Bethesda is likely to face even more increased pressure to deliver a hit with its upcoming action RPGStarfieldafter the publisher’s co-op vampire shooterRedfallfailed to land with gamers and critics. As the first major release following Microsoft’s acquisition of Bethesda, expectations were already high for the Arkane Studios shooter, but a recent report shows thatRedfall’s Steam concurrent playercount is plummeting just days after launch. With the publisher’s first post-acquisition release already leaving a sour taste in some players’ mouths,Starfieldmay face an uphill battle to win over a gaming audience feeling burned by Bethesda.
While the two Bethesda titles are drastically different in terms of both genre and tone, with it worth noting that they are created by different studios, some gamers have already voicedconcerns aboutStarfield’s launchfollowingRedfall’s rocky rollout.Starfield’slong development process was already under scrutiny from some gamers concerned that the planet-hopping RPG’s release delays didn’t bode well for the title, and those worries are likely to increase givenRedfall’s critical drubbing. And while the millions of players with a subscription to Microsoft’s popular gaming service will be able to tryStarfieldon day one as part of their membership,Redfall’s failure shows that simply being on Game Pass doesn’t guarantee success.
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Redfall Shows That a Game Pass Release Doesn’t Guarantee Success
Starfield’s Sci-fi Setting Could Be a Hard Sell
Despite its many shortcomings, one aspect ofRedfallthat’s received praise from many players and critics is the game’s unique setting. A surprisingly accurate, albeit heavily stylized, re-creation of a typical seaside town in the American northeast, the city of Redfall is a welcome change of pace from the military and sci-fi games that dominate much of the market. In a gaming landscape already awash with space-centric games from all different genres,Starfield’s hard sci-fi settingcould prove to be less appealing to a broad audience than the fantastical, forested lands of Bethesda’sSkyrim.
While Bethesda’sStarfieldwill undoubtedly be facing greater pressure to succeed following the high-profile failure ofRedfall, both from gamers and from parent company Microsoft, all is not lost when it comes to the sci-fi RPG. Despite all of the potential hurdles standing in the way ofStarfield’s success,Bethesda is still unmatched when it comes to delivering high-quality open-world RPGexperiences and this could be its saving grace.
The poor reception toRedfallhas undoubtedly tarnished Bethesda’s reputation, at least somewhat and for a short time, in the eyes of many gamers, butStarfieldstill has the potential to redeem the company. If Bethesda can learn fromRedfall’s buggy missteps and deliver the AAA experience it’s known for, the worst players may have to worry about during the wait for it is avoidingStarfieldbeta scammers.
Starfieldwill be released on September 6 for PC and Xbox Series X/S.
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