Bethesda’s upcoming sci-fi RPG is one of gaming’s most hotly anticipated games. Their first new IP in 25 years was recently pushed back to a September release, where it will launch as a timed Xbox exclusive. Promising a vast galaxy of explorable planets, a unique futuristic setting set around the year 2310, and a myriad of new systems, Bethesda has fans eagerly awaiting Starfield.

Expectations are at an all-time high, but can Bethesda deliver? Their games have generally been well-received, but their open-world RPGs have never been without problems. Here’s what we are hoping Starfield will improve on.

Better Creation Club Integration

One of Bethesda’s innovations in recent years has been its introduction of the Creation Club. First added to Skyrim, this system allowed players to browse, purchase, and download mods and addons within the game, knowing they would be directly supporting the content makers rather than just Bethesda. It’s a great idea and one they continued to support in Fallout 4. 

Although they haven’t confirmed that Starfield will include Creation Club, it seems likely. The problem with Creation Club is that it never fully integrated with the game, allowing players to break the balance of the game by accessing powerful armor immediately, not confining within the lore of the game, or simply not offering a representative selection of the community’s content. If Bethesda is looking to continue to support Creation Club, it needs to be integrated better.

Refined Third-Person Gameplay

Being able to switch between first and third-person perspectives has always been a unique selling point in games. Ever since 2002’s Morrowind, this choice has been available to players, but it’s never been a balanced experience. Although Skyrim and Fallout 4 made improvements in this area, first-person remains the preferred way to play. We have already seen that this feature isn’t going anywhere with Starfield, but it needs some serious refinement before players can comfortably experience the whole game in the third person. The option is there, so it should at least be a pleasant option.

Fewer Bugs!

There’s one word that is synonymous with Bethesda RPGs: jank. To put it nicely, the Fallout 76 developer’s ambition has always outreached its means. They specialize in vast, expansive open worlds filled with detailed interactions, intricate scripting, and NPCs with daily routines. Of course there are going to be issues! But, unfortunately, it seems that as the games get bigger, sales figures inflate, and budgets expand. Bethesda isn’t getting any closer to squashing their bug problem. 

With the release of Fallout 76 – arguably their most ambitious game to date – fans experienced yet another shaky, bug-ridden launch. The game didn’t work properly for at least a year, despite rigorous patching. We’re expecting some jank with Starfield, but Bethesda owes its player base a smoother launch. It doesn’t seem like they’re stepping down in ambition, though, so we’ll just keep our fingers crossed.

Only time will tell whether Starfield measures up to our shared expectations. Did we miss anything? What are you hoping for with Bethesda’s next RPG? Let us know in the comments below!