I appreciate Jake giving his overall thoughts on the game right in the beginning of the video, for those of us who don't want to get too in depth and would rather go in relatively blind.

I appreciate the fact that Jake is always giving us not only straight up gameplay, but also gives us his first impressions of the latest games releasing

I knew the exploration was going to be a hang up the minute they said you couldn't just land on a planet or launch directly into space without a loading screen. That was one of the BIGGEST selling points of No Man's Sky. Missing that is a big deal. Also, that bug you showed where one character basically rushed the screen mid conversation and then the camera panned to see the other character all up in your face... was terrifying LOL. It became a horror game for a quick sec.

always love the before you buys because you guys are so real about each game, ive never seen a “7/10 too much water review” (or space in this case)

Most people who were super stoked for Starfield to be released were mostly just excited that it meant Bethesda would finally start working on the next Elder Scrolls

Did anyone else notice that you can FINALLY climb over ledges now? Honestly, given it's a Bethesda game, that kind of shocked me.

Thanks for the review Jake! I'll definitely pick it up at some point. Hopefully it gets patched, and they keep improving it! It's a bummer that so many games are having huge worlds that are all too often empty outside the main hubs. Smaller, more full worlds are much better.

I always check the reviews from those who make that sacrifice of buying the game and taking the time to explore it and go through many aspects of the game and show visuals and explaining the games mechanics and NPC's etc.... This takes time I know and gameranx your team is very important and needed and we thank you guys for going above and beyond to make this video and content for "Before You Buy". That's why I never get into the hype of any game that is being hyped up before its release date and or buying the vault edition or the day 1 or preserving game. Another thing I just don't seem to understand and that is why would anyone need to reserve a game when these games are almost 100% digital?

Cool to see them expand on what they made with FO4 with crafting and stuff

For everyone who was getting overhyped, this is a good video to level out expectations.

The ship building as mentioned was one of the better features for me too. I went from pretty much using generic starter ships and one I stole that I upgraded slightly, I jumped from that to investing 4 points into piloting and 4 more points into ship building and transitioned from a beginner ship to one that has over 20,000kg cargo space and still great speed, defense and weapons lol. I made an absolute behemoth. It did however cost me 690,000 and that's basically why I went from basic to best immediately, as I figured if I just keep upgrading incrementally it would cost a lot more overall and probably closer to a million if I did it step by step, and well... I haven't earned a million credits yet, I spent every credit I had on the ship lol.

Big thanks as always for the informative video. Planet exploration aside, it seems to be exactly what i wanted from the game. Can't wait to play it on game pass tomorrow. ❤

To be honest, Gameranx are basically the only people who I actually trust to give an honest review.

I gotta say I always really love these videos. If I'm ever on the fence about a game I'll check these out. Really appreciate the honesty and how informative these videos are. I also really like how they never typically outright hate or loathe a game, and even when Jake doesn't like a game he's really nice about it. I think personally I might wait a bit for a sale to get Starfield or maybe sub to gamepass to try it for cheap. I've been underwhelmed with Bethesda since Skyrim and this sounds like more of the same. As always, great video!

If you're planning to start playing Starfield after the June update, you're in for a treat. Most of the bugs I encountered during my initial 40 hours of gameplay at launch have been fixed, and there have been many improvements, including new modes and a vehicle system. The main story is great, but the side quests are where the game truly shines. The various faction missions and the side quests you encounter while exploring different planets are fantastic-it's classic Bethesda at its best. I’ve completed over 100 hours in Starfield and still can't wait to get home and unfold the next side quest, which usually take a decent 2-3 hours. Enjoy!

Remember how interesting and exciting every location was in Mass Effect 2? In any sci-if universe, space is mostly empty and boring. That’s why devs should focus on density and showing us what’s good. Not just showing us a lot.

Never clicked so fast in my life, one of the only if not the only channel I trust before buying a game. Thank you to your whole team for always staying true love you guys always :)

played a few hours and disappointed so far in the immersion/storytelling aspect. spoilers for the first couple missions: i picked the dream house and kid stuff traits and imagined my character as picking up this dangerous mining gig to be able to support their family and finance their house. then 20 minutes in my boss is telling me i dont have a job anymore and my only option is to be like yeah okay! bro i got a mortgage to pay i dont care about getting to the bottom of some weird acid trip i had cause i touched a rock. i wish the stakes were higher so i could at least feel like continuing with the main story is something that my character would do. just thought it was weird that they offered these cool traits to shape your character and then immediately put your character in a situation where you have to roleplay against that shaping. eventually got to the museum and got a run-down of the worldbuilding and i realize it probably feels shallow because i got it told to me through a series of images and voiceovers instead of experiencing it myself, but the game does kind of encourage you to interact with the museum and learn the story through that first as opposed to learning naturally. also - i haven't met all the companions yet or interacted enough to form a full opinion but so far they feel pretty bland. especially in forms of physical design. i mean, sarah's arguably the main companion and she looks like any other npc in the city. edit: played some more and some of the dialogue is really unnatural. one of the first sarah dialogue options is asking her if she believes in any of the religions. it would make sense if it was tied to you having one of the religion traits or a location or even if you were just asking her about constellations creed - but youre literally just like hi i met you 5 minutes ago do you believe in divine atheism or snake god? :D probably seems like a silly thing to ruin my experience but a good story and being able to immerse myself in the world and the roleplay of my character is my main priority in single-player games. that being said, the combat has been fun so far and the world environments are beautiful so im not giving up yet in finding the enjoyment in the game, but it's definitely gotten bumped to the backlog.

I watched this 2 weeks ago and it just occurred to me to comment that, as a long time subscriber, im glad this OG channel is still doing what It started out to do. I always thought that I needed a channel like this and Im glad its here for exactly the before you buy vids. It's like the extra virgin olive oil of game reviews. Thanks Jake B.

The randomly generated planets would be great for mods in the future. It gives space for modders to whatever they like

Honestly, just a simple first person grav jump animation where it looks like you're traveling through a worm hole to mask the loading when you're travelling through planet instead of whatever they did would make the game much much more immersive.

As a person who isn't very into si-fi I feel like the issues listed may actually pull me right out. With BG3 which I was super excited for (for a multitude of reasons more connected to a world I love and hoping to see that lore brought to life than anything) that I haven't managed to finish with my constant overtime at work yeah, I think I'll be sticking to BG3 especially with the coming PS release.

This game just makes me want to play No Man's Sky. Which isn't something i thought I'd be saying.

I’m not too far in yet but my biggest problem with it has definitely been the space traversal. In No Man’s Sky you could fly right up to a planet and pick literally anywhere you wanted to land. Here you select it with a menu and pick from maybe 3 or 4 spots you can fast travel to :/

Gameranx coming through with honesty and opinions once again. One of the most reliable channels on KZfaq. Edited: I took out unbiased since it was ruining everyone’s day apparently

Picked it up on game pass so far really enjoying myself with it, love the stuff on the ground and the random gun fights in the ships only real complaint is the traversing space, the menu feels awkward to handle, hopefully they do a update to that part

If you like sci-fi and Fallout/Skyrim you’ll love this game. The intro is pretty bland, but just do a few story missions, then go explore. Iv been enjoying it since early release. Unless you’re expectations were unrealistic, I think most Bethesda fans will enjoy this a lot. A few points: - shooting is like improved Fallout 4. Felt good to me - Surprisingly the 3rd person looks/moves great. - The main quest is MY favorite from Bethesda this far - You can land on planets even if there isn’t a marker there. You can also dock onto other ships and space stations (thought that was cool) - plenty clothes and suit options. You can looks like a bounty hunter to looking like a alien stripper. - you have to unlock mechanics like stealth bar, pickpocketing, combat slide, etc - planets tend to look mostly barren but you never know with Bethesda

You guys are so genuine it makes me believe in a better world.

I love how you can just search for any game before you buy and get a perfect review on it.

My guy! This has always been my routine whenever theres a new game I always watch your videos. I really appreciate your work! Keep it up and Bless you!

Only got about seven hours or so into the game so far with early access, but I have to say it is absolutely a Bethesda game. If you like Skyrim, and like fall out, it plays like them, it has its quirks just like those games but it is a lot of fun.

I guess some people were expecting a real single instance universe where you can just walk/fly anywhere without pauses or loading screens. Instead you got a new Fallout where every building is its own instance and you get a loading screen in the elevator.

Would be nice to see time stamps for vids like these where you talk about the performance of the game. People like me, aren't as interested in the gameplay as I will be playing it once the patch the horrendous freezing you get, simply because the game is downloaded on a HDD. Never had issues with any other triple AAA ( or any game for that matter ) playing on a HDD. I'll experience the gameplay when I play, but want to see what everyone is talking about when it comes to performance, and being able to skip to that part would be nice. Love the vids!

So what you're saying is that if I don't have ridiculous, unrealistic expectations, I'll enjoy this game.

Can't wait to see how compact people make their ships. I love seeing how minimal people can get while still being resourceful and having all the good modules.

Gameranx will forever be the best channel to get some instant, straight-up review opinions. Your videos are always great!

Honest/helpful review as always, I always check your vids before parting with cash. Am mostly enjoying Starfield, on Xbox series S, but it crashes way too much!

Always Come come here for games I may be on edge on and the gameranx crew comes thru with straight facts!

Glad i kept my expectations in check with this one. I didn't expect Starfield to be the next game changing space sim, but a classic Bethesda RPG with all the pro's and con's that come along with that, except this time it's a space setting, wich seems to be exactly what we're getting. Edit: been playing for 2 hours now, it’s literally Space Fallout. To me that’s a good thing but know what you’re signing up for

"It's a Bethesda game" is probably the most realistic outcome I was expecting, and frankly the one I was hoping for.

At least he’s honest. It took so long to make. This game is a great example that helps improve how fast games are made. It’d be cool to see more investments in games that actually take 10 years to make. My lord can the budget be hefty but if the gaming industry wants more realistic, yet inherent interactions within a game it would certainly be worth it. I wish they allowed more opportunities to make things from scratch. Especially with structures. It would be neat to be able to have the ability to customize really small details such as how something is wrapped, where you actually work with the elements of crafting items. Along with having actual opportunities to barter more precisely rather than just collecting mere elements with basic opportunities to sell. Yet in respects to the culture this game comes from its quite magnificent- its really neat how they further integrated previous objective and interface styles within this game- as it allows people who are familiar with Skyrim and Fallout the ability to easily adapt. It’s such a large and prestigious game- which further gives less rights to assume such menial tasks should be incorporated as it could easily cause issues for economic development if not studied through the prospects of sociological development.

The side quest absolutely have been reeling me in. Man the little side quest with saving the farmers and basically leading a whole task force against the spacers was crazy cool

I really do love your ‘before you buy’ videos, it’s my go to for honest reviews. I’ve been hyped for Starfield but had concerns, this has me excited still but it’s tempered my expectations. I’ll be playing on PC at launch 🙌

thank you gameranx as usual. The only place I trust now for an honest review from a company who understand their viewers.

Great BYB. I'm hoping that the frame rate stands up. If so, I think I'm really gonna like this one. Thanks Jake.

Whenever I think about getting a new game I always check out the "Before You Buy" video. The best, most honest reviews.

Just watching the gameplay gives me nostalgia. Just walking through a city, the NPCs staring at you, the loading screen and random door noise as you're entering a dungeon, It just feels like home. Can't believe it's been so long since we had a Bethesda single player game.

I never have huge expectations anymore. That was definitely shattered with Cyberpunk. I was excited for this one with a healthy bit on skepticism and knowing Bethesda, this seems all par for the course with flaws and all. Appreciate the critical eye. I'll be playing Sea of Stars until early access later today. Great video.

Love your breakdowns your awesome man keep it up

Great review thanks :)

As much as I wanted it to be Starfield, Baldurs Gate 3 is definitely grabbing game of the year for me no questions asked. Played a review copy of SF for 24 hrs, and ill be playing BG3 until the week 1 bugs are fixed by Bethesda.

As always. Thanks for putting in the early work for everyone to get an idea of what they are getting into

T'm planning on playing on my new PC build, but I am really hoping that I am not disappointed. Hoping to mod the game and hoping that there is an Unofficial Patch for Starfield in the makes because I know we'll need it. Glad you made this video you got my sub and like.

3:50 so you basically have to force yourself to like it....Ill pass

I actually like how Bethesda tackled overencumbered here. Instead of locking your move speed to walking only they still gave you the option to sprint in exchange for a faster O2 decrease rate. Which, makes sense imho. since carrying a lot of stuff tire you out faster when exerting more effort

Always love your "before you buy" videos because you guys actually go in depth and let the viewers know what your personal opinions about the game. This is why I always check your reviews out compared to others. Keep up the amazing job!

The first city just overwhelmed me. I’m used to speak to every soul I meet but like in the first city there were like hundreds of people …

Well the only thing to hate is the interplanetary travel but other than that soooooooo worth the wait, also for anyone who has played FTL then the ship building and power cycles will be familiar

I think upgrading the ship and weapons is what would keep me going in the game. Building the ship seems to be the coolest thing you touched on.

Always appreciate the authenticity of a Jake Baldino review

I’ve had 10 reviews hype this game like the second coming of Christ. Thank you for bringing realistic expectations. Edit: I’ve been playing and god damn is this a good game lol

This is why I love steam 😂 if I don’t feel excited within the first 2 hours then I refund it. I always skip character customization until I know if I’ll keep it.

Thanks everyone at Gameranx for all the hard work put into these videos. This is my #1 place for gaming news

This is by far the straightest and most honest take on this game that I've seen so far!

Between Jake, GmanLives, and ACG. I get everything I need to feel comfortable buying or passing on a game. Thanks for all these videos Jake and team!!!

2023 and loading screen on opening doors. Well that's some immersive refreshing sh1t right there

its nice seeing a review that's not just focused on the negatives

You folks were the first people I wanted to hear from. Thanks for your service!

Thanks for all your hard work Before you Buy. You've probably helped people around the world save billions from games they would end up hating.

I am going into this expecting full Bethesda. Most shortcomings should be dealt with through mods. I am holding off on buying it for now. I am planning on upgrading my GPU to the RX7800 XT when it comes out and I suspect AMD will be throwing in a copy of Stafield with the GPU. Once I get it though I'll be looking out for the Unofficial Starfield Patch and a Starfield Script Extender as priorities. I am very excited.

it feels overwhelming and I'm an hour or so in, your videos are always helpful and now to look at more videos.

As notorious as Bethesda is, I've always had the most fun playing their games. Really looking forward to this

I might be one of the rare ones but this game for me was never about exploring the generated planets, i always thought it would be a boring experience. I was always about explore the main story and side quests.

It looks so much like outer worlds! I loved that game, and skyrim. I'm hoping the issues aren't too big of a deal for game play

Currently downloading this massive game on Game Pass. Looking forward to an immersive game and gameplay. Just not looking forward to all of the bugs! Hopefully there will be some patches and updates in the near future.

It's weird to see Starfield is finally out.

i kinda have the idea that many adult gamers have already experienced so much that it takes more and more everytime to from the developers to amaze us, and surprise with something new. At some point that becomes an impossible task. But there is always a young generation that is going to pick up an open world game like this for the first time. If i was myself 15 years ago and played this game i would probably experience it as the best thing ever.

Honestly love Starfield, I will definitely be buying because I know I can and have been able to play fun broken Bethesda game almost endlessly, love the video keep it up yall!

I wish you dove more into the mechanics. The feel of the movement, the weapons, the ship navigation and movement.

Seems like the type of game you’ll love if you’re a fan of giant, expansive adventuring, but it might not click fully if you prefer more depth or focus. Makes sense.

This has got to be one of your better videos. Sets up expectations in a balanced manner. Couldn't have asked for a better review from you.

Idk if im the only one but the space part of the game feels like my favorite mobile game of all time Galaxy On Fire 2. Been waiting a long time for a game to give me that feeling again.

Thank you to Jake and Team Gameranx for always making what are in my opinion the most concise, unbiased, and fair reviews for games that never glorifies anything but never tears it down for small flaws or even massive flaws. The effort really is appreciated, been watching since the very first one way back when.

I REALLY hope they add the ability to fly between planets within a solar system. Perhaps with upgraded ships. At the moment it doesn’t feel like you’re actually flying anywhere (because you’re not)

I've never been a huge fan of procedurally generated game worlds, and this does nothing to convince me that they're a good thing. I wish they would have just worked on a small handful of planets in different systems instead of having hundreds, or "a thousand" planets that are for the most part all procedurally generated. It just leads to so many copy and paste situations which is super immersion breaking if you're having to run through the exact same "abandoned laboratory" on different planets. I think the modding community is going to be doing a LOT of work on this one.

This video has been the most helpful thing I've found to help me know if I want to buy the game, or not. I've played Bethesda games since Morrowind and loved them all. Thank you. I figure that more content will be added with DLCs and editions like other Bethesda games.

I didn’t need it to revolutionize the industry, I honestly just needed a good fallout in space. So I’m excited to get into it.

@11:40 😂 talk about up close and personal

The really first objective impressions on StarField. Thank you.

Life has been so busy for me lately that I've barely even started BG3, but I'm itching to try Starfield as well. I can't decide what to dive into first

I’m excited for it two years from now, when the modders fix it and make it the game we wanted.

This was pretty helpful. I usually go out and explore ignoring a lot of the main story and quests, but I think I will focus more on letting the game guide my exploration through the narrative because that is where the best curated content will be. So, I think you just helped me have a better experience than I may have otherwise.

I'm still playing BG3, but I will definitely play Starfield when I'm done.

Yep, the hype was real for me too unfortunately. Put in about five hours, this before you buy is spot on. Is not a bad game by far. But I was a little disappointed at a few aspects of it. The space travel doesn't feel like travel at all, the loading screens are all over the place. Populated areas felt very Bethesda, but I just didn't get the sense of wonder that I got from something like skyrim or oblivion. Can't complain about framerate because my pc handled it reasonably well. In the end I got my hundred bucks back. I'll probably try it after it's been discounted sometime in the future and qol mods have come out.

From your review. It was what I was expecting. Not some Star Citizen level space sim. It's Bethesda RPG in Space. And I will love it. As always. You cover the good, bad and ugly. thanks.

Integrity in the gaming world we appreciate people like you that refuse to sell out and continue to make awesome content thank you!!!

Its kinda nice how as I'm watching at 2:21 at this 17 minute video, there are... 11 minutes left until release.

You're the best Jake and team ❤😊 Great review

I absolutely love the design of the ship you came up with, it gives me some ideas for my own when I get my copy

I never expect a Bethesda game to be bug free but this looks awesome to me. I am looking forward to checking it out.