Space-set survival games aren’t known for their easy development processes.No Man’s Sky, now considered by many to be one of the better games in the genre, famously struggled to get off the ground when it first launched. Ubisoft once had plans for a sci-fi game code-namedPioneer, believed to have been cancelled or at least significantly changed back in 2019.Pioneer’s loss, however, may beStarfield’s gain.
Starfieldis Bethesda’s upcoming space-set RPG. Little has been revealed about the title, and many fans are hoping the studio will reveal more about it at E3 2021 next month. IfStarfieldhas some of the elements fans were hoping to see inPioneerbefore the project ran into trouble, it could fulfill the the desires of sci-fi fans looking for a game with spaceflight, exploration, and a variety of options for interacting with the galaxy and its inhabitants.
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Pioneer’s Plight
Pioneerwas first teased inWatch Dogs 2. Players could hack a company which is a parody ofWatch Dogs' developer, Ubisoft. In doing so, they received access to a trailer with “Ubisoft Confidential” overlaid on it. The video showed several brightly colored spaceship and space station designs floating in orbit as a guitar riffed in the background. Fans were quick to note that this trailer would have been expensive to make for a singleWatch Dogscene, quickly realizing that it was a hint at an unannounced Ubisoft project.
The design ofPioneerappeared to be relatively realist. Although the colors were bright and the music had a western twang, most of the technology seen seemed to err more on the side ofhard sci-fi. A pilot, presumably the player character, could be seen wearing a space-suit, perhaps also indicating realism. A few clearer details are known about Ubisoft’s aims forPioneer. It would have been a space exploration game, and unlike most games it would have avoided giving players objectives that required violence to complete.
By 2019, however, it seemed thatPioneerhad failed to launch, even though the game had never been announced. On January 14, former Ubisoft creative directorAlex Hutchesonsimply tweeted “RIP Pioneer.” Anyone hoping to see Ubisoft’s take on a hard sci-fi, pacifist space exploration game seem unlikely to ever get the chance. Some leaks have suggested that Ubisoft may be working on a very different version of the project using the same core ideas, but with no news for years it’s seems unlikelyPioneerwill ever see the light of day.
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Starfield’s Opportunity
If Bethesda plays its cards right, its upcoming space-set RPGStarfieldcould scratch the itch of Ubisoft fans who were excited aboutPioneer. There are already some clear similarities between the two projects, even though most of what has been revealed aboutStarfieldhas come from leaks rather than directly fromBethesda.
It’s clearStarfieldwill involve space ships, with some fans speculating that the game’s leaked space ship designs could indicate ship-building and customization. LikePioneer,Starfield’s design seems to be aiming for realism. InStarfield’s case, the technology in the game was based onBethesda developer visits to SpaceX. If the game’s aesthetics are any indication of its mechanics,Starfieldcould have innovatively realistic survival elements.
This is also indicated by a compass which can be seen in theleakedStarfieldimages. This compass appears to show Oxygen levels, CO2, and gravity. The player character can also be seen wearing a jet pack. This implies that different planets will force the player to contend with different atmospheres, and that Bethesda could be exploring more realistic physics, giving players access to multiple ways to make their way through environments with different gravity levels.
Several ofStarfield’s early leaked images appeared to be confirmed at Brighton Digital 2020, whenBethesda’s managing director Ashley Chengwas seen wearing a shirt with an identical logo to the one seen on the player character’s shoulder patch in the leaks. However, there are still many fundamental questions which have yet to be answered aboutStarfield.
The Future Of Space Survival
As it stands there have been no leaks showing thatStarfieldwill allow players to fly their ships through space. Fans of the studio don’t know if they’ll be playing in first-person like inThe Elder ScrollsandFallout, they don’t know ifStarfieldwill have similar NPC or dialogue systems, and they don’t know if the game will be more about exploring and building or if it will also have a single, central plot.
However, ifStarfielddoes have some space survival elements andNo Man’s Sky-style spaceflight, it could be the big budget space-set game some fans of the genre felt they missed out on when news aboutPioneerground to a halt. Some differences have already been confirmed.Starfieldwill use computer generation to create its world, but that is different to the random, in-game generation used by games likeNo Man’s Sky. The lack of random generation makes it more likely thatStarfieldwill have some other Bethesda staples like towns full of scripted NPCs and quests to complete. If it does, hopefully players will be have the option to roleplay thePioneerpacifist route..
Until more is revealed about Bethesda’s upcoming project,Starfieldis one of the biggest hopes for fans of hard sci-fi looking for a game with tight spaceflight, innovative physics, and a galaxy filled with planets to explore. Hopefully E3 will confirm some of these hopes rather than dash them. That doesn’t mean thatStarfieldcan’t also have RPG elements and storylines likeTESorFallout, only that fans of games likeNo Man’s Skyare looking to upcoming titles likeStarfieldto push the space exploration genre.Pioneercould have done that, and in its absence,Starfieldhas the opportunity.
For now, however, fans will have to look forward toE3 2021and hope that Bethesda will reveal a gameplay trailer or at least some more specific details aboutStarfield. If Bethesda can make a game which combines elements from a traditional RPG with those developed in spaceflight and exploration games, it could have a hit on its hands.
