Soon there will be no shortage of fun in Starfield: the game world must become the largest ever for Bethesda.
Director Todd Howard says this in an interview for the Develop: Brighton conference. The map should be bigger than that of Fallout 76. That map was already four times the size of that of The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim.
To create that much surface area, a portion of the game world is procedurally generated. According to Howard, that is a good way to quickly create a lot of land mass. Specific parts that serve as landmarks are still made by hand. This is similar to how most open world games are developed today.
In addition, Howard says that cities in Starfield and The Elder Scrolls 6 should feel more alive compared to previous Bethesda games. This is achieved both by increasing the surface area and by adding more computer-controlled characters. These characters should also be given a ‘bigger role’.
Howard also says that Bethesda’s Creation engine will be overhauled. This should provide a bigger step forward than the step from Morrowind to Oblivion. Howard specifically mentions rendering, animation and AI as areas where great leaps forward are being made.
Finally, Starfield does not get multiplayer components. Both Starfield and The Elder Scrolls 6 will be released on Xbox Game Pass on release day, following Microsoft’s planned acquisition of parent company ZeniMax. It is not yet known whether the games will also be released on other platforms. Release dates are also not there yet. The complete interview can be viewed below.
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