The True Cost of Starfield's Loading Screens

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The True Cost of Starfield's Loading Screens

Рет қаралды 3,321

Күн бұрын

Starfield, Bethesda's highly anticipated space RPG, had gamers everywhere hoping for a new genre-defining experience. But why didn’t Starfield live up to the hype and become the next Skyrim? In this in-depth analysis, we explore the reasons behind Starfield's shortcomings despite its grand promises and why it will forever remain the game Todd Howard can only dream of.
Topics Covered:
The unrealized potential of Starfield.
Immersion-breaking mechanics and loading screens.
Comparison with Skyrim and Fallout.
Key gameplay and narrative issues.
Impact of technical limitations on the player experience.
Join me (Trenchcoat) as we take a closer look at what went wrong with Starfield, from the initial excitement and concept art to the reality of the game’s launch. Discover why seamless space travel and exploration fell short and how this impacted the overall experience.
Don’t forget to LIKE the video if you found it insightful, COMMENT with your thoughts on Starfield, and SUBSCRIBE for more gaming video essays and discussions!
00:00 - Intro
01:47 - The reason Starfield failed to immerse me
03:20 - Travelling is not seamless (How Travelling works)
05:24 - The true cost of loading screens
08:43 - Problems with the creative vision
#Starfield #Skyrim #Bethesda #Gaming #GameReview #RPG #SpaceGame #VideoGameAnalysis #StarfieldReview #Immersion #GameDesign #GamingCommunity

Пікірлер: 123

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

Did Starfield meet your expectations? Let me know down in the comment!

@XKathXgames Ай бұрын

IDK maybe the 700+ hours I have been playing will give you a better answer. Starfield is an RPG in a space setting, and I feel people keep missing it. It's BGS game in space, that's it. People hate it because they expected something different from a BGS game. I've never not had fun with it.

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

@@XKathXgames I totally respect that opinion and don’t get me wrong I also enjoyed my time with it. I just can’t help but feel let down by the games technical limitations. I think you can still have a BGS game but without loading screens that ruin the immersion that’s suppose to come from being in a BGS world.

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

@jamesdaxawesome, what do you love about it? Glad to hear you are enjoying it. Thanks for watching though 🙌🏻

@qwertyvypez Ай бұрын

BGS games have always had very long loading screens

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

@@qwertyvypez yeah but it's 2024. If we can have a game like Witcher 3 that released 9 years ago and that did not have any loading screen minus a few cutscenes. I think it's reasonable to want Bethesda to stop being so outdated.

@mygetawayart Ай бұрын

i REALLY LOVED the use of music in this video. Started classical, melodic and operatic when discussing the idea of Starfield but becomes distorted, electronic and modern when discussing the actual game and its issues.

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

I feel so understood with this comment lol... Thanks so much! Thanks for watching.

@RabbitWatchShop Ай бұрын

I am conscious to Starfield’s bugs, copy and paste abandoned locations, desolate planets, loading screens, periods of boredom, and even the sometimes cringey dialogue. I still love Starfield for what it is. Present mods and creations have made the game more consistently fun. They’ve dropped free DLC and ones you can buy. I have sentimental feelings towards Vasco. The game has a lot of beautiful visuals. The ending made me tear, something I rarely do; I can’t remember when I cried over a campaign’s story. Yes, the game falled short. Yes, it seems there’s more disdain towards Starfield than positive. The game has a cult following, and I’m one of the members. I can’t wait to see what Bugthedsta does with Starfield games in the future. Bugthedsta has learned a lot from the shortcomings in Starfield, and with the gaming communities’ feedback, I think they will improve on next installment.

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

I am so glad you loved it! I think with time the game can only improve. I’ll do a re-review on the game in a years time to see how it has evolved. Thanks for the insightful comment.

@janeshepard9549 Ай бұрын

Try playing Spacebourne 2 - fraction of Starfield's budget, exact same blueprint, seamless travel, minimal loading screens, mass effect 1 type combat and basic missions, multiple factions, companions which actually boost stats, faction raids, intergalactic politics, organized space navy battalion battles, an interesting mc backstory, hilarious dialogue like Fallout New Vegas, space walk, mag boots, land your ship, fight aliens, enemy mechs and creatures. The only gripe? Silent protag, placeholder NPCs, AI voice generated NPC dialogue.

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

@@janeshepard9549 Thanks for the suggestion, sound great! Did you enjoy Starfield?

@peterd9698 Ай бұрын

I was wondering if the maker had any plans to open that game to modding, or otherwise make it easy for anyone to add quests. I would be happy to go with zero voiced dialog since it would make that simpler.

@anonymous_dot_com2326 27 күн бұрын

Made by 1 dude

@lovveen431 26 күн бұрын

I looked up starbourne 2 and it's not even out... You got me baited 😔

@janeshepard9549 24 күн бұрын

@@lovveen431 The game is still in Early Access

@robmexx Ай бұрын

Great video. All points are valid and thought through. Subbed

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

Appreciate you taking the time to watch and thanks for the sub!!!

@wafeeqrox885 Ай бұрын

for being your second video this is actually pretty good, keep it up bro

@johnathanodendaal7909 Ай бұрын

Indeed this man knows how to make a good quality video

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

@@wafeeqrox885 appreciate it bro! 🤙🏻Thanks for watching!

@aaron_aplin Ай бұрын

lol now take into account the No Mans Sky Worlds Part 1 update. Hilarious how outclassed starfield is.

@TRENCH-COAT 29 күн бұрын

Totally man, Bethesda really didn't get the memo lol. Thanks for the comment!

@Fuar11 23 күн бұрын

That's like saying a passenger plane is outclassed by a fighter jet.

@isthatyoursomnomnom Ай бұрын

I re-downloaded Starfield (series s) to see if mods could make Starfield fun. Unfortunately, what I discovered was that no matter how many assets or skins I install, it's STILL STARFIELD. I can dress like Anakin Skywalker, populate the universe with Star Wars aliens and build an amazing ship - but the moment I try to DO SOMETHING, the reality of awful writing/quest design/loading screens is still a huge obstacle. I have tried, so hard, to brute force fun into this game. Even with mods, this game is so shallow and not worth the space on my hard drive. I deleted it (again) and downloaded NMS instead.

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

Yeah… everything I wanted Starfield to be can never be realized due to the bad game design. On a fundamental level the game is just badly designed.

@peterd9698 Ай бұрын

I haven’t played starfield but have watched a bunch of reviews because I was interested in the infamous problem of combining a space rpg with infinite worlds. NMS seamless travel would have been nice, but its lack wasn’t the biggest problem to me. Here is my Wishlist: Starfield NewVegas: primarily, no unkillable NPCs, but also some design choices that make FNV excellent for character based roleplay, both in the freedom but also consequences. Skyrim in space, _in space!_ Those 1000 procedural worlds can’t deliver the Skyrim exploration experience, but that experience can be mapped 1-1 to a purely inspace level. Mountain = nebula, dragon = massive warship, bandit = pirate ship.. all handcrafted and discovered through the same organic exploration. Never repeat special locations on procedural worlds. One fix would be a procedural dungeon crawler mechanic, eg using the existing base building mechanic.

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

Thanks for the comment! I totally agree. I think from the start Bethesda decided to focus on the wrong things from a game design perspective.

@joker6558 23 күн бұрын

I still enjoyed Starfield a lot but I do agree with you about the loading screens. There are more clever ways to hide loading screens too that they’ve used in the past and opted not to this go around

@TRENCH-COAT 23 күн бұрын

@@joker6558 yeah man! I like Starfield a lot and I will be playing it in the future. The loading screens I feel just hold it back from being something that is great! Thanks for the comment! 🙌🏻

@brandongarrett2309 Ай бұрын

Good video, nice pace, and informative, thank you.

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

Thanks so much for taking the time to watch!

@dark_architect1644 Ай бұрын

“Finding something…. Anything….” Interesting and not boring

@dark_architect1644 Ай бұрын

And you know what you will find. A whole lot of emptiness and a main quest that is just a fetch quest done 25 times in a row so you can go through the unity to do the same boring fetch quests all over again and land on empty copy and paste planets.

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

Haha yeah man… saying I am disappointed in Starfield would be an understatement. Thanks for watching!

@dark_architect1644 Ай бұрын

@@TRENCH-COAT great video! Great constructive criticism.

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

@@dark_architect1644 Thanks so much!

@Fuar11 23 күн бұрын

I don't so much mind grav jump loading screens or landing/take-off loading screens But loading screens to travel within a system just bugs me. Because I can't have the experience of setting my ship on course and getting up from my seat and watching it go, slowly, across the system. It makes travel feel short, like I'm not on much of a journey at all. Luckily there are mods that (sort of) fix this

@TRENCH-COAT 22 күн бұрын

I agree! I wanted to feel like a astronaut discovering planets and journeying to them on my own accord. The loading screens totally ruin that and honestly it's all I wanted from a space game. Thanks for the comment and for watching!

@willlliorca7024 Ай бұрын

It is a failed “space game”. It really doesn’t capture the vastness and loneliness but is also simultaneously a very empty game. Just without the inherent dangers of space travel. I would have preferred a gate jump system like in EVE Online.

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

@@willlliorca7024 I completely agree. Thanks for watching 🙌🏻🙌🏻

@willlliorca7024 Ай бұрын

@@TRENCH-COAT you also gained a sub! Now, back to my heavily modded Starfield/Star Wars 1313 bounty hunter sim. (The game Star Wars won’t make) lmao

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

@@willlliorca7024 the only good way to play Starfield lol. So sad the bounty hunter game from respawn got canned. Thanks for subbing man 🙌🏻

@TheMagicNicBicycle Ай бұрын

Im very happy to have discovered your channel, I wish you the growth you deserve!

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

Thanks so much! Did you enjoy Starfield ?

@lemonlimelukey 24 күн бұрын

its not that the idea was better in your head its that bethesda did not hit that home run even remotely. i do like some of the games mechanics and alot of the settings are well done, its just the story among other things could have been entirely different.

@TRENCH-COAT 24 күн бұрын

@@lemonlimelukey totally agree! The biggest determination of me enjoying your game is whether or not I can actually get immersed and unfortunately in Starfield I very rarely did. Thanks for the comment 🔥🙌🏻

@craig.a.glesner 14 күн бұрын

Well, nice to know I am not a player because the loading screens don’t upset me, but then I have played other BGS games so I always understood that loading screens were gonna happen because that is how they separate the various cells. I swear all y’all complain about something that all Bethesda has done since at least OBLIVION. Also, I was never one for wandering around some boring ass map, I am there for my objectives. Also, love fast travel and the PoI indicators that my scanner reveals to me. I don’t have to be bored wondering if there is anything around to even bother with. Mostly, I love it because it is a Bethesda game that like all their games lets me have my power fantasy and shoot all the space pirates I can and want to. Wandering around is boring and dull and was never a thing I enjoyed in BGS games. Doing missions and quests though, that I love and I got plenty of that in STARFIELD and finally in a setting I love, space. I have finally got my Bethesda game and I love it, so hate all ya want, never gonna change my mind; STARFIELD is the best Bethesda game ever. I don’t need Elder Scrolls (in fact that is a genre I really dislike) nor Fallout’s hellish dystopia, I got my bright, shiny space game.

@TRENCH-COAT 14 күн бұрын

Just because Bethesda has always used loading screens does not mean we have to mindlessly and blindly continue to accept it. You are obviously welcome to enjoy the game - in fact if you do that's great and I am happy for you, but simultaneously - I am also allowed to not like it and call out dated design when I see it.

@craig.a.glesner 14 күн бұрын

@@TRENCH-COAT I don’t mindless accept the loading screens, I accept them because that is required for the physics engine to do its thing. It isn’t dated it is different. Y’all keep acting like there is something wrong with BGS choosing good enough and not best. Best is the enemy of good enough. I mean at least it is a published game unlike the new and spiffy STAR CITIZEN which for all its fancy tech still hasn’t published an actual game. I don’t know why everyone was seemed to expect NMS or SC and not a Bethesda game? And again, loading screens aren’t that big a deal, and are pretty damned fast even with a chunk of mods loaded so it is still a step from their previous games. More stable, better graphics, better combat, just a nice, good, fun game. But yeah, be all negative and angry of that floats your boat. Seems silly to me but you do you.

@TRENCH-COAT 14 күн бұрын

@@craig.a.glesner okay fam seems like you are the one thats angry 😝

@TheDioginese Ай бұрын

The loading screens dont bother me tbh. I feel like the internet wants me to hate this game, but to be real, it is one of the only games to keep me playing it. For me the best improvements would be the ability to control and fly my ship while on a planet. I feel like traversing planets would be more enjoyable. Planets need more diverse wildlife, and the ship should be able to explore underwater, with another biome full of wildlife.

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

@@TheDioginese glad you enjoyed it!! I also really did but I can’t help but feel it could’ve been more. Planet traversal is apparently something they are actually working on - so I am excited for that! Thanks for the comment and for watching 🙌🏻

@belltime2981 Ай бұрын

This was a great quality video and well executed. I wish you all the best in your ventures. I do agree, the loading screens killed immersion. However, I still enjoy playing the game because besides the points you brought up, it still is a signature Bethesda game. I'm sure with the modding community as good as they are, will find a way to eliminate some of the loading screens to enhance seamless travel.

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

@@belltime2981 yeah I also still enjoy it. I just wish it was better and more modern! Thanks for the comment and for watching 🙌🏻

@fanofentropy2280 Ай бұрын

On PC, with the SFSE script extender, you can mod the game to a pretty good state of immersion. Shame it didn't come like that from the start.

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

@@fanofentropy2280 that’s awesome to hear! Are you enjoying Starfield ?

@fanofentropy2280 Ай бұрын

@@TRENCH-COAT It was rather tedious getting all the mods installed & working together ...and mods don't really fix the main story. But with high res texture, UI fixes and some modders clever animation tricks, it's a beautiful game. I spend as much time playing as I do looking at the planetscapes or watching ships take off and land. And the best part is that now when I jump to a new system, I warp through a nice dark wormhole in 1st person view instead of getting flash banged by a white loading screen.

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

@@fanofentropy2280 That sounds so much better! I am kinda jealous not going to lie haha. I play on console and work on high end Mac's. I have always wanted to delve into the PC gaming side of things cause it offers so much versatility. On a side note - I really agree that if Bethesda made simple different design choices like hiding the loading screens the way you are, it would've helped so much. I love everything Starfield wants to be. Thanks for the comment!

@Xaveth Ай бұрын

If you want immersion play Star Citizen. The scope and detail is incredible. Oh and no loading screens lol

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

@@Xaveth I’ll definitely check it out! Thanks for watching man 🙌🏻🔥

@twitchnunov13 Ай бұрын

you have great content for a second video, keep going! New subscribe

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

Thanks so much! Means a-lot. More content coming soon.

@koen5396 Ай бұрын

Good video I liked it a lot. Some constructive criticism I would give you because I’d love to see you grow more - Turn down the music a bit during some of your narration, also some of the music didn’t quite match the pacing of the video and felt more intense than what was onscreen. Other than that I hope you get bigger. subbed

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

Thanks for the feedback! I really appreciate it.

@chazefez9625 Ай бұрын

@@TRENCH-COAThis feedback is spot on. Starting music was a great choice, however the more aggressive, poppy music you used later, really took away from the overall vibe of the video.

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

@@chazefez9625 I’ll definitely make note of that going forward. Thanks for the feedback.

@chrismorel2576 Ай бұрын

@TRENCH-COAT Seems like I might be in the minority but I thought the music was fire 🔥 and also matched the tone of your message. It has this disorienting sensation in a minor key like something wasn't quite right, which is a fair summary of Starfield. The musical beats you chose to transition between scenes kept me engaged. I also appreciated how you incorporated the game's original music too. I've watched hours of Starfield criticism, but your sound design alongside your messaging kept me hyped throughout. That might not be the somber intellectual vibe people often get from video essays, but I liked your style

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

@@chrismorel2576 ah wow! Thanks so much. Yeah I quite like the style I am going for and really appreciate that it resonated with you. I think a balanced audio approach with video essays is fair to expect so I’ll make sure to not go overboard with it but I do want to keep the style. Thanks again for the comment! 🙌🏻🙌🏻

@Anythingwilldo296 Ай бұрын

Truly pish The Todd geezer should never work in the industry again

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

@@Anythingwilldo296 but Todd is our lord and saviour? 😂🙌🏻

@Anythingwilldo296 Ай бұрын

@@TRENCH-COAT he comes off as cult leader material 😂 a game made up of loading screens and pretty pictures I’m surprised Toads face didn’t show up in the emissaries helmet 😂

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

@@Anythingwilldo296 lol 😂

@secondchance6603 Ай бұрын

Very well put together, kudos to you!

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

Thanks so much! Did you enjoy Starfield btw?

@spike238 Ай бұрын

Great video! , but the background music is really really annoying, what was the point?

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

@@spike238 what was annoying about it… thanks for the feedback! Always want to get better at creating videos for the people that take the time to watch it.

@wblitzw5747 Ай бұрын

Hey Trench you should try No Man’s Sky, it’s pretty much starfield without loading screens

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

Been meaning to check it out! Thanks for watching.

@wblitzw5747 Ай бұрын

Yeah, it would make for a great comparison video!

@Tangomango1720 Ай бұрын

Ive honestly had a lot of fun for starfield and it was up to my expectations tbh

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

Ah that’s awesome. That’s a totally valid opinion and I too enjoyed parts of the game and still do. Hope with time that they can actually improve on it. Thanks for the comment 🙌🏻

@itcouldbelupus2842 28 күн бұрын

Fast Travel Skyrim

@gobravo123 Ай бұрын

It needs to work properly first.

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

@@gobravo123 lol yeah

@itcouldbelupus2842 28 күн бұрын

Loading-Screenfield

@TRENCH-COAT 28 күн бұрын

This made me laugh so hard! Lol

@patrickbarner1380 28 күн бұрын

Star citizen and no man sky do it way better and midfield is gonna take years before it gets anywhere close but by then other ips like elder scrolls and fallout are going to be out and there was an interview with matt (KZfaq) and todd howard where he said there using the same engine as midfield for tes 6

@TRENCH-COAT 28 күн бұрын

Yeah look I think using the same engine is fine but they really need to find ways to make the gameplay experience more seamless. I really think they will take the lessons learnt from the reception to starfield and it's ridiculous amount of loading screens and hopefully learn from it!

@adriantcullysover4640 29 күн бұрын

Honestly, if they just remove the loading screens and add land vehicles, that would make it (almost) perfect!

@TRENCH-COAT 28 күн бұрын

It would definitely help but the game still lacks a solid flight system so you can't really fly anywhere.

@chieffalley4955 Ай бұрын

You could try out star citizen, an actually space game! but if you dont like much bugs you should wait till atleast 2025

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

Thanks, I actually have tested star citizen and it's a great proof of concept. What did you think of Starfield? Thanks for watching!

@chieffalley4955 Ай бұрын

@@TRENCH-COAT i didnt played it yet, but will do sometime when it gets a lil better

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

@@chieffalley4955 good idea. It’s definitely improving. Give it a bit more time. Thanks for watching 🔥🙌🏻

@ToadSageTroller Ай бұрын

Another banger, don't regret even 0.1% subbing to you. Don't forget me when u get famous 😁.

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

Ah thanks! I'll never forget - promise!

@polydypsia6424 Ай бұрын

Hahaha that's cute... somebody doesn't know what "fail" means.

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

😊😊

@larryiaquinta57 28 күн бұрын

Please don't speak for me. I love the game, and understand why they used the loading screens.

@itcouldbelupus2842 28 күн бұрын

Ok kid

@TRENCH-COAT 28 күн бұрын

I was speaking for myself but okayyyyy

@ummerfarooq5383 Ай бұрын

So you want them to spend $1 billion in developing Starfield? Heck your GTA 6 is barely spending $2 billion on production that much for a tiny city area and it will hardly be as detailed as Starfield. Like how fallout 4 was better than cinematic RDR2 when it came to actual game play. Not even Star Citizen can be compared to Starfield even though it's gobbled up $0.7 billion.

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

@@ummerfarooq5383 I want them to make a good game 😊

@chazefez9625 Ай бұрын

You miss his point. Its not about spending more money, its about -as a developer, how and where you spend your money and what you prioritize. Seamless travel is one of those things that should be one of the pillars you build your space exploration game around. So start there, and then choose what else there is budget for. Its not like its impossible and its been proven to be possible with current gen tech by multiple other devs. The game feels like its made with tech from 10 years ago, and it probably is. The cracks show and they made extremely poor design choices. PS. comparison to GTA6 to prove a point makes no sense. Different genre, different developer, different circumstances. PPS gta6 will be 10 times more detailed than starfield.

@TRENCH-COAT Ай бұрын

@@chazefez9625 what he said! Lol. Thanks for watching the entire video first before commenting. Appreciate it! Yeah it’s all about how the team prioritised the resources for the game. Starfield could’ve been so much more than it is. Thanks again for the comment.

@NuclearWinter69 Ай бұрын

If you cant do it right then don’t. I should be playing ES6 right now.