As loved as its games are, one thing that Bethesda’s titles are not known for is realistic character animations. But Bethesda is looking to change this with Starfield, as new evidence surfaced that the highly anticipated action RPG will feature a brand new animation system.
Bethesda games are known for their expansive open worlds that are filled with interesting characters, creatures, lore, and quests. However, many fans agree that the stiff and sometimes buggy character animations in games like Skyrim, Fallout 4 and Fallout 76 can make Bethesda games feel graphically dated when compared to contemporary competitors like the Witcher 3. That might change with Starfield, as new evidence has emerged that Bethesda’s next big title will utilize a new animation system that has never been used in any of the studio’s previous games.
The evidence was spotted by observant LinkedIn users, who noticed a reference to Starfield’s animation system on the profile of Bethesda animator Eric Braun. Under his “experience” section, Braun lists himself as Senior Programmer for Bethesda Maryland and writes that he “rewrote the animation system in Starfield from scratch.”
The news makes sense when considering what Bethesda mastermind Todd Howard said about Starfield last month. Following news that Bethesda was acquired by Microsoft, Howard made an appearance on the Xbox podcast and confirmed that the developer had to completely overhaul its game engine for Starfield and The Elder Scrolls 6. “Once we got on the new systems, the things we found we could do…” Howard said to tease what the studio’s upcoming games will have to offer.
Information on the game has remained scarce, aside from a series of Starfield images that leaked online last month. The leaked images offer an interesting first glimpse at the game, and fans have been able to glean several revealing details from the stills. A few of the images feature a meter that hints that Starfield may feature survival mechanics similar to No Man’s Sky. The other images provide peeks at interesting objects and locations, including a space ship and an isolated laboratory.
Bethesda has yet to announce when Starfield will release, and for which systems. Bethesda’s recent purchase by Microsoft may lead to Starfield releasing as an exclusive on Xbox Series X and S, though one industry analyst predicts that Starfield will still be available on PS5. Many fans speculated that the title would release at the end of 2020, but now they hope to get their hands on the game by the end of 2021. Bethesda has confirmed that no new Starfield information will be revealed until next year.
Starfield is in development.
Source: GamesRadar