Todd Howard is Dumping Another Nightmare on us: Bethesda Dev Hints Starfield 2 and 3

In the wake of Starfield’s release and its Shattered Space DLC, Todd Howard and Bethesda are at a crossroads. The sci-fi RPG was hailed as the studio’s most ambitious project since The Elder Scrolls. But it fell short of fans’ expectations and left not just the studio’s fans but gamers in general disappointed.

The developers haven’t given up on it though. In a recent interview, former Skyrim designer Bruce Nesmith compared Starfield‘s rocky debut to other successful franchises that needed time to hit their stride. He noted that a sequel to Starfield could be even better.

Todd Howard and Bethesda Are Playing The Long Game

When Bethesda developed Skyrim, they were standing on the shoulders of giants—building off previous Elder Scrolls games like Morrowind and Oblivion. According to Nesmith, this made Skyrim’s success possible without the need for a total overhaul.

When we built Skyrim, we had the tremendous advantage of Oblivion, which had the tremendous advantage of Morrowind. All we had to do was continue to improve and add new stuff in. We didn’t have to start from the ground up.

In comparison, Starfield’s new universe had to be created from scratch, a process that took extra years. But now, with a foundation in place, Starfield 2 could capitalize on this groundwork, learning from the feedback Bethesda received to create a more compelling experience.

Talking to VideoGamer, Nesmith believes that Starfield‘s rough debut mirrors the early days of iconic franchises like Assassin’s Creed or Mass Effect, where initial releases were promising but imperfect.

If you look at the first Dragon Age, the first Assassin’s Creed, the first game in a lot of IPs, they tend to show off flashes of brilliance amid a lot of other things that don’t quite catch everybody’s eye.

Nesmith argues that Starfield 2 could take Bethesda’s ambitious vision and refine it, adding new features and addressing complaints. His words suggest a promising sequel that might even rival Bethesda’s best work.

I’m looking forward to Starfield 2. I think it’s going to be one hell of a game…. It takes, sadly, sometimes a second or third to version of the game in order to really enrich everything.

Although Starfield did not achieve the universal acclaim of Fallout or The Elder Scrolls, Bethesda remains committed to its new sci-fi venture. So while even the recent DLC for the game didn’t get a lot of critical success, the studio will keep trying.

Starfield 2 May Be Revolutionary, But It’s Years Away

With The Elder Scrolls VI and Fallout 5 both in development, the studio has an overwhelming workload. Nesmith notes that while Starfield deserves attention, TES and Fallout are still Bethesda’s strongest and most popular franchises, with decades of dedicated fan bases.

What happened to Bethesda?
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So while a sequel could be a game changer, we might not see it anytime soon as Bethesda divides its resources among multiple high-profile projects. This prioritization of legacy franchises like The Elder Scrolls after a long hiatus could impact the timeline for Starfield sequels.

While Nesmith is optimistic, Bethesda’s future strategy is unclear. The company needs to get its marbles together, that much is for sure. Rival studios like CD Projekt Red and Larian Studios are raising the bar for RPG design and Bethesda needs to step up.

If Bethesda hopes to win fans back and truly regain its spot as one of the top dogs in the industry, it will need to innovate more. The studio must find a way to make Starfield 2 truly good, restoring the excitement that initially surrounded the game’s release.

So what do you think? Will Starfield 2 really be Bethesda’s return to greatness? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!

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