Highlights
- Starfield's use of procedural generation has created a massive universe of over 1000 planets to explore, filled with hand-crafted elements and goodies.
- Bethesda has a history of using procedural generation in its RPGs, including Skyrim and Fallout 4, but Starfield takes it to a new level.
- The Elder Scrolls 6 has the potential to break tradition and create a massive open world filled with unique elements using procedural generation technology.
After what felt like an eternity, Starfield has finally hit store shelves, and so far, it seems to have not disappointed. The game is filled to the brim with that classic Bethesda RPG charm, while its brand-new backdrop is a sight to behold. Not only does Starfield have almost everything that RPG fans could want, but Bethesda's use of procedural generation has helped create one of the most expansive sci-fi galaxies around.
Starfield whisks players away on a brand-new sci-fi adventure through a massive universe of explorable planets. There are allegedly over 1000 planets in Starfield to explore with each one including hand-crafted elements waiting to be discovered. That sounds like a lot of work, and it likely was, but it was made a bit easier using procedural generation. This helped create a vast universe that is well worth exploring, and that is something The Elder Scrolls 6 will want to tap into.
Starfield's Procedural Generation Could Give The Elder Scrolls 6 An Expansive World
Starfield's procedural generation let Bethesda create a massive universe of planets that it could fill with all sorts of goodies. The tool helped the studio build out the terrain of these planets as well as the sectors themselves. It then proceeded to place hand-crafted elements on these planets so that players would actually want to explore them. The exact extent of its use has not been revealed, but players can definitely see its influence as they traverse Starfield's impressive universe.
While it is amazing what Bethesda was able to pull off with procedural generation, it is par for the course for the studio. It has been using the technology for many of its RPGs to help build out those worlds and content before it filled them with all the important bits. Both Skyrim and Fallout 4 had a form of procedural generation, and it is also used across the gaming industry. It has actually become relatively standard within the industry by now. However, Starfield's universe seems to take it to an entirely new level.
If Bethesda can create a universe of over 1000 planets in 2023, then there is no telling what it will be able to accomplish with The Elder Scrolls 6. That game is years away, so technology will likely change drastically before its release. More powerful technology can lead to even stronger procedural generation, which could help The Elder Scrolls 6 break tradition. The game needs to be one of the biggest fantasy games around once it is released. That means it needs a massive open world filled with unique elements, and procedural generation is how Bethesda can accomplish that.
Unlike Starfield, The Elder Scrolls 6 will not be set in space. Because of that, the game will not need a massive universe of planets to explore. Its open world can be more centrally located on Tamriel, which should mean that Bethesda has a bit more power to play with as it will only have to focus on one world. This could mean that the region The Elder Scrolls 6 is set in feels life-sized, the game features multiple regions, or all Tamriel regions are present. Whatever form its world comes in, it will likely be the biggest one the studio has ever crafted.
Not much is known about The Elder Scrolls 6 yet as it is still very early in its development cycle. Now that Starfield is out, Bethesda will likely focus on developing this next chapter, and players will just have to wait and see what the studio does with the technology it has at its disposal. And until then, they will just have to continue traversing the stars of Starfield if they want more of the Bethesda RPG experience.
Starfield is available now on PC and Xbox Series X/S