Starfield, the highly anticipated space RPG from Bethesda, has sparked intense debate within the gaming community since its release. While many players have enjoyed its vast exploration and storytelling, others have pointed out frustrating aspects that impact the overall experience. Among the most prominent criticisms is the opinion of Kurt Kuhlmann, former co-designer of Skyrim, who argues that Starfield never fully came together as a game.
Too much bureaucracy and a team that is too large brings nothing good
Kuhlmann, who was part of the team during the development of the title, suggested in a recent interview that the game should have been delayed to improve its quality. According to him, many of the problems faced by the team were due to increasing bureaucracy and a complexity in decision-making, which complicated communication between the various departments involved in the project. This more complicated work environment contrasted with the more direct dynamic that existed during the development of Skyrim.
Apparently, the echoes of the problematic launch of Fallout 76 also influenced the decision to extend the development time of Starfield, in order to avoid repeating the same mistakes. Kuhlmann emphasized that creating a new intellectual property (IP) like Starfield brought significant challenges, turning up to 50% of the development into a completely new process.
Rumors suggest that Bethesda is working on Starfield 2.0 and a future expansion that could redeem some of the questionable aspects of the game. The hope is that these improvements will help restore player confidence and elevate the title to the heights of the expectations that have accompanied the company’s veterans, such as Skyrim and Fallout 4. However, it remains to be seen how these concerns will be addressed in the future.