Bethesda and Xbox Starfield, the much-hyped open-world RPG from the team behind it has been announced The Elder Scrolls and fell out, will miss its widely known 11.11.22 release date. In fact, it will now be released sometime in the first half of 2023. With the date being hyped since June 2021, the delay is a bit surprising. I dare say that is a legitimate reason for people to be angry.
Not that we’re not used to seeing images detailing the delay posted on the official publisher’s social media accounts. When Covid hit and employees turned wisely to remote work, we saw dozens of them – company logos, clear fonts, apologies, the right thing to do, etc. Game delays are nothing new, and I think people are now expecting things to change on the release schedule. The key point for Starfield is how far ahead we plan the release date. It’s been 11 months since it was given to us on 11/11/22. It’s so far away (another 6 months from today) that it feels locked. Why date something so far away unless you’re absolutely sure, right?
Latency is obviously a good thing in terms of the quality of the games in question. No one wants Starfield to rush out, resulting in months (maybe years) of updates like the Cyberpunk 2077 saga. But I think it’s fair to ask why this release date was committed so early. It sets expectations when they are not needed. If plans always target late 2022, wait until summer 2022 before announcing a date. Give yourself some time to do it right. We are at the peak of the global pandemic in June 2021. No one would mind if we didn’t get a date.
Maybe it’s for me and others who don’t think dates will be missed. I’ve said that delays are actually the norm these days, but (besides all the caveats about doing what’s best for the team/game), Starfield handles it poorly. I think the lack of real footage of the game is marketing. Keep it under wraps, build interest, and then release it within six months of release to rapturous applause from the media and gaming community. Now, you’ll inevitably see stories of troubled development, rework, issues, etc. — things that might not even have been digged up if dates weren’t missed. People can now understand the worst.
Other games will be delayed this year. No doubt there are some big ones too. Starfield isn’t just a “big” game, though.it is this Games as far as Xbox owners are concerned. This is the game they’ve been told they’ll be getting in November, and they’ve been told time and time again in multiple content drops. It was a beacon in the first half of the year when there was nothing left. Something to look forward to with reasonably high expectations.
Of course Interstellar is just a video game and there are bigger problems in the world right now, but even a guy who might just play five hours and get lost and accidentally push an NPC off a cliff feels a bit fooled. Sometimes promises Might be broken, but it would be heart-wrenching.
