Starfield

wotzgoingon · 06-09-2023 8:11pm

Well I just wasted 20 mins real time. I some how picked up contraband without me knowing and got scanned and flagged. Then they were all after me and I kept jumping to different places but it was all UC(or what ever they are called). In the end I started blasting ships out of the sky while grav jumping to the next place and repeat. My companion was losing the head you do this stuff yourself I want none of it. In the end I had to load up 20 mins back and play it again. Now I am just about to board my ship and I am googling how to loose contraband.

06-09-2023 8:11pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121077966#Comment_121077966

Don't fast travel. At the start I was just teleporting everywhere and I felt the same way as you.

I play more methodically now. I get on my ship, get into the pilots chair, take off. Once in space I select my destination using the cockpit HUD (click the scanner button, LB on Xbox) and travel there by pressing X. Then once in orbit I select the destination and land. Because I'm traveling like this I am having all sorts of random encounters and it feels more immersive too.

If you use fast travel to teleport around the place you'll miss a lot of the games space encounters. Some of that content is brilliant.

wotzgoingon · 06-09-2023 8:15pm

I just remembered how I got the contra band I was in a fight with bad guys and blew them up and salvaged what ever they had and they had contra band. I'm pretty sure it was red writing so I will know not to pick that up next time.

06-09-2023 8:28pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121078074#Comment_121078074

I think it has a yellow/orange tag next to the name when it's contraband. I just store my at my outpost until I figure out how to sell it. It commands a high price!

DarkJager21 · 06-09-2023 8:35pm

You can move contraband safely enough as long as you keep the total amount below (at least 20-30)the storage capacity of the shielded cargo module. The closer you are to the limit the more likely to be detected by scans.

KilOit · 06-09-2023 8:41pm

I want to play it but it's too hot to game, literally my 8ft by 8ft room gets to 30° with graphics card going in this weather

DarkJager21 · 06-09-2023 8:43pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121078177#Comment_121078177

Who says you have to wear any clothes while you play it 😂

06-09-2023 8:44pm

A great game *and* it heats your home?

GOTY. 😂

Sierra Oscar · 06-09-2023 8:54pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121078060#Comment_121078060

Yeah this is how I have been playing, I've made a conscious effort to cut down on the use of fast travel. You don't need to use it the whole time. The random encounters when you enter a new system and whatnot are brilliant.

06-09-2023 8:59pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121078213#Comment_121078213

Yeah, while I can see why they included the fast travel system it really serves to make the game worse because you end up missing half of the game due to it.

I only rarely use it, like if I've walked too far from my ship I'll fast travel back, other than that I do everything manually.

Homelander · 06-09-2023 9:00pm

Jesus, the game is a pig to run. Runs like absolute crap even on higher-end machines, especially Nvidia. I see now why the console version is locked to 30fps - they literally aren't capable of offering a 60fps mode.

I sincerely hope they're working on optimisations.

Potential-Monke · 06-09-2023 9:34pm

No no, we're not getting 60fps so we can store 20000 potatos in our cockpits and watch the lovely physics as they roll out. And sandwiches.

titan18 · 06-09-2023 9:52pm

I've no idea how someone looked at that city map and thought that was ok to go with. It's horrific and completely useless

wotzgoingon · 06-09-2023 9:53pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121078156#Comment_121078156

I only just realised the ship I stole earlier in the game has a shielded capacity but it was full to the brim which is how they detected the contraband.

And another spanner in the works I went through every item in ship hold and on me and I cannot find the contraband. Strange.

06-09-2023 9:59pm

Jesus there's some folk online who are absolutely livid that this isn't the new Fallout 76/Cyberpunk. Reddit is a mess.

People's YouTube careers were depending on the drama of a botched launch.

Ah well, back to enjoying the game. 😊

Icyseanfitz · 06-09-2023 10:14pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121077752#Comment_121077752

Those are good frames with a 1080ti, mine is around 40-55 outdoors and 50-60 indoors, I've a 7600x and 1080ti. Must look at your link.

feargantae · 06-09-2023 11:10pm

I'm playing on SteamDeck now via Cloud and I have to say it runs great! The SteamDeck is only 720p anyway but with ClarityBoost on Edge it feels a lot higher

SuperBowserWorld · 06-09-2023 11:18pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121077833#Comment_121077833

I've a wired connection to the laptop and Xbox.

Longing · 06-09-2023 11:31pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121078422#Comment_121078422

Found this on Reddit very handy got me out of running around like headless chicken. Work in progress.

New Atlantis | Starfield Map | Map Genie

06-09-2023 11:32pm

Yeah the city map is an abomination. Absolutely useless.

Dave_The_Sheep · 07-09-2023 2:59am

I've played about four hours ...

... and so far I'm not overly impressed. The setting seems fine, the intro was horribly rushed, the character interactions are very forced. I've been here since Morrowind and this universe (so far) doesn't have the same appeal, the same depth as Tamriel, or the Wasteland (and I've spent thousands of hours in those worlds). That may change as I play more, like I said, only a few hours. Maybe I've been spoiled by the quality of BG3 - and yes I realise they are different styled games - but I'm struggling to care much about any of the people meet in Starfield. Or about the main quest.

This is very underwhelming so far.

Retr0gamer · 07-09-2023 5:18am

Metro gamecentral have an update to their review. It's a lot more positive than the really poor initial impressions but they still aren't in love with the game:

https://metro.co.uk/2023/09/06/starfield-review-in-progress-bethesdas-sci-fi-scrolls-19453478/?ico=mosaic_gaming

Potential-Monke · 07-09-2023 7:49am

I'm with Dave here. I've a few hours played too and i'm not that impressed either. Same issues as above, rushed intro and straight into the Bethesda character jank conversations and dead eyes. Voice acting appears better, but I'm skipping most of it by reading because nothing they're saying is interesting enough to listen to. The gunplay is grand so far. Shockinly low carry limit considering the weight of everything. But that's also because I've yet to encounter someone to sell to I suppose. I'm on the mission where myself and head group girl headed to Mars and the Moon. She didn't appear to need a spacesuit on the moons surface, fair play to her. Just running through the motions at the moment trying to move the story forward to get the alleged good parts.

As someone else mentioned earlier, the unconnected world is working against it. And that's the secondary biggest issue I have so far. Start on your ship, pick a mission on map, get into cockpit, launch into cutscene into black screen loading (bsl). Into space, point at where you want to go, open map, launch, cutscene, bsl, get to planet, point at landing area, launch, bsl, arrive on planet with cutscene, bsl, on foot for a few seconds/minutes to where you're going, bsl, cutscene of train ride, bsl and rinse and repeat... Far, far too much loading for what should be menial things. All unconnected actions broken by black screen loading. I feel like it would have been a great game last gen.

But the biggest issue I have is the 30fps. Granted, it's mostly consistent so it's just about manageable, but it's majorly taking away from my enjoyment. My eyes were actually dry and sore after a few hours, and only now feel normal again an hour after stopping. It's 100% noticable and it's enough to stop me playing I reckon. I'd stop immediately if they were to announce an eventual 60fps mode, which I reckon will happen, just not anytime soon. And the biggest gripe is that I see no reason why it shouldn't be. There's nothing I've seen so far that reducing the quality of would have a negative effect. Then again, if it can only manage 30 at the current level of detail then I suppose I now know why there is no 60fps mode, because they wouldn't have been able to manage it either way.

Flying off a planet near a building, the entire front of the building pixelates. The ship flying off is a pixelated mess before the black screen loading happens. There's texture popping, the draw distance looks good but pops (not as much as NMS, but still noticable). I've had a dead body fling itself across a room because I took the credits out of it's pocket. Yer one can breathe in space. It might be the least buggy Bethesda release yet, but it still has a fair amount of them. The inventory and mapping are inexcusible.

I feel on my playtime so far that it has fallen well short of what it could be. And no doubt in time it will improve. But for now, I feel it's just about holding itself together and is being propped up by long time Bethesda fans and modders. It's not what I would expect from such a big studio making for 2 markets with MS money behind them, and it's certainly not the amazing game people are making it out to be. Bethesda level of jank acceptance does not a good game make. I'll keep with it for another night and see if it improves any.

Static M.e. · 07-09-2023 8:39am

Just for info really. I upgraded my RTX 2060 Super to a brand new shiny RTX 4070 and the results have not been spectacular at all. I still have stuttering and the graphics are not looking that much better (Medium settings). I needed a new GPU but it seems like it was kinda a waste of money (€650 to Ireland) ...

On the plus side, I played on Xbox Cloud last night on my TV (60") and it worked surprisingly well. I had a much better experience on the TV than I did on my Gaming PC.

Hopefully there will be a Nvidia driver \ Patch soon. I feel like I should be getting a much better performance.

ShaneU · 07-09-2023 8:59am

Tried playing this for the first time yesterday. The menus, UI, map and navigation are TERRIBLE! They've been working on this for seven years? Modders to the rescue again it seems. Went to the little garden connected to The Lodge in New Atlantis and looked around and thought "wow this game looks like sh1t!" This engine their using is a relic at this stage.

McDermotX · 07-09-2023 9:05am

TBH.....I was somewhat surprised by the performance levels, which is probably more indicative of the state of some PC cross releases nowadays that anything else.

Somewhat last-gen 3090 is still well able to push around max detail ultrawide at excellent framerates with 99% usage. Granted a decent CPU is required to let those cards stretch their legs. Not the best looking game ever....far from it, but can still be striking in moments. Only about 10-12hrs in, but enjoying what I've played so far since the weekend. Playing wanted with bounty hunters after you provides some great moments........watching a ship coming down from moon orbit and landing in the distance with lads running out to chase after you is something else. Only had one bug as such which was even that big a deal.....looped weapon firing audio from a companion until the next load transition. Haven't tried the Series X version yet.

It's still a very 'compartmentalised' universe for lack of a better term, plus the unmodded-menu UI in general is sloppy and overtly-console like. But there is something underneath that is close to grabbing the player in a similar way Skyrim etc can.

murpho999 · 07-09-2023 9:19am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121078733#Comment_121078733

Isn't that the point as it's an exploration game? It's not GTA. You're not being hand held.

Only played a few hours last night, arrived at New Atlantis. Completed a couple of quests and was able to navigate by selecting mission and following blue target circle which directed me the right way and then I'd encounter other people and pick up more quests on the way.

brady12 · 07-09-2023 9:19am

To anyone that isn't gone on it first few hours ...

I was that person . The start of the game is a mess . first 5 hours are just weird . Better from 5-10 starts take off . I felt from 10-20 was a 9/10 game . Now I'm about 28 hours in it's a 10/10 for me all I am thinking every day is work what I'm going to do later in Starfield . I really did nearly did everything at New atlantis , really immersed in world . Only at 2nd city now , the cowboy town 🤠. Spent 2 and a half hours there last night alone just poking around it . This game is going take a long time to finish . Anyone else get ' recruited / forced to ' go under cover for the UC? Was fair random 😂. General consensus from Bethesda fans I listen to is its their best main story ever , I'm not far into that at all . Excited to see what's to come .

johnny_ultimate · 07-09-2023 9:32am

Played through the first few hours last night.

First things first: the UI and menu design is absolutely atrocious, at least when navigating with a mouse and keyboard. Everything feels like it takes several more clicks than it needs to, and seems to have gone for aesthetics over usability in many cases. Bad Bethesda! Especially egregious when you need to spend so much time in the menus for simple navigation.

It definitely makes a poor first impression. 'Shoot laser at rocks' and 'generic pirate outpost' aren't the most thrilling intros to a brand-new space RPG. Things do pick up when you reach New Atlantis at least, but picks up in the 'ah, it's a standard Bethesda game' sort of way.

Shooting is... fine? It's a step up from Fallout, that's for sure, but has that slightly underwhelming bullet spongey, maths-based remove you get in games that try to combine RPG mechanics with real-time shooting.

On the plus side, while I'm not sold on some of the art design, it does look quite handsome in some respects, especially when it comes to the materials work. Things like opening doors in particular - with all the gears and locks whirring - look really nice, and objects etc... hold up very well on close examination (generic textures less so, but it is a video game). Still not a fan of the way Bethesda frames character conversations though - animation has improved here, but conversations always feel like you're chatting with dead-eyed automatons and there's no dynamism in the framing. This is a baby step in the right direction, but still feels very much in line with their past games.

PC performance is perfectly fine with the DLSS mod installed - dips into the 50s in the open city, but Gsync covers the gaps pretty well. Haven't noticed any stuttering at all so far, but again very early. Using a 3070 with i12700, and the game's installed on an M.2 SSD.

It's a very different game to Baldur's Gate in many ways, but can't help but compare them. They're both meaty RPGs asking for dozens of hours of my time at the moment. BG3 makes a great first impression by immediately throwing the player in the deep end and immediately unveiling the vast range of its RPG systems and design (although a little more tutorialising wouldn't go amiss). Starfield just feels a lot like games I've played before - with a few of Bethesda's rough edges sanded down, thankfully, but also rather bland and safe. I don't really have time for both ATM alas, so based on first impressions BG3 it is for now. But will see about giving this some more time when I actually have some more time!

titan18 · 07-09-2023 9:32am

I'm only a few hours in and it hasn't grabbed me yet. In comparison Skyrim whilst starts slow from gameplay wise, story wise you're being attacked by a dragon after 5 minutes so really brings you straight in, this just starts slow on both sides.

The city map is horrific, system/galaxy one is ok, and the menu/inventory management is pretty poor (nothing new there for a Bethesda game). It's a lot of fast travel and loading screens too, breaks the game up a lot and takes away a lot from the exploration side of the game.

**** Starfield ****

Comments

Starfield