Industry Insider Expects Bethesda's New IP Starfield To Launch This Year

Halo Infinite ✅
Starfield exclusive ✅
Gamepass Day 1✅
Xbox best platform ✅

Sure hope it’s by November, of all the upcoming games from the ZeniMax deal this is the one I’m looking forward to the most.

But will it work?

@Senua lol - If PS5 gets Deathloop, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, Kena, God of War: Ragnarok & Horizon Forbidden West in 2021 then some people may disagree!
I don't see Starfield releasing 2021. Reckon it probably would have if Cyberpunk never happened, but Bethesda may need to stop releasing broken, bug ridden games and I expect it will take a year longer than originally planned to get those bugs to an acceptable level.
At least let the Cyberpunk debacle clean up companies like these and be a win for gamers.
Still not sure about Halo either. With all the changes they've had to make to make it next gen quality it will probably also take a bit longer to get it ready. I expect the same will likely happen for God of War: Ragnarok & Horizon Forbidden West for Sony too.

This could be pretty damn good. Skyrim in space?

@StonyKL they seem pretty confident with Halo. Same with R&C and Deathloop. But beyond that there are a lot of unknowns until the platforms start officially announcing. A lot of TBC on both release schedules!

@StonyKL
I guess it depends on what you like. To me GoW Ragnarok and HFW will just be more of the same. That's why I switched to Xbox after a few years with PS. Starfield sounds way more exciting to me. Not saying the abovementioned games will be bad or anything. Just personal preference.

@elpardo1984 yeah I agree. Just in the “take as long as you want” camp.

@gollumb82 exactly what I meant - down to personal opinions. Why I said some may disagree.
GOWR and HFW are the second game in their series so it’s a bit harsh to say it’s more of the same when Halo is game number 351 in the series and will be more of the same and deliberately so.
Starfield I have no idea what it will be other than in my head it’s Skyrim in space so definitely interested but priority for me is it works - hence I hope they take their time and don’t rush it.

@StonyKL
You're right about Halo. The same can be said about many franchises. As for GoW you could argue it, what, 6th game in the series? Including the PSP iterations. Probably why I like Game Pass for providing gamers with such diversity of games. Fun fact: I'm on Xbox and I don't like Halo or Gears

@gollumb82 same here! Feels like blasphemy to say that on here. But the best thing about GP is I’ll still try the new halo and who knows, may like this one!
Crazy thing is right now I’m loving playing zoo tycoon with the kids and Doom 3 when they’re in bed. To me thats GP in a nutshell 🤣

@StonyKL
Doom 3 is great! To me, another blasphemy incoming, better than 2016 and Eternal. Nice to know I'm not the only sinner here 😁

No brainer being with xbox to me, let say hypothetically Starfield and Halo launch this year, I'm paying nothing extra, 2 exclusives launch for ps or switch.. I'm paying £100... Its a big difference just for 2 games...

Over the course of a generation you are saving sooooo much... And now xbox will over the next few year pump out so many exclusives aswell

@StonyKL
Deathloop - Coming to gamepass anyway. Waiting to see the XGS logo though.
Kena - Just like the other Xbox 2nd party titles that have been announced last year which will also hit gamepass this year.
R&C - More like a kiddie tech demo can’t compare with behemoths like Halo Infinite and Starfield. Also Forza Horizon 5 is also rumoured to release this year.
GoW 2 and HZD 2 - These are the only true contenders although Halo by itself has way bigger universe and lore than those two combined. Also chances of Halo Infinite and Starfield making it to this year is way more likely.

@Senua @gollumb82 "To me GoW Ragnarok and HFW will just be more of the same"

And halo and gears aren't?

And Halo is definitely not bigger than god of war and horizon zero dawn especially judging by sales figures. And saying ratchet and clank is a kiddie tech demo? Yet still sells millions? If it was on xbox you would be saying about how xbox has a whole range of games for all audiences lol

I think starfield will launch this year which brings questions about it already having a contractual agreement with Sony being this close to final development. If not then hopefully it comes to android gamepass so I can play it

So what's this game pitched as? Is it similar to skyrim and fallout on terms of open world exploring planets rpg with choices but in space? If so then I'm sold but if its similar to eve or rebel galaxy then I might give it a miss

@Senua R&C will be interesting, as I think it’s a very high quality platformer. Insomniac does amazing work. That said, I thought one of the reasons the last one was such a massive success was its lower launch price ($40 here in the states). I’m wondering if people will be happy to pay $70 for the new one after getting the last one at that price. I guess PS5 owners (I’m one, by the way) will be eager to play anything designed for PS5, but I truly have a hard time paying full price for games when I have Gamepass.

@UltimateOtaku91
1. Halo’s lore and universe definitely way bigger than those two in sheer depth of story, characters, universe and lore. If you are not into Halo’s lore then you are having even the half of it’s experience.

Evidence: https://www.halopedia.org/Halo_universe
https://halo.fandom.com/wiki/Halo_Alpha

2. No one can be that dumb to think that an acquisition at the level of 7.5B$ can be possible to do only in few months. It probably started even before Starfield was announced. Starfield like most other games is developed on PC. So it’s entirely possible there’s no PS version for that game and also Jim Ryan has confirmed there’s no contract yet.

3. Yes R&C is a kiddie game (although looks impressive) and doesn’t have the same fan appeal like other behemoths.

Maybe if you leave behind your hatred and bias against xbox in pushsquare then you will be able to think more realistically.

I just can't wait to see what Starfield actually is, Hopefully we get to see some gameplay at E3.. Also everyone should check out Dealer Gaming on youtube..

@Senua OK in terms of lore halo is bigger than horizon zero dawn yes but I don't know about God of war there is quite a bit there.

I understand that the acquisition must of been going on behind the scenes whilst starfueld was being made but wouldnt the same be said about deathloop and ghostwire? I mean when did Bethesda announce starfield?

Ratchet and clank is an excellent platformer not just a kiddie game, that's like saying mario games are irrelevant because they a "kiddie" game yet they sell what xbox and playstation exclusives sell combined lol I mean look at animal crossing the most boringest game on earth yet has sold over 33 million in a year so can safely say its a behemoth aswell

@UltimateOtaku91
If you hate xbox so much why are you here ?

Slightly left field comment for here, but the query came across my brain… with all of these game studios now at Xbox’s behest, is there a industry trend for some cross assistance (more in line of lending staff to QA/get games out the door on time/sooner). Again, not necessarily thinking this is a good idea (hold the damn things until they are ready, and all that), but it would seem that not every studio would be in the ‘last 6 months of developer’ phase, and could lend some bodies late stage, as opposed to tech etc in the early phase.

@TrueAssassin86x where in my comments did it say I hate xbox......
I clearly stated I use gamepass on android aswell

Coming from the guy who goes to push squad to bad mouth playstation 😂

@StonyKL Halo will be the 6th main game in the series and Ragnarok will technically be the fifth. And yes i know GoW 2018 was a "reboot" but Halo also had gameplay changes implemented through the years. Halo Infinite will also try a new approach by making the game world more open ended with a bit more focus on exploration.
I respect your opinion, just don't try to twist facts to make your point.

@UltimateOtaku91
Lol when i bad mouth PlayStation in fact i own all 3 major consoles so nice try troll feel free to look me up on both Xbl and Psn 🤣😂🤣

@TrueAssassin86x what did I say in my comments before that I hate xbox?

I'd be surprised if God of War: Ragnarok released this year. MS announced 30 games inc Flight Simulator, Halo Infinite, Scorn, Warhammer, CrossfireX, The Gunk etc plus the potential of Starfield too.

Looking ahead, we don't have official confirmation on what ND, SP & Bend are working on after finishing LoU2, GoT and Days Gone but we know R&C, H2:FW, GoW2 and GT7 are coming - plus whatever 3rd Party Exclusives Sony have secured.

Without looking at the Zenimax studios, we don't officially know what the Coalition (Gears 6 probably), inXile or Compulsion are working on, but we have Halo:Infinite, Flight Sim, Avowed, Fable, Forza Motorsport, Perfect Dark, Everwild, State of Decay 3, Hellblade 2 and no doubt, Playground are working on Forza Horizon 5. Double Fine are working on Psychonauts 2 but that is coming to Playstation too - but this is 'just' MS's Xbox Studio games coming - we have yet to hear about any Zenimax 'exclusives' yet and MS has 3rd Party exclusives too - like Scorn, CrossfireX, ExoMecha, the Gunk, Stalker 2, Warhammer Darktide etc However, all these will be on Game Pass and Sony are charging £60+ to play their games at launch...

Not saying one is clearly better because if you are not interested in the majority of the Xbox games, even if you can download and try for 'nothing', then it doesn't matter if they have more games. Sony had more exclusives last gen but I didn't buy more exclusives on my PS4 than on XB1 because a lot didn't appeal.

@UltimateOtaku91
I agree that Halo and Gears are similar in that they are just next iterations of the same franchise (see my post above). Maybe I'm just burned out on sequels in general. That's why Game Pass is right up my alley with all these indies and hidden gems (Deliver Us the Moon and State of Mind come to mind as those that I loved despite them not being high profile games). As for those accusing you or trolling- I've read your comments both here and on Push Square and I can attest that you are not a fanboy/Xbox hater

Grubb is one of the more accurate reporters, so I believe him. It would be huge for Starfield to launch this year, btw.

@gollumb82 I too are fed up of sequels, I like to see studios come up with new ips like guerilla did with horizon zero dawn, I think the max a game should of in its series is 3 otherwise they grow stale like halo, uncharted, god of war, gears etc unless they change up it up in a serious way, Imagine halo with open world map and side quests but keeps the same gunplay? That would make me want to play it.

@UltimateOtaku91
Yup. I think Naughty Dog made the right call by ending Uncharted at part 4 (though I did enjoy Lost Legacy). My main gripe with Halo and Gears is the main protagonists who are way too macho and cringy as a result. Granted, I haven't played much of Halo but I've seen some trailers and gameplay clips. I'm wondering whether I should try Fable, which seems to be part of the Xbox bloodline, as well. Have to say they look outdated in the graphics department, but since they're on Game Pass I'll likely give them a go.

Starfield is not the only Bethesda game they said in the podcast might make it this year. There were mentions of Wolfenstein 3 (or whatever that studio is working on, but almost all just expect W3)

Add to that the also rumored Horizon 5, and Xbox will have one strong fall showing.

Let's not forget CrossFire X, The Gunk, Tunic, Scorn and Warhammer Darktide. Interesting year!

@gollumb82 Well again, the lead character in Gears is Kait now and the whole tone of the games is much more normalised and closer to ND games. Not much Macho mentality there. You would know this if you actually play them. The problem of people's perception vs Truth is still very real with Xbox sadly.

In case of Halo, you are right. MC was largely a muted military guy cliche but in Halo 4 he got a ton of character development but after Halo 5 drove the franchise down a cliff with a very poorly made campaign I think 343 will largely go back to older chief approach.

Overall in my book every Halo and Gears game is a sequel just like how CoD,Uncharted, Dark Souls and so on were sequels. I don't know why those franchises get a pass but Halo and Gears don't.

@BrilliantBill
Can't argue with you here. I am aware that Gears 5 has a different cast of characters and this makes me want to try it at least.

I think this is the thing for Xbox right now, unlike Sony, they haven't committed to release dates or windows due to the pandemic.
Halo Infinite is all but confirmed for November for the 20th anniversary.
Other than that, it seems like everything is being saved for a media blowout during the summer.
Interesting times...

They need this to come this year. Microsoft had to have had some big hitters planned for this year as Halo Infinite was supposed to be a launch title. I know they mentioned there are still some unannounced games as well. I'd hope so, otherwise, it'd be pretty bad if all they had planned for this year originally was Starfield. They need Starfield and at least one other big hitter to pair with Halo.

@StonyKL They already said Halo Infinite is done. They are spending the rest of the year on polish and bugfixing. There is practically zero chance they miss launching this on its anniversary. Bethesda's engine bugs are historically a lot different than Cyberpunk's were. They have been mostly funny stuff that happens and not so much gamebreaking. Sure, everyone is likely adhering to the cautionary tale of Cyberpunk, but Starfield has been in full development since Fallout 4 over 5 years ago. Given their typical dev cycle of 4 years, they should hopefully, be on track to release this fall.

@Trmn8r
They have Flight Sim due in the summer.
Psychonauts 2 even though that will be multiplatform to fulfil previous contracts.
Forza Horizon 5 is rumoured for fall.
So if you add those with Halo Infinite and potentially Starfield, I'd say they are sorted for the 2nd half of the year with first party titles.

Then you have the timed stuff like S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, Scorn, The Ascent, CrossfireX etc.

@blinx01 They had to have had more than that planned though when Halo was supposed to be a launch title. I'm hoping one of the unannounced is a big one.

Even if Starfield was going to be released "to bethesda standard" this year, that means to me it would have to be delayed quite some time to release to "microsoft standard" which isn't that much better, but at least needs to run....

@gollumb82 IDK about the Halo hero being "too macho." I mean, yeah he's a genetically enhanced supersoldier in a power suit, but it's also mostly a silent protag and the last of his kind so there's a solemness about him. The whole series is kind of wrapped in a solemn aura. I mean the series (chronological order starting with Reach) starts with the fall of the last outpost before Earth and by 3 Earth is getting glassed.....it's not a cheery backdrop of heroes and aliens. It's not Gears "run with a chansaw and take out hostiles in the ruined city" it's "whelp....that's the crater that was Africa last week..." . Gears...well....that's a product of Cliffy B......so....yeah....they might as well finish every sentence with "bruh", bruh. I know the new ones are different but they build as story sequels to the first trilogy so you need to suffer through sufficient Cliffy B-isms to get there coherently. I've yet to do that....

Fable is Peter Molyneaux. It's legendary...but expect an uneven experience. It's Peter Molyneaux. Worth it though. Just keep in mind it's Molyneaux.

@UltimateOtaku91 " Imagine halo with open world map and side quests but keeps the same gunplay? That would make me want to play it."

Since that's basically what Infinite is supposed to be, that's a hopeful thought.

@Senua "R&C - More like a kiddie tech demo can’t compare with behemoths like Halo Infinite and Starfield. Also Forza Horizon 5 is also rumoured to release this year."

Shush, R&C is the best game in the Sony 1st party lineup. I got a launch day PS5 largely for R&C. GoW:R and HFW....meh...I'll toss them in the backlog eventually. Don't dismiss Sony's one special game as a "kiddie tech demo". That's what the GTAV partnership is for. R&C is the last of their identity as anything other than yet another Ubi/EA/Acti/2K clone. It's the only one that's not a dressed up PS4 game (not that Halo Infinite isn't technically a dressed up X1 game, but we knew that 3 years ago, too.)

@gollumb82 Doom3 may be a fine survival horror game, but the problem is it's not really a Doom game in terms of gameplay. Doom 1 run & gun. Doom 2 run & gun. Doom 3 slow atmospheric horror game with jump scares and too much fudging flashlight. Doom 2016 run and gun on speed. Doom Eternal run and gun on speed wrapped in meth, coated in a sugary shell.

One of these things just doesn't belong here.

@NEStalgia I hope you didn't forget to mention to that first guy that Fable is made by Peter Molyneux (without the extra 'a' you added)

Ratchet & Clank is a kiddy game, though. Much like how people always say 3D Mario games are. And seeing as R&C is also kind of full of juvenile humor and things, it deserves that label even more so.

But that doesn't mean that they can't be great games: one label doesn't exclude the other, so people shouldn't really take offense at it largely being a kid-friendly game. It's not a grey-brown shooter after all...

On a side note: I do sometimes wonder where Cliff Bleszinski went wrong. He used to be this great, enthusiastic Xbox developer who also happened to be a MASSIVE Zelda fan and Nintendo supporter, but along the way, especially after he parted ways with his former employer, he seems to have gathered a LOT more hate.

Perfect description of Halo lore, by the way.

@NEStalgia
Well, congrats to you! You've just made me want to try Halo after all As for Doom, I agree with most of what you said, but I felt like 2016 was an arena shooter. Also, both 2016 and Eternal are too .. flashy? I don't know how to explain it. Too colourful and cheery. I loved the old Doom for its darkness and heavy ambience. Ditto for Doom 3, mostly because it delivers this in spades.

@gollumb82 Haha, glad to hear it! I'm not necessarily a "Halo fan" but I've always found the series enjoyable, Infinite looks great so far, and it's one of the best coop series if so inclined

2016 was intentionally designed to play like an arena shooter, so good observation on that. And they're definitely flashy. Though doom for it's time has always been flashy. After wolf 3d it was plenty colorful and an assault on the senses. Eternal is more comic book though. Feels more like Quake, which isn't a bad thing. 3 was very atmospheric for sure. I think of it as Resident Doom.

@ThanosReXXX The extra A isn't actually included in the final product, but it makes it look bigger and more exciting in the promotional, true to Molyneux ideals.

Well, Anti likes R&C, and I may have heard somewhere that he only likes kiddie games, so you may actually have a point there...

But seriously, between God of Bore: Rocknroll, Horizon Zero Agency: Forbidden East Asian Content, Demons Souls PS3 with new PS4 graphics, only on PS5 - I don't think there's much disputing that R&C leads that charge by a mile

(Mandatory disclaimer to push square members lurking: I'm being intentionally dismissive for humor, I do actually like some of those games, but I'm also not terribly hyped about them. Sad that the disclaimer is needed, but such is some elements of that fanbase that can't laugh at themselves.)

I think Cliffy B went wrong somewhere between being born and graduating elementary school. . Really, he was always an insufferable dbag. Though, since the internet decided to hate him, he's acknowledged that and hopefully outgrown it... But the legacy will stick forever. Like Myneaaux's, so big, it procedurally grows additional A's as you read it!

@NEStalgia
Lol at your versions of PS4/5 exclusives 😁 Nice to exchange opinions with someone who, like me, remembers Wolfenstein 3D, Doom and Quake. I agree that Quake should make a comeback, preferably with Trent Reznor in charge of the soundtrack

@Trmn8r
I would say so, but I think with Covid and Halo Infinite being delayed, that's probably also helped delay other exclusives.

PS5 only looks to have Horizon 2 and Ghostwire Tokyo confirmed for 2nd half of the year so far, so unless they have something under their sleeve, MS might want to save other big guns for 2022, which will see PS5 have God of War Ragnarok, GT7 etc.

@NEStalgia Funny you should mention our mutual friend, because that was exactly who I had in mind when I posted that part of my comment.

As for Cliff Bleszinski: I never saw him as always being a d-bag: ever since I saw him being interviewed at E3 quite a few years back, when he was still part of Epic Games, I saw a genuinely playful and enthusiastic glint in his eyes when he started talking about the Legend of Zelda games, when asked about his inspirations and childhood favorites. He came across as utterly sincere, respectful to Nintendo and open-minded. And seeing as that was my first impression of him, that is what has been stuck in my mind ever since.

Perhaps you missed that particular interview back then. Not that it was a must-see, but at least you'd understand my point of view on the matter.

Unless of course you wouldn't have believed a word he said...

@ThanosReXXX I definitely didn't see that interview, but I recall him way back in the Unreal 1 mapping days. He made some great maps. But boy was he a jerk. Bruh. This was back in the id vs Epic days where at id, every employee got a Lambo. We're going back to the 90's here...

Then again, it was company culture. Sweeney was, and is, a jerk as well, as he eagerly demonstrated with his Beijing-driven smug tantrum using his customers as pawns against Apple last year. I can't stand Apple, but Sweeney managed to make me want to agree with them.

@NEStalgia Well, I most definitely didn't know about him from that long ago, so I'll have to take your word for it. I guess the Nintendo-related interview was just an entirely unique and solitary moment, then. And not one representative of how he apparently really is.

Then again: if the entire company is/was like that, he should have felt right at home and would never have had any incentive to leave, so you've then got to question what the hell happened behind closed doors for that to happen. Egos colliding? Anyway, accurate or not, I'm glad I only know him from Gears of War and the Zelda interview, and other than that, I don't need to delve any further into how much of an awful person he potentially is.

I've enjoyed the Gears games and I always enjoy people becoming just as giddy with childlike enthusiasm as me, when they talk about anything Nintendo or Zelda related, so I'd rather remember him for that.

On an unrelated side note: I read your comment in the other Bethesda article, about the ZeniMax board, and it definitely made me crack a big smile. On the other hand I also find it hugely annoying to see some people continuously grasping at straws and/or coming up with all kinds of weird theories and calculations about why Bethesda's games will/should stay multi-platform.

It's just not going to happen, because this is about the long game, not about a single generation, much less a handful of software titles. But I guess some sour or delusional Sony supporters will just never understand that.

Far as we now know, Phil Spencer will honor the contracts concerning games already announced for PS5 before all this happened, but other than that, it's up to him and Microsoft which games they will release on other platforms, if any.

With an almost record-breaking purchase like that, I'd dare to wager a bet that multi-platform releases will be VERY few and far between.