440°

Todd Howard says that Bethesda is "putting the finishing touches on Starfield"

From Games Radar: "Starfield, Bethesda's first new IP in 25 years was recently delayed from November 11, 2022, and given a TBC 2023 release window. Naturally, this made some players worry about how production was progressing on what is arguably the most anticipated upcoming Xbox Series X games. Thankfully, Bethesda Game Studios' game director and executive producer confirmed that the studio has almost completed its work on the game, during a media briefing ahead of E3 2022: "We're putting the finishing touches on Starfield, which is an incredible opportunity for us," says Howard.

Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer also says that he believes Starfield will be seen as a "hallmark" of the ZeniMax Media acquisition, which was completed in March 2021 and brought teams like Arkane, Bethesda, MachineGames, and id Software into Xbox Game Studios.

"Starfield for me is a unique opportunity. Todd Howard has been a friend for an awful long time, and the fact that Bethesda Game Studios is working on a new IP, which has been a long time [coming]... This will be a hallmark for us – in terms of the acquisition of ZeniMax, getting to work with Todd, and bringing this game to market." "

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Christopher778d ago

Nothing new or worthwhile past the title. The rest of what they say is usual marketing jargon we hear almost weekly as it is.

SullysCigar778d ago

Thanks for saving me the time.

Tbh, my instinct was to stop reading after "Todd Howard says" given what's transpired in the past.

VenomUK778d ago

Something doesn't add up. If the game is genuinely having the 'finishing touches' added (meaning near-complete and having final tuning adjustments) then surely it should meet the original 11th November release date? Does this mean Starfield was prematurely delayed by Microsoft out of an abundance of caution following the Halo Infinite criticism and it will actually surprise everything at its 'E3' presentation with a release this year?

Obscure_Observer778d ago

"Tbh, my instinct was to stop reading after "Todd Howard says" given what's transpired in the past."

And yet here you are for a game that is nothing but his idea, concept, executive production, direction and overall vision. :/

Not sure who should be trusted this days.

porkChop778d ago

@Venom
"If the game is genuinely having the 'finishing touches' added (meaning near-complete and having final tuning adjustments) then surely it should meet the original 11th November release date?"

Bethesda have a track record of releasing buggy games and fixing them after launch. With the Xbox acquisition they could maybe be looking to turn a new leaf. So maybe Bethesda and Xbox want to delay it and avoid the usual launch issues.

Also since this is a current gen-only game they might want to take extra time to optimize performance and polish up the graphics. I'm sure they want Starfield to be a showcase and the start of a new era for Bethesda.

778d ago
VenomUK778d ago

@porkChop Yes, you’re likely right. The game could be done and the rest of the time is big squeaking and optimisation. But I will still be keeping my fingers crossed until Sunday that there could be a good surprise!

anubusgold777d ago

@VenomUK Have you played their games they are always full of bugs that they have to patch out later . Like the oblivion infinite gold glitch, or the copy item glitch or the flying glitch most of their glitches are fun and break the game but bethesda always goes back and patches out the fun bugs.

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crazyCoconuts778d ago

Isn't the release date now 1H23? Is he referring to the finishing touches for the demo this weekend?

Christopher778d ago

With the scope of this game, I'm assuming they mean that the core/foundation/main outline of the game is set in stone and they are now "cleaning it up and adding/fixing side stuff." So, no more major development that will change the game from what it is, just finishing content, fixing bugs, and optimizing engine elements.

Zhipp778d ago

Polishing on a game like this takes a really long time. I heard it was content-complete back when the last teaser released. If they weren't already "putting the finishing touches" right now, then I wouldnt expect a release until late 2023 at the earliest

neutralgamer1992778d ago

Less talking more showing simple as that. I am not saying he is lying but it's past due now, at this rate will not get another fallout till 2030

VenomCarnage89778d ago

They're creating more bugs so the game doesn't launch with too few of them

dumahim778d ago

Todd Howard fits right in with the rest of the empty talking heads at MS.

Also, finishing touches? Didn't it get delayed to next year?

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778d ago Replies(1)
Bhuahahaha778d ago

they putting on the finishing touches and leave the bug fixing to the modders 😁

DarXyde778d ago

Honestly, you're probably right. Damn near a certainty.

It makes you wonder though. Why delay if we're talking about finishing touches? Sounds like they were told not to release it yet. Eke out more from game pass subs before releasing? That has become my default assumption for all things Microsoft.

Obscure_Observer778d ago

"Honestly, you're probably right. Damn near a certainty."

Don´t be ridiculous. They´re first party now. They carry the Xbox brand now. There´ll be bugs as every single open world game has. Let alone a game of such unprecedented scale, Bethesda biggest game thus far. So yes, to have bugs is a given.

But to say that MS will allow Bethesda to leave the game broken to modders to fix, is disingenuous af.

SullysCigar778d ago

Perhaps they delayed it because Ragnarok is coming...?

DarXyde778d ago (Edited 778d ago )

Obscure_Observer,

"Don´t be ridiculous. They´re first party now. They carry the Xbox brand now."

Never have I ever felt that Microsoft has ever been that concerned about their reputation in gaming. Nintendo, absolutely. They use to do the whole 'Nintendo Seal of Quality' thing. Their games are still quite polished. Playstation games haven't had many issues to my recollection, though I do remember some weird stuff happening in The Last of Us Remastered in terms of glitches.

"There´ll be bugs as every single open world game has. Let alone a game of such unprecedented scale, Bethesda biggest game thus far. So yes, to have bugs is a given."

Here we go, setting the narrative for the issues that are coming. It's almost like you know there will be issues and you're already dismissing them because the game is so grandiose and ambitious. Maybe you should see actual gameplay before coming to that conclusion based on what Todd Howard (of all people!) says, yeah? Let's take the people involved at their word for a moment... Bethesda could never manage to get their act together on smaller scales... And you think they're going to magically improve with a bigger scale? On new hardware? Ok.

"But to say that MS will allow Bethesda to leave the game broken to modders to fix, is disingenuous af."

Didn't it take them a month to fix shooting in not just a shooter, but the shooter that is the identity of the Xbox brand? You don't have to go that far back to find an example of administrative negligence. Honestly, I don't know where this unfounded optimism comes from. What is Microsoft going to do if they don't fix the problems? Fire people? Close the studio?

It's Bethesda. As long as they push out profitable games, I doubt Microsoft cares.

Obscure_Observer778d ago (Edited 778d ago )

"Never have I ever felt that Microsoft has ever been that concerned about their reputation in gaming."

The way you feel about Microsoft really doesn´t matter when the numbers are against you. So feel free to fight it:

https://www.metacritic.com/...

"Here we go, setting the narrative for the issues that are coming. It's almost like you know there will be issues and you're already dismissing them because the game is so grandiose and ambitious."

There´re absolutely ZERO open world game that is glitch/bug-free at release date, ZERO! If you don´t know that by now, you know nothing about open world games.

"Bethesda could never manage to get their act together on smaller scales... And you think they're going to magically improve with a bigger scale? On new hardware? Ok."

This is nothing but natural evolution. Todd Howard is a veteran developer and Starfield is gonna be amazing. If Starfield turn out to be worst than Fallout 4, then I´ll get back to you and admit that you were right all along.

Now, the question is: Would you do the same or would you play coy and hide behind hypocrisy? Time will tell.

"Honestly, I don't know where this unfounded optimism comes from."

Maybe because the initial lineup of Xbox Series games has better metascores and overall gamer´s reviews than Xbox One´s. Quality is definitely improving, but feel free and deny facts.

"It's Bethesda. As long as they push out profitable games, I doubt Microsoft cares."

If that´s was the case, Starfield would be released on Playstation, it would be a live service game and Microsoft would released that game ready or not to please investors, shareholders and the board of directors instead of face them and delay the game.

But that´s not the case at all, is it? If you want to downplay Microsoft, at least speak sense.

DarXyde778d ago

Obscure_Observer,

I'm gonna light you up now.

"The way you feel about Microsoft really doesn´t matter when the numbers are against you. So feel free to fight it:

https://www.metacritic.com/...

Speaking of disingenuous, if your point is to say that they outperformed Sony according to metacritic, I sure hope so. Considering most of last year's Sony published lineup were rereleases, they better. Last year simply wasn't a good year for PlayStation. Microsoft had an unusually good year, but this year will be a better comparison. Sony is releasing big games this year and Microsoft has bought enough publishers where I can't imagine they won't have big games launch this year.

"There´re absolutely ZERO open world game that is glitch/bug-free at release date, ZERO! If you don´t know that by now, you know nothing about open world games."

This is a muppet take if I've ever seen one and you're blatantly misrepresenting my point. Where do I even imply that it is possible to launch without bugs? I'm telling you that Bethesda is very well known for their problems. They are literally called "Bugthesda". My point is, if they can't even manage their current worlds well, what makes you think expanding the scope and scale will be manageable because Microsoft owns them now? It's mental and unfounded.

"This is nothing but natural evolution. Todd Howard is a veteran developer and Starfield is gonna be amazing. If Starfield turn out to be worst than Fallout 4, then I´ll get back to you and admit that you were right all along."

Umm... Todd Howard is a veteran. Sure. But I have to ask if we're talking about the same Todd Howard. He's not exactly known for modesty or releasing games in pristine condition.

"Now, the question is: Would you do the same or would you play coy and hide behind hypocrisy? Time will tell."

It's almost like this bloke isn't even paying attention... I'm very open in my praise of Xbox when it's warranted and my criticism of playstation and Nintendo when it's warranted. Go find some hot takes I've had about PlayStation or Nintendo. Not a challenging undertaking, Mr. "In Phil we trust."

"Maybe because the initial lineup of Xbox Series games has better metascores and overall gamer´s reviews than Xbox One´s. Quality is definitely improving, but feel free and deny facts."

Love the assumptions, lad. You're doing great. No one's denying that, but I think many gamers contend that's a very low bar. And again with the metascores. Play your games and grow an opinion of your own, yeah?

"If that´s was the case, Starfield would be released on Playstation, it would be a live service game and Microsoft would released that game ready or not to please investors, shareholders and the board of directors instead of face them and delay the game.

But that´s not the case at all, is it? If you want to downplay Microsoft, at least speak sense."

Counterpoint: it is an exclusive that is going to be day one on game pass. Ecosystem buy-in+recurring sub and you've got the benefit of a live service game. I also don't think it's going to be a forever exclusive. I genuinely don't. If anything, a delay is a sign that it's not as far along as they say or my Microsoft senses are that they are content to delay content until they get more game pass subs or receive some arbitrary revenue goal.

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Skywalker333778d ago

@DarXyde, FYI the Nintendo Seal of Quality had nothing to do with the quality of the game, it only meant that that game and publisher/developer had gotten the licence from Nintendo to publish this game at their console.
They did it because a lot of companies were publishing games back then without getting official licence (extremely common during the atari, 8bit and 16bit era from many MANY companies). So the seal of quality didn't really mean anything more apart from the publisher paying for the licence. But it was a nice marketing trick that made the people believe that anything with the seal was of high quality :)

Just a piece of gaming history because you mentioned it, thats all. Carry on ;)

DarXyde777d ago

You know the strange thing about this?

I knew that and I entirely forgot that. Cheers for pointing that out though, mate.

SinisterKieran778d ago

todd howard speaking is always a mistake.

LoveSpuds777d ago

Yup, who honestly listens to a word out of that guys mouth at this point.....other than Obscure Observer obviously 🙄

Gardenia777d ago

I have a funny feeling this game isn't going to be good.

Wrex369778d ago (Edited 778d ago )

AKA Phil flew out there probably saw the build, asked if they were confident, and Todd in a former self would have felt pressure to say yes from Zenimax, now was just honest with Phil about the current confidence with the general devs because if Phil allows Halo, one of the major tent poles for Xbox, to get delayed to get to a better place before launch then you can bet Todd felt like he could ask for a delay too. End of story.

AmUnRa778d ago

And Halo is still a mess...

778d ago
Wrex369778d ago

Depends who you ask really. Haven't played it so I don't know but I know it was delayed.

dumahim778d ago

Yeah, that totally fits the MS hands off policy we've been hearing about for so long.

Wrex369778d ago

Not sure if you're being sarcastic or not because it's n4g but yeah, they generally let their devs do their thing now.

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40°

TennoCon 2024: Ben Starr On His Bridgerton Moment In Warframe 1999

Right before the full reveal of Warframe 1999 at TennoCon, we chatted with Ben Starr about the responsibility of stepping into such a huge franchise.

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cgmagonline.com
290°

10 "Bad" Games I Actually Enjoyed

TNS: "We're shining a light on a bunch of "bad" games that may've been left wanting when it comes to their critical or audience reception."

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thenerdstash.com
Profchaos2d ago (Edited 2d ago )

Good list I've had similar reactions to some games even ones on the list like the order and Callisto

Also I recently grabbed forspoken for, 5 dollars at a eb games Clarence sale and I am actually enjoying it more than I thought I would

Sometimes you just need to give critically panned games a chance

FTLmaster2d ago

Oh gosh, good shout on Forspoken! Genuinely forgot about that one, and haven't got around to playing it. It's on my to-buy-in-a-sale list!

Cacabunga1d 16h ago (Edited 1d 16h ago )

Knack was great ! Had a blast with the first one. Haven’t tried the second one though due to backlog

The Fight: Lights Out was also a game i enjoyed very much and highly detailed with great motion control when you understand how they work, which is what pushed people away from this game..

LoveSpuds1d 14h ago

Both The Order and Calisto were harshly treated in my view. I am not saying they are perfect, but the were both really solid games. I personally really liked them despite acknowledging their flaws and coincidentally, got the platinum trophy for both games.

Evil West is another really fun game that's worth checking out for sure.

andy851d 14h ago

Forspoken was great. Never really understood all the criticism. 2nd best traversal in a game after Spiderman

Profchaos1d 7h ago

Yeah gameplay wise I get huge infamous vibes with its combat starting out as low level eventually becoming a unstoppable power spewing killing machine with a wide variety of powers infamous is one of my favourite franchises obviously it's not the same but I love the combat of it so far.

ChasterMies2d ago

I feel like we’re finally starting to see a sea change in how we treat our favorite games. Sure, we all acknowledge that a game can suck and we can still enjoy it. Hopefully this results in meaningful review scores. Personally, I find a lot of bad games are better if you blast through them on the easiest difficulty. Callisto protocol on the image is a good example of this.

LoveSpuds1d 14h ago (Edited 1d 14h ago )

I really liked Calisto, harshly treated for sure and I don't necessarily think it needs to be played on easy to enjoy it. It's not perfect, but it's not the car crash the media portrayed it as either.

I have said it before, but part of the issue is that there is a mind share going on in games coverage, with all the main outfits being personal friends and talking too each other. As such, there is a risk that everyone ends up sharing in the same opinion rather than thinking from themselves. I reckon that's why some games get a universal bashing when consumers actually like the game and equally, games get great reviews across the board and the game doesnt land with consumers.

RaidenBlack2d ago (Edited 2d ago )

Actually, I started liking FO76 after the wastelanders DLC ... it has been my guilty pleasure
other games I can think of Order 1886, Driveclub, Resident Evil 6 (only the Leon part), Alpha Protocol (pretty unique, needs a remake), XIII Remake (after patches), Medal of Honor 2010, Medal of Honor Warfighter, Homefront The Revolution, Enemy Front, Legendary The Box, Faces of War, Conflict: Vietnam, Conflict: Global Storm & Codename: Panzers – Cold War

CosmicTurtle2d ago

Driveclub was genuinely a good game with a poor launch. Alpha Protocol is superb, just a few archaic design choices for the time.

RaidenBlack1d 15h ago

I want past games with interesting setups/mechanics but having some flaws (due to crunch or budget) to be remade so that the gaming community can appreciate and enjoy them as was envisioned and intended by the developers. In contrast to a successful game being remade again just with prettier coat of paint.
Alpha Protocol tops that and I'll include FO:NV as well as an exception (it is popular but features were cut due to limited dev time). And also Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines I, Singularity, KOTOR II and maybe Daikatana.
There might be others which I can't recall atm.

SonyStyled2d ago

I loved Enemy Front. I pre ordered it months prior and remember calling the store to check if it came out that day. The guy never heard of it but confirmed my copy was ready to pick up. Game was simple and basic in a good way. Didn’t have any tacked on extras. A simple mission and objectives in each level. Kind of reminded me of the first Crysis in a way

gold_drake2d ago

The Order was really good. abit short

RiseNShine2d ago

I loved The Order, ridiculous graphics for it's time and a very interesting setting, it was linear but not as bad as people say. Similar thing with Callisto Protocol, i admit that i played it a long time after release so maybe issues were fixed by then, but it was a fantastic Dead Space-like horror game with some of the best graphics i've seen in my life.

LoveSpuds1d 14h ago

Yup, I am afraid to say I waited on Calisto and picked it up for around 30 quid. Once I played it on felt really badly for the devs because the game was really decent.

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OtterX2d ago

For me, these Mario + Rabbids games were the best thing Ubisoft has developed in recent years. I'd hate to see Ubisoft drive the series into the ground like their other properties, so I think 2 games are enough. Maybe 1 more.

Inverno2d ago

They can't ruin it because Ninty will send their ninjas to destroy all traces of it. If not for that you can bet that spinoff series would've been milked dry by now.

XiNatsuDragnel2d ago

Good luck in your future endeavors

Hotpot2d ago

Thank you for Mario + Rabbids series, I quite enjoyed it

Einhander19722d ago

Great games, I have wanted Sony to copy these games with their own mascots for years.

Michiel19891d 16h ago

not cinematic or 3rd person enough for Sony

DefaultComment2d ago

I think Nintendo has to hire this guy, I mean the fact that miuamoto himself said to him that he is impressed with this work, speaks volumes. Th possibility on having Mario on Soliani's hand could be incredible and quite possibly a new era for Mario games.

OtterX2d ago (Edited 2d ago )

Yea, these games didn't even feel Ubisoft at all. This felt very authentic Nintendo. This guy's direction is obviously stellar, and Ubisoft somehow managed to not kill it with microtransactions and repetitive, boring tasks.