First Impressions: Bethesda has yet to break free from the formula they created 15 years ago with Fallout 3: Starfield is Fallout in space, and being the fan of Bethesda RPGs that I am, I love it! Aside from the obvious No Mans Sky comparisons, if you're expecting anything drastically more than that, you're probably going to be disappointed.

Final Impressions: Yeah I kinda hate this now. Starfield would've been impressive 15 years ago, but in the year of our lord 2023, this is unacceptable. I thought my appreciation and nostalgia for the "Bethesda formula" would be enough, but the industry has evolved and so have I. The story is uninteresting; exploration feels meaningless and unrewarding; resource management cumbersome and unnecessarily punishing for a game that actively encourages it; traveling from planet to planet is painfully slow even though, again, the game actively encourages it; the side quest are the highlight but even those feel inconsequential and linear. Bethesda, the smoke and mirrors are fading. It's time to evolve.