Support NeoGAF

[GHG]

As spotted by social media account JuiceHead, the team has taken the slightly unusual step of explaining to the people leaving these negative reviews that the game is good, actually. It has then asked them to consider the amount of effort that went on behind the scenes to make a game of such scale.

In response to one user that called Starfield's story "generic" and the gameplay "boring", one member of Bethesda's customer support staff replied with a post highlighting everything players can experience in the game.

"You can fly, you can shoot, you can mine, you can loot!" it wrote. "Starfield is an RPG with hundreds of hours of quests to complete and characters to meet. Most quests will also vary on your character's skills and decisions, massively changing the outcome of your playthrough."

It then suggested the reviewer gives the game another chance, but this time tries different characters with different backgrounds.

"You will feel like you are playing a totally different game," it said. "Put points in different skills from a character you've previously created, and you are now faced with completely different decisions to make and difficulties to encounter."

Meanwhile, when another user lamented the amount of loading screens, the support team replied imploring the reviewer to "consider the amount of data for the expansive gameplay that is procedurally generated to load flawlessly in under three seconds".

In response to a reviewer that appears to have suggested they found Starfield's planets empty, the Bethesda team said this was "by design" and "not boring".

"The intention of Starfield's exploration is to evoke a feeling of smallness in players and make you feel overwhelmed. You can continue to explore and find worlds that do have the resources you need or hidden outposts to look through," it wrote.

Bethesda responding to negative Starfield reviews on Steam

Bethesda's customer support team has been responding to negative Starfield reviews on Steam.

www.eurogamer.net

 

[MidGenRefresh]

If you're playing it like previous Bethesda games, meaning you land somewhere and wonder around looking for stuff, you're not gonna have a good time. Like at all. Actually, it will be a terrible time.

I think that's why people are so disappointed in this game.

 

[GHG]

If you're playing it like previous Bethesda games, meaning you land somewhere and wonder around looking for stuff, you're not gonna have a good time. Like at all. Actually, it will be a terrible time.

I think that's why people are so disappointed in this game.

People are disappointed with it because it's simply not good enough.

 

[cireza]

Please generate Disneyland on the entirety of the surface of the planet, in less than half a second, on every planet I visit, just like in the real world. Sounds totally reasonable.

 

[Daneel Elijah]

Thanks for the info! Curious to see if they did the same for people who complained about technical issues, like no DLSS at launch or the Nvidia performance.

 

[R3TRO]

Sometimes you should just take the money and run.

 

[Kilau]

Our game is really great, it’s simple, let me explain.

 

[yansolo]

the game sucked

 

[Cyberpunkd]

Bethesda in a nutshell:

 

[Astray]

Bethesda responding to negative Starfield reviews on Steam

Bethesda's customer support team has been responding to negative Starfield reviews on Steam.

www.eurogamer.net

Lmao this is like looking at a Newegg reviews section. Just endless generic replies to negative reviews.

But this is actually funnier, it's Microsoft discovering that Steam reviews are exceptionally hard to astroturf, so they make all the replies just seem like variations on "No, it's actually the children that are wrong".

 

[clarky]

Well at least Starfield will take home the coveted "Most threads created on GAF" award 2023. By quite some margin as well.

 

[MidGenRefresh]

People are disappointed with it because it's simply not good enough.

I've said it before but let me repeat myself: it's equally amazing and dog shit at the same time. It's a weird game. Definitely deserves all the criticism it's getting. Some truly baffling design decisions around every corner.

 

[Ev1L AuRoN]

I try to play it doing zero exploration, just linearly advancing the story doing only the main quest, and I still got bored pretty quick.

 

[MidGenRefresh]

I try to play it doing zero exploration, just linearly advancing the story doing only the main quest, and I still got bored pretty quick.

It doesn't help that the main quest is like the second worse quest line in the game. I'm not sure what the hell they were thinking.

 

[GHG]

Please generate Disneyland on the entirety of the surface of the planet, in less than half a second, on every planet I visit, just like in the real world. Sounds totally reasonable.

Do you have force powers and experience a loading screen behind every door in the real world?

 

[FrankWza]

Well at least Starfield will take home the coveted "Most threads created on GAF" award 2023. By quite some margin as well.

Wasn't that already decided prelaunch by everyone anticipating GotY and sales records? This is the aftermath.

 

[Draugoth]

I'm waiting for Phil Spencer user review "I spent 7.9 billion on this game and it sucks"

 

[M0G]

I dropped a bad review because there are blockers everywhere. The game could be fun if I could play it unhindered.

 

[HL3.exe]

These must be ChatGPT responses.

 

[SoraNoKuni]

Well... People hyped it as potentially GOAT contender, the game is not that.
It's an ok game, which will click on some people and other will dislike it.
It's not a great game, the reviews are just the truth.

 

[MidGenRefresh]

Please generate Disneyland on the entirety of the surface of the planet, in less than half a second, on every planet I visit, just like in the real world. Sounds totally reasonable.

This is unfair. It's actually extremely difficult to find a barren planet in Starfield. Meaning, there's nothing on it, just you and some rocks. Every planet you land, you're surrounded by random shit. Solar panels there, wind turbines over there. Cryo labs! Abandon outpost! Shipwreck! Look, ship is landing 400 meters away, whoo! Points of interests everywhere.

So the problem is not that there are barren planets with nothing to do. The problem is that what's there is not actually interesting.

 

[clarky]

Wasn't that already decided prelaunch by everyone anticipating GotY and sales records? This is the aftermath.

Nope. This game is still living rent free on GAF for no particular reason.

Its a solid 8 in my eyes, the MC score its bang on. A flawed gem. Done with it for now but ill be back for the DLC for sure, any maybe a bit of sight seeing from time to time.

Well... People hyped it as potentially GOAT contender, the game is not that.
It's an ok game, which will click on some people and other will dislike it.
It's not a great game, the reviews are just the truth.

The reviews are anything from a 5/10 to a 10/10. Its neither. Lots of people in the OT loved it though, myself included.

 

[GHG]

Nope. This game is still living rent free on GAF for no particular reason.

This subject is being talked about across the gaming media and gaming circles at the moment. If you're not fond of the subject matter and it's making you emotional then you're always free stick your head in the sand and ignore the thread.

 

[hinch7]

Thats a whole load of cope and spin. Creation engine needs to go.

 

[FrankWza]

still

It came out less than 3 months ago. It was supposed to an "evergreen" and "forever" game. That's what I saw prelaunch.

 

[Fake]

I not refusing to buy, I'm doing by design.

 

[clarky]

This subject is being talked about across the gaming media and gaming circles at the moment. If you're not fond of the subject matter and it's making you emotional then you're always free stick your head in the sand and ignore the thread.

Ok mate. I liked the game not sure what your point is? I'm not seeing 20 threads about Baldurs gate 3 for example.

I guess guess people just love a pile on. Feel free to stick your head back up your arse at any time.

 

[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

Who still remembers this customer support interaction with the mighty Todd lol?

 

[cireza]

Do you have force powers and experience a loading screen behind every door in the real world?

When the building I am about to enter is randomly generated, there is definitely a short loading time yes.

 

[Gojiira]

Just went I thought Bethesda couldnt get any worse

 

[Tsaki]

Well at least Starfield will take home the coveted "Most threads created on GAF" award 2023. By quite some margin as well.

Oh definitely. The number of shill threads for the two months before release made me want an "Ignore" button in the main Gaf Gaming page

 

[violence]

The game takes its role-playing seriously. It’s not everybody’s cup of tea. Some people prefer World of Warcraft classic over current wow.

 

[Flutta]

Please generate Disneyland on the entirety of the surface of the planet, in less than half a second, on every planet I visit, just like in the real world. Sounds totally reasonable.

Or you know just make a good fun game for people to enjoy + stop lying and overpromising stuff that would also help alot, thanks.

 

[xrnzaaas]

Telling people they're wrong, even in a polite way, is not the way to go. If you want to make players like your game how about working on improving it? Especially since most reviews point out stuff that's wrong with it.

Obviously that's not gonna happen and instead the modders will have to deliver on stuff like planets with unique instead of copy-pasted content.

 

[BennyBlanco]

Well at least Starfield will take home the coveted "Most threads created on GAF" award 2023. By quite some margin as well.

engagement is through the roof

 

[cireza]

Or you know just make a good fun game for people to enjoy + stop lying and overpromising stuff that would also help alot, thanks.

They made a fun game. You guys can't be satisfied by anything.

 

[GHG]

Ok mate. I liked the game not sure what your point is? I'm not seeing 20 threads about Baldurs gate 3 for example.

I guess guess people just love a pile on. Feel free to stick your head back up your arse at any time.

You might want to calm down. Just a suggestion.

It's time for realise that your own personal opinion and the echo chamber that the OT was (this isn't a slight by the way, OT's are always echo chambers by nature, it's just how things tend to transpire), don't align with the opinions of the masses who have played the game.

Hundreds of thousands of people are not buying this game on PC to "pile on". There's a much cheaper avenue by which people are able to do so if that were their prerogative.

 

[crackajack]

I initially would think if you have to explain your game, the tech and design choices, outside of the game to people that have actually tried it out yourself, your game does something fundamentally wrong. But I also remember how people did not get Brütal Legend at all, kinda misleading with the demo and then people not getting that even the RTS like parts have to be played quite similarly. Also Deathloop in my case, where I actually thought it was an only MP game until after release and only really understood it once I tried it myself, but then I got it at least, while still not really my cup of tea. Or people struggling to see anything but a tech demo in Crysis and Ryse. Yeah, people probably quite often don't "get" a game. Trying to explain it afterwards still won't help though. If it isn't possible to distill any such explanation in a catchy one liner. Any game should be self explanatory today and not become good after 10 hours or some other nonsense.
People's expectations are becoming more entitled with every gen, despite having more and more alternatives, but with hive minded twitter mob and influencers partially fake raging, customer stisfaction will get even harder in the future.

 

[Facism]

lads getting mad people didn't like starfield. Like being 12 again.

 

[DarthPutin]

I could live with empty worlds, but only if you give me fun ways to get around - high speed flying, Spider-manning, parcouring. I am not walking/running slowly only to discover nothing on the way.

And talking of realism of "empty space", how the hell it is realistic not to have vehicles when you can casually travel between planet systems?

 

[cireza]

You might want to calm down. Just a suggestion.

It's time for realise that your own personal opinion and the echo chamber that the OT was (this isn't a slight by the way, OT's are always echo chambers by nature, it's just how things tend to transpire), don't align with the opinions of the masses who have played the game.

Hundreds of thousands of people are not buying this game on PC to "pile on". There's a much cheaper avenue by which people are able to do so if that were their perogative.

Damn ! Can't fight against this.

 

[ByWatterson]

 

[adamosmaki]

Time to blame baldurs gate 3

 

[clarky]

You might want to calm down. Just a suggestion.

It's time for realise that your own personal opinion and the echo chamber that the OT was (this isn't a slight by the way, OT's are always echo chambers by nature, it's just how things tend to transpire), don't align with the opinions of the masses who have played the game.

Hundreds of thousands of people are not buying this game on PC to "pile on". There's a much cheaper avenue by which people are able to do so if that were their prerogative.

Chill, im not being serious.

It appears that my options do align with the majority of players? The above stat's say as much? Or did you mean the majority of posters on GAF?

I do love it when the old steam reviews are rolled out to justify ones position on a game. Surely the above just cements that for every person that didn't like the game there are 2 that did? I'm not sure what it proves other than its not a game for everyone.

 

[FatallyYours]

They made a fun game. You guys can't be satisfied by anything.

I had a pretty satisfying wank a few hours ago

 

[SmokedMeat]

Or just play No Man’s Sky

 

[IFireflyl]

I had a pretty satisfying wank a few hours ago

I am satisfied by this.

 

[Flutta]

They made a fun game. You guys can't be satisfied by anything.

They really did, it’s even more fun than F76 and that's not saying much.
It's so fun that people left it and went back to Skyrim, a game that should be in a museum by now.
It's so damn fun that even Phil and his minions have stopped talking about it.
It’s so fun that the concurrent player count can't even beat Fallout 4...FALLOUT 4!!! imagine that (THIS IS NO JOKE) .

But you are right, game is really fun and most gamers are missing out.

 

[Zathalus]

I liked Starfield myself. 8/10 game that was lacking in a few areas. Could it have been better? Obviously. Is it shit? Not really.

Most people seem to enjoy it, but it is rather divisive.

 

[Panajev2001a]

Bethesda responding to negative Starfield reviews on Steam

Bethesda's customer support team has been responding to negative Starfield reviews on Steam.

www.eurogamer.net

I have read this script before on this forum… . Nah… it cannot possibly be… …