Starfield has been in something of a holding pattern ever since its last significant piece of content, the Shattered Space DLC, released to lukewarm reception last September. Since then, developer Bethesda has not offered up much regarding its plans for Starfield, despite its prior statements that it is committed to continuing support, leaving fans in freefall and wondering where it might go from there.
Adding to this radio silence, Starfield was completely absent from the Xbox Games Showcase during this year's Summer Game Fest, with no news or updates about what will be coming next to the open-world sci-fi RPG. Starfield's reputation thus remains uneven, and there's one quest that seems to capture this sensation: First Contact. The mission has an excellent narrative setup and fits well into the world, but is a bit of a letdown in terms of execution and offering fans more interesting and robust choices. There is good potential in First Contact, though, which could help inform how Starfield can correct course down the line.
Bethesda's parent company, ZeniMax Media, previously filed for the "Starborn" trademark, which some have taken to indicate the potential direction of future Starfield content, but nothing official has been announced as yet.
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The Untapped Potential of Starfield's First Contact Quest Could Be Fertile Ground for Future Content
Starfield's First Contact Quest is More Than a Little Underwhelming
Starfield's First Contact quest sees players receiving an urgent call from Jiro Sugiyama, the chief of security for the luxury hotel Paradiso on the planet Porrima 2, located in the system of the same name. Investigating further, fans can dock with a ship in Porrima's orbit, The ECS Constant. Captain Brackenridge then explains that The Constant has been traveling for nearly 200 years, having left Old Earth centuries ago expecting to make Porrima their new home.
The issue is that Paradiso CEO, Oliver Campbell, has full legal rights to the planet and resort, and the colonists' presence presents a pickle. Players can then attempt a resolution and decide on one of three options:
- Procure and install a new gravity drive for The Constant
- Broker a deal that sees the crew become indentured servants on Paradiso
- Sabotage and destroy The Constant
The main issue with the quest is that these are rather limiting, and there's no way to let the colonists fully complete their original mission. The second path can be considered closest, but is still less than desirable and quite morally dubious. Even the generally agreed-upon good outcome of purchasing the grav-drive isn't as satisfying as it might've been, and the overall sentiment is that First Contact could've used a second look.
How Starfield Could Expand and Improve On its First Contact Quest
Bethesda often highlights its focus on player freedom and choice, and while First Contact's story framework works great for the setting, it lacks in the latter areas. There is a lot more to be mined from it, both within its self-contained narrative and ideas that could be broadly applied in Starfield to grant players more and better agency across its quests and their possible outcomes.
It's been noted that First Contact strongly resembles Tenpenny Tower in Fallout 3, with the residents of a safe and luxurious place at odds with a group of outsiders, with the two asking the player character to find or mediate a solution. Using First Contact as a jumping-off point, Starfield could explore this concept in more depth. Bethesda could introduce other similar generation ships, along with perhaps meaningful and interesting updates on Paradiso or The Constant's status or depending on what fans decided.
If there are more ships like The Constant roaming Starfield's galaxy, players could then happen upon or be directed to them, and find themselves in various situations. These might be things like clearing a spot on a planet full of hostile creatures or factions to secure a new home. This could also tie in well with base building, as fans might then be tasked with constructing a habitat or other outcomes that entail further requests and more unique missions. Hopefully, Bethesda considers some of Starfield's missteps and finds some enjoyable and creative ways of improving this aspect.
Starfield
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 85 /100 Critics Rec: 83%
