimson Fleet quest chain so far has been OK.

That video posted, a couple of post back, talking about the DLC Shattered Space really makes me hesitant to even go that way, and the story itself was heavily critiqued. Also of note the companion, Andreja who comes from House Vi’Ruun apparently doesn’t have anything, or much to say about the scenario, which kind of blows my mind . The environment doesn’t look all that appealing. Honestly, I don’t know how it fits in with the original story. I assume something that happens after the original story? 🤔

 

[Huntn]

I downloaded the update and tried it out - the ground maps are a nice addition, but I’ll wait to play through again until there’s official mod support, ground vehicles, and the DLC has released. I’m patient.

Is Starfield mod support not currently there but planned Or are you referencing the DLC?

 

[Mackilroy]

It had not yet been released. It is now.

 

[Huntn]

Spoilers
Progressing through the Crimson Fleet Quests, I'm not sure if you can do this a a disgruntled UC Citizen who wants to be an outlaw, but I'm doing it as an undercover agent for the UC who wants to hammer them.

I need to infiltrate a Top Secret Space Station to steal a prototype decription device, a Spike Com, so we come into the station on a freighter delivering supplies.

• I tell my companion to wait by the door of the freight area. Two of us could be a problem we don't want.
• I sneak into locker room steal and put on a uniform, so no one will question a new face.
• I break into a computer and the pass code I need (impersonating an officer), because they don't use Face ID, nor do they have images of you in their database.
• I head through the checkpoint and am asked for my pass code which I give. And then the guard asks, "what about your friend"?!! Shocked, I turn and there is Andreja who says "I'm with her."
  • "Oh, ok" is the replay. 😂
• I talk to the head scientist.
  • Who are you?
  • Chit chat, "I requested some pilots this morning for test runs."
  • "I'm your new pilot" I did have to convince him a little verbally. 😉
• And there's a second checkpoint the guard says "your two must be together" as we pass through. So much for security protocol in Starfield. No wonder it was a synch to steal their top secret ship. 🤣

 

[Huntn]

My gosh there are several events that you experience in this game which should be awe inspiring (acquiring a power that comes from a mysterious ancient temple), you witness it, make it happen, your companion witnesses the mechanism, multiple huge spinning rings, and the event.

And although they don't see the vision you have, or I assume don't see the light show or hear the music, it's still one heck of an impressive sight with just the rings. And after you have completed your task, and maybe are another step closer to understanding, you companion does not run up to you agog, in fact has absolutely nothing to say about it at all. Your are both in Constellation looking for these things to unwrap a mystery of the galaxy. The lack of an ongoing discussion on the scene of an event is so disappointing.

And the powers at Constellation, know your are absorbing energy, actually acquiring significant physical power that you can exert into the enviroment, using it in combat, and nothing is said about examining you, although if you ask, they will say they are 'monitoring' you and don't seem concerned about you being altered. It's like becoming a Marvel mutant... mysterious physical powers...

Companion Talk- Approach your companion to talk. You get the standard dialogs, Trade, Can I ask you a personal questions, how do you feel about us, all discussed before (all conversations dim). If you click out of the discussion without asking anything, you'll get "I enjoy our little discussions" even though we did not talk about anything.

 

[Huntn]

Spoilers
I completed the Crimson Fleet Quest Chain. I'm not sure if this can be approached separate from SecDef as in just join, or go there on behalf of SecDef as an undercover agent, which I did. Now I'm at the end and it makes me sad to kill pirates I more or less have a relationship with.

Crimson Fleet vs SecDef UC
​

I have a strategic save, I can go back an double cross SecDef if I want to, but my understanding is that most companions in the game will be mad at me, which can be overcome, still. And what about United Colonies who I'm a citizen of now, does it effect me with them? Being part of Constellation, I'm on Akila quire a bit, a UC Planet. My understanding is that SecDef the military part of United Colonies, will hunt you, but somehow you can still come and go on Akila? I really can't imagine UC to be ok with this, but maybe it is. The articles I read says that if you side with the Crimson Fleet and will mess up many of the bounty board missions which go after illegal activity, often conducted by Crimson Fleet pirates.

I have no qualms about killing pirates, they never surrender, so usually there are no exceptions for surrender, except in this quest line there are 2 notable chances to talk pirates into surrendering. I won't say who, but one who's

Spoiler: Plot Spoiler

been so mean to me, I really had no real sympathy for him, except to save his life.

Starfield: Should You Side With the UC SysDef or Crimson Fleet?

The finale of the Crimson Fleet’s quests in Starfield has you choosing between the pirates or UC SysDef in the Legacy’s End quest. It’s a pretty significant choice with some serious consequences since you’re deciding which of these two factions will come out on top. In order to make sure you’re...

sirusgaming.com

 

[Huntn]

Just Finished the Freestar Quest Line, confronted Ron Hope. It did not feel complete at all.

Spoiler: Plot Spoiler

Getting into a gun fight with the owner of a large corporation, member of the Freestar Board of Governors, and his security forces, when he tries to have you arrested, a Freestar Deputy, after he's implicated in a plot to steal land, that ends up with dead farmers. He and 3 security personnel are killed.

And to then just walk out without a mountain of explanation and questions feels unfinished to me. If you stop by the local Ranger Office, you can't give them a heads up and they are not aware, or don't care, that you killed the CEO and owner of the Corporation that Hope Town depends on...