Starfield Direct’s deep dive has set the gaming world ablaze with prospects of what could be the best space RPG for the near foreseeable future. With the announcement of its official launch date, the latest conversation is about Starfield vs Star Citizen.
These are odd and unfair comparisons, given the two games are of different genres. More so is comparing the product of Bethesda’s behemoth gaming division and a company whose only game took over a decade to go from pre-alpha to alpha. Forget about Space Skyrim, the original Skyrim was yet to be launched when Cloud Imperium began working on Star Citizen. That is what makes it such a juicy prospect to compare these games: the history.
If Bethesda’s claims are true, then Starfield is their first new IP in the making for 25 years. As far as Star Citizen is concerned, most of its development cycle has been in early access and clearly the game offers a lot to keep gamers invested to such a long period. Since its first launch campaign several popular Space RPG titles have dropped and still Star Citizen is a game that keeps popping up.
Why is there suddenly a Starfield vs Star Citizen debate?
Star Citizen’s comparison right up until recently was with No Man Sky. Especially, the production and launch issues have been the focus of this comparison. Regardless, it is still a fair comparison considering that both are Multiplayer Space games with trading elements and vast universe to explore. Anything beyond that is pushing it. But with the early glimpse of Starfield, people are now starting to see the prospects of what Star Citizen is as a multiplayer space combat game.
Make no mistake, Star Citizen is an ambitious project, more than anything Sean Murray or Todd Howard could fathom. The game has tons of history as well. Much like the fact that Starfield is the gradual evolution of The Elder Scrolls and Fallout, Star Citizen is the spiritual successor to the revered Wing Commander and Freelancer series. Both games therefore share a loyal aging fanbase with a devotion to nostalgia. Despite the myriad differences between the two, it is such aspects that have sparked this Starfield vs Star Citizen debate. The emphasis here is the undying hope that at least now Star Citizen will take more proactive steps towards an official launch.
Also read – Starfield procedural generation, explained
Starfield vs Star Citizen: How about the gameplay
Star Citizen is unparalleled when it comes to combat in Space. It is the multiplayer game that continues to be a pipe dream for many fans. The refined combat gameplay and smooth traversal make it quite desirable as a space sim. The innovative modules and diverse gameplay style options that Star Citizen offers surely make it worth any hype it receives.
Starfield, on the other hand, might as well be a dark horse in terms of gameplay. Besides if anything has held previous Bethesda games back, it would certainly be gameplay elements like combat. While the deep dive gave a promising look into its seriously updated gameplay prospects, Starfield would still be far behind in those departments if Star Citizen somehow launched. Also, there is the fact that Bethesda will be launching Starfield as a strictly single player game.
Starfield vs Star Citizen: Why Starfield’s launch could hinder Star Citizen’s progress
If anything, supporters and creditors of Star Citizen have been patient. It is not easy to support a game whose release cycle is moving at a snail’s pace marred by controversy. Furthermore, Star Citizen’s early access costs $60 which is AAA full release money. Still the loyalty that the game has received has been reassuring until now. Gauging reactions to the Starfield Direct gameplay deep dive, the general consensus reveals that this could be the most well received Bethesda ever.
Yes, Starfield is an ambitious RPG. Yes, it’s a bold effort from Bethesda to make their relic of an engine create magic once more. Yes, it features what seems like great gameplay and of course, there is the prospect of great quests. But compared to Star Citizen’s crowdfunding, no fans have serious money at stake here (without considering Starfield pre-orders). What has people in awe about this game is all the other stuff. The 1000 planets which are customizable, the endless fleet of spacecrafts also customizable, the subtle yet major updates to the graphics that seem to make the game infinitely better and much more.
The additional elements you might ignore after about 5 hours of gameplay is what gamers are looking forward to with Starfield. Maybe it was the dream of an open world sandbox space RPG that Chris Roberts or Sean Murray once gave everyone that triggered this, but people are now excited at the prospect of finally having one in reality.
Starfield is slated for release on September 6, 2023, for Xbox Series X|S and PC.
