After the resounding success of Fallout 4's survival mode and Fallout New Vegas' hardcore mode, Starfield fans may have expected Bethesda to include it as a day-one feature in their long-awaited space-faring epic. However, while Todd Howard has dropped hints about its potential inclusion later in the game's lifespan, it seems clear that survival mode will not be available to Sarfield at launch.
When implemented with thought and care, survival mode can serve up fresh (and entirely optional) challenges, rewards, and magically immersive moments for players to experience. Survival mode may not be everyone's cup of tea, but all the same, it's optional, and many Bethesda fans have voiced their views that Starfield wouldn't be as enjoyable with its absence. There are more than a few good reasons why.
8 Another Type Of Treasure
Finely detailed open-world games of the Bethesda variety tend to scatter a plethora of food and drink items across their maps. However, upon seeing that a sandwich (for example) restores a measly 1 HP, most players will toss them away without a second thought in search of more lucrative finds. Every good game developer knows that a lack of rewards leaves players without much reason to venture forth. On the other hand, reward overloads can leave players with hollow victories, putting the player's motivation equally at risk.
In survival mode, the humble water bottle becomes just as valuable as the health kit. Common consumables like cheese wheels or apples can be transformed into precious commodities that in no way lessen the thrill of finding rewards like the Legendary Demon-Slaying Frying Pan or the Mirthril-Laced Oven Mitts of 10% Laser Deflection. In other words, the Starfield loot table can expand a little larger while the regular dopamine hits would never lose their punch.
7 Inventory Audit: Less Is More
Becoming encumbered (or having so much junk in your trunk that your legs suddenly sink into the ground) is a pain to deal with, but so is having to parse an inventory menu stacked top to bottom with useless garbage. For whatever reason, when presented with near-infinite inventory space, most gamers develop sticky fingers and an incurable hoarding disorder as they mindlessly sweep up everything that isn't nailed down. But even on planets with low gravity, bags and pockets only come so big.
Health potions, skill boosters, sweet rolls, and dragon scales all tend to gather dust at the bottom of a player's pack until the final boss drops dead and the credits roll. The limited slots in survival mode would ensure that players not only appreciate the few items they can carry but that they are engaged by compelling (and often excruciating) decisions about what to take and what to leave behind.
6 Slow Travel: The Journey, Not The Destination
Not every survival mode disables fast travel, but in many instances, the ability to load into a previously discovered (or not) location is, at the very least, restricted. Granted, not every gamer has time to hoof it across the map just to finish up a silly little quest, especially when the kids need picking up.
But for some, remembering that fast travel is a button press away breaks the spell. Suddenly, the grandeur of the planets and the enormity of the cosmos is lost. Being that Starfield is set in the endless expanse (and since survival mode is entirely optional), why not grant those who relish the thought of being lost in a vast, incomprehensibly large universe their immutable open space?
5 A More Rewarding Reason To Craft
Just as Bethesda gave purpose to all its miscellaneous junk items in Fallout 4 through settlement building, adding survival recipes to crafting benches adds a few more incentives for players to tackle content that may have otherwise been skipped out on, especially if it creates long-term advantages in tackling hunger, thirst, or the elements.
Like consumables, players will begin to look upon crafting benches and cooking stations as coveted resources and will be glad to find them littered around. So long as crafting is satisfying in itself, it can serve as another break from regular gameplay, adding variety to those long in-game games.
4 Base-Building: More Than A Place To Hang A Laser Rifle
With Bethesda leaning more into immersive and emergent "make-your-own-fun" gameplay in their last few offerings, the announcement of a base-building feature came as no surprise to most. While bases in most games are traditionally used as places to house weapons, trophies, and loot, survival mode gives these player-built outposts a much greater purpose.
Without the need to restock on supplies and rest, settlements add little value to the player who would see them as novelties at best, and a total waste of time at worst. With basic needs active, messing around in build mode is a no-brainer. A short rest from all the white-knuckle action also adds another ring to the gameplay loop, allowing players to recharge their gusto for trailblazing and treasure hunting.
3 Against The Wild: Conquering Nature
While plenty of gamers enjoy a good walking sim, it's easy to see why most game developers code health bars and bad guys into their games. Just as in real life, even jaunts through the most spectacular of vistas can become apathetic without a little risk. Ice planets, lava worlds, and acid planes all exist out there in the Milkyway galaxy, so why not in Starfield?
The natural world can offer as much challenge as any number of the nameless, blood-soaked psychos aimlessly roaming the cosmos (usually equipped with exactly 12 shotgun shells, two lockpicks, and a death wish). Making the trip to one more moon and risking running out of essential supplies should feel as exciting as sneaking up on a gang of wandering cannibals. Going up against different elements would keep the challenge fresh and could incentive the player to maintain a variety of situation-specific armors and consumables.
2 Dynamic Difficulty Curves
Long-term injuries in survival mode aren't just there for realism's sake. They are emergent storytelling devices. The main character's recovery is a well-worn trope in other storytelling mediums, so why not video games? Wounds can also act as a natural difficulty curve for players who are taking on too many fights too often, ramping up the challenge where Insta-heal items would otherwise make it a breeze.
While a lengthy healing time would be annoying in action-packed, cover-to-cover shooters, taking time to heal would help to remind players about the weight of their death-defying accomplishments. Bethesda games are known for being "long burn" experiences, and since part of the fun of the survival mode run is seeing how long a single playthrough can last, it seems like a pairing made in heaven.
1 Immersion & The Comforts Of Home
It's a safe bet that the majority of players only get to know two places in town: the weapon store (to sell their heaps of loot) and the healing items vendor. Survival mode changes all that. Food markets and restaurants become more than backdrops. The simple act of grabbing a hot meal and warming up by the fire after a near-deadly encounter in the icy wastes has the underrated power to snap players back into a state of pure mindfulness.
Outposts truly become a light in the long darkness. Bars become more than the place you pick up or complete quests. The sight of an inn or shelter henceforth creates a fuzzy, intimate texture that makes an impression on most, if not all, survival fans. And when a game's graphics are as dazzling as they are in Starfield, taking a moment to sniff the roses (or gaze up at the planets and stars, as the case may be) can't be so bad. Bethesda already has a reputation for giving players some much-needed calm and contemplation, so why not extend that kindness to the game set among the stars?
Starfield is due for release on PC and Xbox Series X/S on September 6, 2023.