Starfield – My Review

I dislike first-person shooters. I generally dislike the first-person perspective in games. So when I say that I enjoyed my 100+ hours with Starfield, I don’t say it lightly. Only a few games have been able to overcome my preference and most reside in Bethesda’s lengthy list of RPGs.

One of my favorite things about Bethesda’s games are the freedom allotted to players. Very few games allow me to be a genuinely terrible person. Bethesda’s games are less restrictive. My time with Fallout 3, Fallout 4, and Skyrim were spent role-playing sociopaths. In Skyrim, I took it a step further and role-played a serial killer, going so far as to take items from victims and stash them in the basement of home. I was excited at the prospect of continuing this tradition in the far reaches of space.

I haven’t been this excited for a game since Spider-Man in 2018. I wear the watch that came with my Constellation Edition. I purchased my first XBox controller in almost 20 years because it was Starfield themed — and I don’t own a XBox. I opened a Twitter account where I periodically role-play as my character on the web. I even gave away a pre-release digital PC copy.

Shout out to Marcus Durell from the Trade Authority at The Den in the Wolf system for helping me hock all kinds of illegal contraband. I made a small fortune tonight! #Starfield pic.twitter.com/v63ypXHD9L

— Captain Kropolis (@CaptainKropolis) September 5, 2023

A post from my Starfield character roleplay account

Starfield is not perfect by any stretch of the imagination. I didn’t go in expecting Bethesda to release the “game of the generation.” I’m not a fool. That was never going to happen. I was excited but my expectations were in check. I value my free time. Whatever else Starfield may or may not be, whatever complaints I or anyone else has, it is a game worthy of my time.

Story

Storytelling can make or break a RPG. Bethesda’s storytelling, in my opinion, is often lacking especially in their main plots. However, I enjoyed the plot in Starfield, though some of the voice delivery lacked feeling during pivotal story moments. The main story is intriguing and focuses on providing some semblance of answers to questions mankind has asked since time began while setting up mysteries surrounding how and why mankind ventured into the final frontier. These plot threads held my interest from start to finish culminating in a somewhat unique ending that is both an end and beginning.

Faction quests did not disappoint. Side content is where Bethesda often shines. Early on, I was tasked to infiltrate a group of space pirates by the military of the human colonies, which allowed me to pursue both faction quest lines at the same time until I decided which to betray. One of my favorite side quests was one I happened upon early during one of the faction quests. I was led to a hideout of what is best described as Starfield’s version of Batman. As expected, some of the best story content is in Starfield’s side content.

Gameplay

Gunplay in Starfield is smooth and responsive. More importantly, the number of weapons are plentiful and the available mods for weapons feel endless. I did not invest many skill points into researching/crafting mods because I found weapons that carried me to endgame. My favorite rifle randomly applied poison and explosive rounds, killing even the most bullet-spongey enemies (and they are incredibly spongey) with ease despite its base damage being low. The best part? I found it in an early faction mission.

Many of Starfield’s locations have low/zero-gravity. This is where combat was at its best. Countless games are shooters with normal gravity but playing with little or no gravity where you’re able to jump over buildings or fly using jetpacks while fighting enemies with the same capabilities were my favorite gun fights. However, it would have been so much better if the AI wasn’t incredibly stupid.

Starfield’s AI might as well have been a free prize pulled from a box of Cracker Jacks. It’s like Bethesda didn’t bother with QA and decided whatever they were doing twenty years ago was fine. I’m surprised it was released with an AI this dense. I saw countless enemies walk past me going to their hiding places. Getting to cover must have been higher in their hierarchical model than fighting back or survival. The result was me pumping dozens of rounds into their spongey asses without them reacting at all. The companion AI isn’t better. I stopped bringing companions because I shot them all in the back of the head every time. Every. Single. Time. Thankfully, companions can’t be killed in such a manner, nor do they mind the friendly fire.

Modular ship design has endless design options. My only complaint was the restrictions placed on the number of components. Near the end of the main story, I installed a mod to lift those restrictions and created an overpowered war machine that nothing could match. After playing with it some, the limitations made sense. But it was a lot of fun building without them and I highly recommend PC players try it out.

Building a ship would have felt more rewarding if the game employed better systems to use them. Ship combat feels okay and docking at a ship you disable to fight the crew members on the inside is enjoyable. However, this doesn’t outweigh the areas ships fall short.

Interstellar travel requires menu-driven fast travel. Sometimes, you’re required to be in your ship. Other times, you can be across a city and use fast travel to traverse the galaxy anyway. The ship is there but you don’t have to fly it much.

Galactic travel is basically Mass Effect’s galaxy map. It works but is disappointing to see in an open-world game going for exploration. If you’re hoping for No Man’s Sky, this isn’t the game for you. Atmospheric flight and manual landings are not possible. Outside space combat, your ship exists as a device to foster fast travel from system/planet A to B. Using fast travel to help players get across cast distances is fine. I would have used it most of the time even if it weren’t required. But extensive reliance on fast travel as the sole method of interstellar travel makes fast travel a crutch that holds the entire game together. Starfield is not a space flight simulator. But it would have been so much more awesome if it had been. I enjoyed playing this game tremendously but I would have enjoyed it so much more if some of these things were able to be done differently.

A few days after Starfield released, I saw a YouTube video where someone spent two days recreating some of the basic mechanics in a working demo that resolved many player complaints including this one. I can’t help but wonder if the Creation Engine is becoming the crutch holding Bethesda back.

Starfield is a very ambitious game and I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoyed Bethesda’s prior titles because it does feel like Fallout in space. What it does well, it does extremely well. But when it falls short, it falls hard. Nevertheless, it’s enjoyable and I don’t regret the time or money spent with it. With my first playthrough complete, I am waiting to see what patches or DLC Bethesda offers before planning a NG+.

Final Fantasy 16 – My Review

I have been playing Final Fantasy games since 1989. I spent time with every major title and finished them all except FF8 and the two MMOs, both which I played but never hit endgame. I see the discourse surrounding Final Fantasy 16 and feel much is unjustified. Final Fantasy has been changing parts of its core gameplay for decades with nearly every title. Granted, some more significant than others. However, I can’t remember a time when a Final Fantasy game released and people didn’t decry it as “not Final Fantasy.” Final Fantasy 16 is no different.

These games have always been changing. Always evolving. While I contend FF3 is the evolution of FF1, and FF5 in some ways feels like the evolution of FF3, even these three games all have their differences. In the first three FF titles we see different leveling systems, skill-based progression, magic systems, and differing job systems. The franchise also changes its combat style for every major numbered release from FF9 thru FF16.

Furthermore, anyone who played Final Fantasy XI Online probably sees its inspirations throughout FF16. Enemy types and armor designs seemed obvious enough. Much of Sanbreque and its surrounding wilderness bares striking resemblance to San d’Oria and its forests. During my travels I encountered multiple areas that felt like I was back in FFXI’s Vana’diel crossing the Valkurm Dunes or traipsing through Yhoatar Jungle. Final Fantasy 16 has the DNA of the FF franchise woven throughout.

A scarecrow in Valisthea resembling a black mage from Final Fantasy 1

What binds Final Fantasy games together are familiar elements. Every entry I have played has a mix of (and I probably missed some):

• Medieval influences
• Cyberpunk/Steampunk/science fiction
• Magic
• Chocobos
• Moogles
• Summons
• Crystals
• Iconic franchise jobs
• Religion
• Politics
• Common enemies (cactaur, tonberry, etc)
• Airships
• A guy named Cid

A dragoon standing in Kain’s iconic pose from the title banner of Final Fantasy 4

Story

One of the most common comparisons Final Fantasy 16’s story draws is Game of Thrones. I get it. This game has a mature tone but it is not the first title to deal with war and politics. These themes have always been part of the franchise. But it is the first title to show the violence in such a graphic manner. But I can’t say it enough: these themes aren’t new. The violence , swearing, and partial nudity may be, but the series isn’t shy about mature themes. Final Fantasy 16, at its core, is an enjoyable experience about fighting for a better world where slaves are free and everyone forgets their own destiny. We are given an unlikely protagonist and follow him throughout multiple periods of his life spanning decades. We see him fall to his lowest point in life and watch as he is thrust into one impossible situation after another because he dares to take a stand. Although it has its share of typical tropes, the overall story and writing are good despite a little cheesy dialogue in places.

Combat

Combat has been the most controversial aspect of Final Fantasy 16. I love turn-based combat. It will always be my preference. However, I don’t have complaints about the action combat in FF16. It took some time to find the best abilities for my playstyle. When I did, combat was a breeze. FF16 gives players a lot of options throughout the game. The only draw-back is progressing enough to unlock them all. It took time to figure out the best times to use abilities given their recharge times. By the end of the game, and during my NG+ playthrough, combat has been a breeze.

Characters

This may be the best cast of characters since Final Fantasy 7. Throughout the main story we’re introduced to many supporting characters with many who are memorable. Final Fantasy 16 has no set party, but instead gives companions. Jill and Cid are two of the most common, with the banter between Clive and Cid often being humorous even in tough situations. The AI controlling supporting characters is generally good and helpful in combat and their respective voice actors did a phenomenal job bringing them to life.

The cast of antagonists is a mixed bag. Some are more interesting than others, with personal connections to Clive or others from the player’s party. Others seem sinister for the sake of being evil. Each has their own motive. Some are straightforward while others (especially near the endgame) become more complex and strange.

Summons

This is a huge departure from the series norma. Gone are summoners and summons that feel like larger spells being casted. Instead, certain characters become the summoned creature. These characters exist as a sort of demigod. Their transformation includes a “primed” version where the character becomes a hybrid with summon. Primed versions are smaller and usually consist of stronger version of the character with the summon’s elemental properties and abilities. The actual summons are massive and the boss battles are intense, often spanning multiple phases, with some that become larger and more menacing as the fight progresses. Clive’s summon, Ifrit, is also player-controlled during these sequences. Ifrit has its own abilities and controls similar to Clive and learns more as the game progresses and Clive becomes more capable while using Ifrit.

Music

Masayoshi Soken and Nubuo Uematsu don’t miss. Final Fantasy 16 has a mix of new and familiar music. One of my favorites was the overworld music from the original Final Fantasy orchestrated as eerily somber music during a boss fight. The music is always on point, setting the proper tone for every situation.

Misc Thoughts and Gripes

In my opinion, Final Fantasy 16 has a few blemishes.

• It is bloated with side quests. While many are clearly present for world-building, they can become tedious with multiple requirements that often involve running back and forth talking to people who are often nowhere near each other.
• The use of quick-time events often ruined my enjoyment of cinematics. In my opinion, the use of QTEs I’m games needs to end.
• No elemental system for spells. I get it. Faster action means less reaction time and we’re only allowed so many abilities to slot and we don’t get all of them right away. I get it. But it seems strange killing fire-based enemies fire spells and seeing Ifrit and Phoenix fight without healing each other.
• The pop screens for leveling up, completing quests and missions, and killing marks it insufferable. Make it a notification with an optional button-press to see that screen. I get those screens exist in older titles. But those titles weren’t action games. For this game, this screen is annoying.
• The “Final Fantasy” difficulty mode should be available from the start.

Returnal – My Platinum Journey

Returnal will not let me go. I preordered and began playing on release day—nearly a year as of this writing. In almost forty years of gaming, I haven’t seen many games exceed every expectation. In my opinion, Returnal is one of the best video games ever made. Housemarque nailed everything from gameplay to graphics, sound to music, and ambiance to enemy and level design. Returnal tells an interesting story without overloading the player with lengthy cutscenes or heavy loads of dialogue. You know just enough to keep you guessing and intrigued. It strikes a perfect balance few games attempt and fewer achieve.

I remember the intrigue of the opening and the punishing first few minutes that followed leading to the flash of the title screen after beginning the game for the first time. In the days that followed, like many others, I struggled to get anywhere. Unlocked items and weapons were few. I didn’t have a full understanding of all the mechanics but every time I made it just a little further. Upon meeting Phrike, I died. A lot. In some ways it reminded me of my frustrations with Sekiro and Bloodborne. In other ways, it was worse. But there was something about the randomness at the core of Returnal that kept bringing me back. After a handful of brutal defeats, I stopped just shy of Phrike’s entrance to watch a narrated video walkthrough and then had my first real success. I defeated Phrike.

My experiences after were similar. Every map was increasingly more difficult. Every boss unique and punishing in their own way. Every triumph came a little faster than the one before. I completed Act 1 after eight days and then defeated the final boss for the first time three days later. I immediately began working through a series of speedruns for missing glyphs, scout logs, and the additional items required for Act 3.

In the beginning, my love for Returnal was marred by some pretty serious bugs and game crashes. I fought and defeated the second boss a second time because a trophy didn’t trigger. I lost progress on multiple runs due to crashes. After 300 speed runs there were glyphs and scout logs in rooms I had never seen before. Even now, after hundreds of hours and achieving the platinum trophy, there’s a weapon I never unlocked. Six months ago, I was five collectibles away from the platinum trophy and walked away in frustration. It seemed clear that statistically I should have seen every room in every biome at least once. Continuing to run the maps over and over in hopes of finally getting those rooms to spawn seem like insanity.

Returnal’s Ascension tower and some discussions with people within Twitter’s gaming community drew me back in. Within a few days every missing collectible spawned and I completed the platinum trophy a few days ago, April 19th. Nearly a year after its release. The platinum trophy is not for the faint of heart. But if you’re in love with this game there’s no greater sense of accomplishment within Returnal than knowing you survived the random number generator (RNG). Some of the bosses were tough. But it was the RNG that defeated me for nearly six months.

Elden Ring: Final Thoughts

Anyone who follows me on Twitter probably knows I struggle more with FromSoft games than most. I’m fairly new to their RPG subgenre, having only played four of their games. I was introduced to Sekiro when it won Game of the Year. I hadn’t heard much about it and decided to check it out. It’s a game I want to enjoy but am so terrible at the result was a nasty rage quit–the only one I’ve ever had. So to finish any From Software game, for me, is a feat. But to receive the platinum trophy seems like an impossibility.

I should note I had a tremendous amount of help achieving the platinum trophy for Elden Ring. There’s no way I would have received that alone. The boss fights are difficult despite the narrative I keep seeing that the game is easy. It seems a bit easier than Sekiro. But I found Elden Ring just as difficult overall as Dark Souls 3. I am by no means an authority on the subject. I struggled through nearly every boss encounter (and many randoms throughout the open world), killing a few through sheer luck or after grinding for hours just to get a slight edge that probably didn’t really matter. I suck at these games. If it weren’t for a guy I work with doing most of the heavy lifting I wouldn’t have finished it let alone picked up the platinum trophy.

I considered starting over on a NG+ (or whatever it’s called). I still may. The news about George RR Martin consulting with From Software for the world-building of Elden Ring is, honestly, the only reason I decided to play. I have read some of his novels and his mind intrigues me. Discussions of game of Thrones often devolve into HBO’s final few seasons or the show’s series finale. It’s a sad statement considering the masterful work he put into that world. The idea he would be contributing to a video game for my attention. I could see his influences throughout and I find myself wanting more. But for now I’m stepping back.

I am interested in seeing what the PC modding community comes up with. I suspect Elden Ring will be a game supported by dedicated players long into the future. Maybe someone will even come up with some kind of blasphemous casual/easy mode. That’s something that could convince me to buy it again for PC. I don’t think I would survive a more difficult NG+.

Elden Ring : My Love/Hate Relationship

Elden Ring is a game I have to play in shorter intervals than most. If you spend much time online reading the reviews of critics or comments by other players you will find near-endless praise. Many people whom I enjoy talking about games with regard Elden Ring as a masterpiece and some even crowned it the best game they have ever played. I enjoy it to a degree but you won’t find that kind of praise here.

It has been difficult for me to find the best approach for this post because there’s so much Elden Ring does well but so much I also find frustrating. For every topic, I find myself in a love/hate relationship. I also noticed my Twitter follower counts usually drop a little when I voice those frustrations. That’s fine. Overall, my frustrations are well-received by others with many trying to offer up some constructive counterpoints and suggestions of ways to make the game more enjoyable. The From Software gaming community is a very welcoming group, at least in the Twitterverse. They changed the overly negative perception I had from prior experiences with various Facebook groups.

Some background

Elden Ring isn’t the first From Software game I played. I’m not new to their game design. Sekiro was my first, though I didn’t finish it. Bloodborne was my second. It didn’t click so I stopped playing. I tried again as a litmus test when deciding if I wanted to invest the time in Elden Ring. I quit Bloodborne again and moved to Dark Souls 3 on the suggestion it might be closer in aesthetic and gameplay mechanics to Elden Ring. Dark Souls 3 was a frustrating ordeal but I finished it.

My quest to become Elden Lord

With Elden Ring I went with the samauri class because the style of combat is close to how I played Dark Souls 3. Gameplay was familiar. I went through Elden Ring’s opening bits until I was dropped into the main game world and things slowly began to unwind little by little.

Most of the praise I see for Elden Ring comes from its approach to the open world. It reminds me of the days of Morrowind when I was dropped onto a map with a general idea of where to go and expected to figure it out. Unfortunately my patience isn’t what it was back then. This is a “me problem.” It’s not a criticism of Elden Ring but it greatly affects my enjoyment.

I respect developers’ artistic vision when it comes to these games. Whether I like a game or not, I’m not usually one to be overly critical of design choices. From Software clearly had a vision for Elden Ring. It’s a game I really try to enjoy. My enjoyment is often stamped out by frustration. I die. A lot. Everyone does, right? That’s part of the charm of these games. From talking to people, that’s an accepted part of the game. My problem is if I don’t make progress it stops being fun. I’ve taken a handful of breaks. My last break was two weeks.

In recent days I have thrown myself back into Elden Ring. I spent some time watching a handful of build videos, reading articles with suggested boss orders and recommended levels, and pulled maps to help determine where to go. The lack of direction and focus on exploration is an idea I really want to love. Back in my twenties I would have thrown hundreds of hours into searching out everything I could just to see what was there. If Elden Ring has taught me anything it’s those days are over. But with the help of a bunch of open web tabs in a second monitor, I may actually have a chance at success.