Highlights
- Some Starfield players are disappointed with the game's maps, comparing them unfavorably to older Bethesda games like Skyrim.
- Although Starfield has received mostly positive reviews, it does have some glitches and design choices that fans have criticized, such as the unhelpful map system for planets and cities.
- Bethesda may release updates for Starfield after launch to fix bugs and address issues, but it remains to be seen if it will revamp the game's maps.
Some Starfield players aren't impressed with the game's maps, comparing them unfavorably to the maps featured in older Bethesda games like Skyrim. Starfield is out now in early access, releasing alongside the first reviews for the game. While there have been some complaints about Bethesda's massive space RPG, the general reaction to the game seems to be mostly positive, with Starfield earning high review scores from most critics.
Even though Starfield reviews have been mostly positive so far, the game is certainly not without its issues. Various Starfield glitches have been reported, though the game seems to have significantly fewer game-breaking bugs than past Bethesda titles. It was claimed before the game was out that Starfield is the most-polished Bethesda game at launch, and it seems to have mostly lived up to that promise.
Bugs are one thing, but there are some design choices in Starfield that have also rubbed fans the wrong way. Many fans have been particularly critical of Starfield's maps. Starfield's map system for planets and cities has been criticized for being wildly unhelpful, failing to clue fans in as to the locations of important places like shops. Starfield players basically have to memorize where things are unless a mission objective is pointing it out to them. The uselessness of Starfield's maps were recently pointed out by Reddit user heart_of_a_daedra, who unfavorably compared Starfield's map to Skyrim's.
Even Starfield's biggest fans seem to agree that the game's maps are lackluster, but it remains to be seen if Bethesda is going to do anything about them. It's likely that Bethesda will release multiple updates for Starfield post-launch to fix bugs and address other issues, but revamping the map system may be too much of an undertaking. Perhaps such a big update could be wrapped up with one of Starfield's premium DLC packs, of which at least two are planned, but that's just speculation at this time.
Bethesda hasn't provided much detail about what fans can expect from Starfield's DLC offerings, but fans do know that the Shattered Space DLC is first in line. What exactly Shattered Space will entail remains to be seen, but it will definitely be interesting to see what the DLC will add to the already expansive experience. That being said, fans shouldn't necessarily hold their breath that the DLC will coincide with any kind of in-game map revamp. It's possible a Starfield mod will pick up the slack, though.
Starfield launches September 6 for PC and Xbox Series X.