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[Ghost of Caelid]

With the success of elden ring many people are praising its open world requiring you to explore and utilize context to complete quest. With starfield being bethesdas next game who I still consider the best in open world game design, with their more recent games they have fell into more modern open world conventions. Their games are magical to explore but they are more guided than they used to be. Do you expect / want starfield to go back to the context clues of exploration or stay guided in the sense that skyrim was where you got an icon pointing you where to go?

 

[TintoConCasera]

Probably like Skyrim, hopefully they wont dumb it down even more like they did with Fallout 4.

 

[Sosokrates]

Skyrim, marrowwind is pretty dated.

 

[adamsapple]

Starfield is “Skyrim in Space in All the Best Ways” – Todd Howard

Director Todd Howard explains that Starfield's structure, factions, skill system, and more have a lot in common with Skyrim.

gamingbolt.com

Starfield is “Skyrim in Space in All the Best Ways” – Todd Howard​

 

[CatLady]

I hope it stays like FO3 and Oblivion. Their open worlds are so much bigger than any other RPG so I do not enjoy wandering around blind hoping to stumble on quests.

I did enjoy all the random unmarked experiences in FO3 though and hope they keep some of those in Starfield. I do know no matter what route they take it will be far better than any other game. Bethesda are the masters of exceptional exploration.

 

[AV]

You know full well which one.

I played through some of Morrowind last year and this is all that came to mind.

edit before people jump down my throat, I'm playing Elden Ring like a maniac right now and I don't even want a quest log in that game. It's not about that. It's about the idea that one system is inherently worse than another, and Morrowind's directions are literally just quest markers in text form, you haven't accomplished anything by reading directions to a place

 

[sankt-Antonio]

Morrowind style of quest tracking died out for good reason. God I hated that shit back then.

 

[Raven117]

Probably more Skyrim. But that's fine.

Not every game has to be Elden Ring/BotW type.

 

[AJUMP23]

It will be Skyrim, in space with advancements.

 

[Trogdor1123]

The Saints and Sinners quest was one of my favourites in Skyrim and lots of that was text driven. I guess it depends on implementation

 

[Markio128]

Maybe we’ll get the choice. Both have the pluses and minuses.

 

[iHaunter]

Let's hope it won't be like Fallout 76 exploration.

We'll see, very few games follow the Morrowind style nowadays. BOTW and Elden Ring being a few exceptions. Though I only played maybe 30+ hours of Morrowind, I don't remember much. Beat Skyrim plenty.

 

[Ass of Can Whooping]

Just do both.

Default is skyrim and the wierdo's can have the option to disable the quest log and markers.

 

[TheMan]

Morrowind style of quest tracking died out for good reason. God I hated that shit back then.

Yeah, people look back at that with rose-colored glasses but in reality it could be confusing and frustrating. You could argue that today's games hold your hand too much, but there must be something in the middle that strikes a good balance.

As for Starfield, I fully expect it to be like skyrim. This is a brand new Bethesda IP and they will want to appeal to the widest possible audience for sure. that means hand holding.

 

[LordBlodgett]

Since it is going to be about space, where I assume you would be able to move from planet to planet, you would hope it would be more like Morrowind. On the other hand though, there is a reason Skyrim sold 25 million copies, so I expect it will be more like Skyrim. I think they should just have an option to turn off markers and then people who want to play without are able to.

 

[amigastar]

That reminds me i still have to play Morroblivion. Skywind taking too long.

 

[Ghost of Caelid]

Just do both.

Default is skyrim and the wierdo's can have the option to disable the quest log and markers.

In theory it’s cool but game designed around no quest markers is massively different than just disabling them. So I think that decision needs to be designed ground up.

 

[Cyberpunkd]

Skyrim, marrowwind is pretty dated.

Elden Ring says hi.

 

[Mercador]

People seems to expect a Space Skyrim. From what I saw so far, it will be far from a Skyrim game. I want to believe but I don't.

 

[Sosokrates]

Elden Ring says hi.

You locate quest locations via text in elden ring? Theres no markers?

 

[Starfield]

Morriwind like rpg mechanics mixed with Skyrim's gameplay feeling. Game is based on exploration so expect some changes to quest design meaning probs less quest markers than youre used to. Not saying it will be a Elden Ring like situation but not as dumb as there being quest markers for every little stuff.

Levelling is organic like in Skyrim, meaning you use alot of melee = you rank up melee, use lots of guns? you rank up = whatever ranks up guns, lockpicking? hacking? you get the idea.


random side fact: Starfield's in-game currency will be credit chip based. Meaning they will be on a physical chip which you can loot from bodies or find whilst looking around exploring. Kinda like Septims from TES or bottlecaps from Fallout. They will be as much of a token of that game as those currencies from their other franchises. It's the little things that make these games feel immersive If you have a good eye you can spot it in the trailer, theres countless hidden eastereggs and teasers in it...just as there were in the Fallout 4 trailer which also teased lots of features.

 

[Deanington]

Based on games after Morrowind it will probably be like Skyrim. Which will hopefully not be trash. I dont care how "outdated" people think Morrowind is, I want some depth. Give me a journal that will turn out to be a series of novels by the time I am done, idgaf. Yeah the directions in Morrowind were not always accurate and a pain in the ass, but it added to the exploration and uses of the environment regardless. Skyrim is shallow as fuck. It was a pretty adventure game. I want to get lost, discover, mystery and having to figure shit out. Not be dumbed down with point a to point b hand holding and shitty writing that promotes it.

 

[Cyberpunkd]

You locate quest locations via text in elden ring? Theres no markers?

There is no text apart from character dialogue (you need to listen for clue and even there it’s rather vague), there is no quest log and no minimap, you need to access a separate menu to see the map.

Elden Ring UI:

Elden Ring UI if it was a standard open world game:

 

[vaibhavpisal]

Unless they do a bang up job at writing quest locations, while highlighting NPCs I need to talk to properly, I will prefer Skyrim approach.

Skyrim itself is quiet close to Elden Ring, in that you see landmarks from far away.

 

[Bernd Lauert]

I expect a lot of hand holding but also still a lot of fun exploration. Basically what Skyrim was.

 

[Topher]

It should be more like Skyrim, but I think it would be good if it had plenty of options to remove the "hand holding" that so many do not like.

 

[RoadHazard]

100% gonna be Skyrim in space.

 

[Majukun]

skyrim.
botw didn't manage to free open world games from the shackles of icons
if elder ring has managed we will see in games much more in the future

 

[Ghost of Caelid]

Yeah, people look back at that with rose-colored glasses but in reality it could be confusing and frustrating. You could argue that today's games hold your hand too much, but there must be something in the middle that strikes a good balance.

As for Starfield, I fully expect it to be like skyrim. This is a brand new Bethesda IP and they will want to appeal to the widest possible audience for sure. that means hand holding.

With BOTW well over 20 million and Elden ring being the best selling game since RDR2 (Non cod) I don't think the "mainstream likes handholding" narrative holds up. More so developers only been handholding so its the only option...that being said I think bethesda usually has a good middle ground of you got to discover first but then its on you map there afterwards...but quest wise id like to see a few "I last saw them around the tree that looked like a fork" kind of quest with no markers just exploration.

 

[bender]

Bethesda doesn't want players to get lost in their open worlds or miss out on content so the design will cater to the widest possible audience/lowest common denominator. At least in Starfield's case, having maps, GPS and waypoints makes a lot more sense considering the surrounding technology.

 

[Ghost of Caelid]

Morriwind like rpg mechanics mixed with Skyrim's gameplay feeling. Game is based on exploration so expect some changes to quest design meaning probs less quest markers than youre used to. Not saying it will be a Elden Ring like situation but not as dumb as there being quest markers for every little stuff.

Levelling is organic like in Skyrim, meaning you use alot of melee = you rank up melee, use lots of guns? you rank up = whatever ranks up guns, lockpicking? hacking? you get the idea.


random side fact: Starfield's in-game currency will be credit chip based. Meaning they will be on a physical chip which you can loot from bodies or find whilst looking around exploring. Kinda like Septims from TES or bottlecaps from Fallout. They will be as much of a token of that game as those currencies from their other franchises. It's the little things that make these games feel immersive If you have a good eye you can spot it in the trailer, theres countless hidden eastereggs and teasers in it...just as there were in the Fallout 4 trailer which also teased lots of features.

This sounds good to me...being that well be exploring multiple planets, I think it would be cool for quest markers to exist in cities cause like you know the area being that its a settled place, but in the unexplored planets or regions we have to fill out the map ourselves by wandering...I expect the game to borrow alot from what worked in modern open world games but also play of the roots of what made bethesda essentially the fore father of modern open world games.

 

[Hendrick's]

There is no text apart from character dialogue (you need to listen for clue and even there it’s rather vague), there is no quest log and no minimap, you need to access a separate menu to see the map.

Elden Ring UI:

Elden Ring UI if it was a standard open world game:

But Elden Ring took it too far. If I have to write things down, that is poor design.

 

[bender]

But Elden Ring took it too far. If I have to write things down, that is poor design.

Me have to write? Pencil baaaddddd!

 

[Starfield]

There is no text apart from character dialogue (you need to listen for clue and even there it’s rather vague), there is no quest log and no minimap, you need to access a separate menu to see the map.

Elden Ring UI:

Elden Ring UI if it was a standard open world game:

The good thing is Starfield's UI design is very light and non intrusive:

Don't think that pic leaked yet so here we go ^ (actually I'm not sure anymore what leaked and what didn't lol)

Basically the UI still looks quite similar to that pic. The left part especially got some slight visual changes though.

 

[Ghost of Caelid]

But Elden Ring took it too far. If I have to write things down, that is poor design.

I haven't written anything down and its been amazing game none the less. I don't think having to write something down is a demerit of the game tho.

 

[Havoc2049]

I prefer less hand holding and the Morrowind style, as it provides a greater sense of accomplishment. I'm sure it will be like Skyrim and Mass Effect.

The real question for me with Starfield is how deep will the gameplay be, especially the space travel and ship to ship combat. Will it be Elite Dangerous and Starflight/Star Control deep or will space travel be dumbed down to a loading screen and space combat a cut scene like in Mass Effect.

 

[rofif]

Elden ring is more similar to Morrowind than morrowind is to oblivion

 

[rodrigolfp]

Hopefully like Skyrim. I see no fun in reading tons of texts to just find and talk/deliver stuff to a NPC. Give me tons of combat.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

I hope Morrowind. But it'll be more like Skyrim.

It's spaceship stuff too. So unless they want you wandering in space trying to find your way forever, it'll be pinpoint maps and digital compass readouts to bee-line to where you need to go.

 

[Plantoid]

That reflection is raytracing, right?

 

[Ghost of Caelid]

I prefer less hand holding and the Morrowind style, as it provides a greater sense of accomplishment. I'm sure it will be like Skyrim and Mass Effect.

The real question for me with Starfield is how deep will the gameplay be, especially the space travel and ship to ship combat. Will it be Elite Dangerous and Starflight/Star Control deep or will space travel be dumbed down to a loading screen and space combat a cut scene like in Mass Effect.

Elite dangerous would be sweet...but I assume for that to happen it would have to be always online for space flight if they're going to do the real world time kind of "1 million years to get to this star system" kind of deal.

 

[Hawking Radiation]

But Elden Ring took it too far. If I have to write things down, that is poor design.

There's people in Reddit asking what certain icons mean in the game. I had to google those red squares just below the player health bar. No explanation for this in the actual game. Just 'here's some red square looking thingy's, go figure it out'.

I've got no problem with 'getting gud' but there should be an explanation for basic UI elements.

 

[JTCx]

But Elden Ring took it too far. If I have to write things down, that is poor design.

LMFAO this is more of a personal issue than anything.

 

[Ezquimacore]

People like to talk shit about Ubisoft, including myself sometimes, but the last two Assassin's Creed games have both options. You can use the normal markers or you use the exploration mode where you have to follow the hints.

 

[Filben]

Skyrim.

Average Joe wants to be shown directly where to go and what to do instead of being told and search. This has been the trend for a while now and the high sales numbers of those open world concepts make shareholders think they're right and they make designers do this probably; or we're already at the point where designers just do it without being told because it's considered standard now.

It's also easier in games with quantity over quality. Instead of an NPC (or the environment or other hints and clues) explaining it or mapping it out for you, you have a generic 'just go there' line and devs need to place a marker only instead of writing explanatory lines and journal updates so you know where to look and go when coming back to that quest hours or days later.

People usually want their dopamine levels high, and that pretty fast! Ain't nobody got time for "searching in the dark". Sadly.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

I winder what modern gamers who like to handheld in RPGs would do if games had no maps or compasses like old ass RPGs. Back then, you went on memorization or got pad of graph paper and drew grid based dungeons. My brothers did that for Wizardry, made even tougher as the maps sometimes had complete darkness and spinners that would make you face another way, so it was trial and error till you figured it out.

 

[Ezquimacore]

I winder what modern gamers who like to handheld in RPGs would do if games had no maps or compasses like old ass RPGs. Back then, you went on memorization or got pad of graph paper and drew grid based dungeons. My brothers did that for Wizardry, made even tougher as the maps sometimes had complete darkness and spinners that would make you face another way, so it was trial and error till you figured it out.

I'm sure a lot of gamers did that with games like The Legend of Zelda, Metroid crystalis etc.

 

[Ghost of Caelid]

People like to talk shit about Ubisoft, including myself sometimes, but the last two Assassin's Creed games have both options. You can use the normal markers or you use the exploration mode where you have to follow the hints.

the games worlds are designed around being guided so a blind playthrough isnt as rewarding. the game has to be designed ground up with that philosophy in mind, not tacked on.

 

[Ghost of Caelid]

I winder what modern gamers who like to handheld in RPGs would do if games had no maps or compasses like old ass RPGs. Back then, you went on memorization or got pad of graph paper and drew grid based dungeons. My brothers did that for Wizardry, made even tougher as the maps sometimes had complete darkness and spinners that would make you face another way, so it was trial and error till you figured it out.

DOSII...isometric rpgs seem more akin to those kind of experiences.

 

[Ezquimacore]

the games worlds are designed around being guided so a blind playthrough isnt as rewarding. the game has to be designed ground up with that philosophy in mind, not tacked on.

I played the exploration mode and it's well done, plus the eagle gives you a scan option when you're close to the area. Definitely more rewarding than just the marker on the map.