Three years after it was announced,Starfieldgot an official teaser trailer and release date at E3 2021. Even so, fans wondering about what most of the gameplay will look like in Bethesda’s new IP didn’t get the clear insight they may have been hoping for.
However,Starfield’s new trailer is packed full of hints about the way ships may work in the game. There are a number of details the trailer reveals upon closer inspection that could point to mechanics whenStarfieldfinally takes off in 2022.
RELATED:Bethesda Apologizes to PS5 Players for Starfield Xbox Exclusivity
There are a few things theStarfieldtrailer revealed when it comes to in-game mechanics. First, blurry camera footage from the start of the trailer appears to be a way of viewing the world in-game, withBethesdaputting “alpha in-game footage” under that portion of the trailer. This could be how players are able to see through their ship’s cameras or the robot seen walking by the ship in the trailer, giving them some insight into the surrounding area but still incentivizing them to go and check things out in-person.
The newStarfieldtrailer is also the best evidence fans have gotten so far thatStarfieldwill actually allow players to fly their ships. Other space-setRPGs like theMass Effectserieshave spaceships but don’t actually have spaceflight in the same way as games likeNo Man’s Sky. The shots of a player character sitting in the cockpit and preparing for launch don’t confirm that players will be able to directly maneuver their ship during flight, but nonetheless it seems likelier than ever that the player’s ship inStarfieldwill be both a base and an in-game vehicle.
RELATED:Starfield: What, Exactly, is a Starfield?
The Details
TheStarfieldtrailergives players some specific ideas about the way ships might work. A closer look at the control panel seen in the cockpit potentially reveals some details. The top-right corner of the screen reads “WPNS” and appears to show the stats for three different weapons the player will be able to fire.
Below that is a UI that appears to be for shields, showing what looks like three different shield levels and a final “CRIT” level that could indicate when the ship is in danger of destruction. There are also “BRAKE” and “BOOST” functions to the left of the shield read-out, which could come in handy duringspace fights. The circle at the top resembles a radar, and its lack of readings during the trailer could indicate that this will be used to track other ships rather than objects on a planet.
Other details like “RE-ENTRY CONFIG” in the bottom-right screen could point to landing itself being a challenge inStarfield, though how exactly it will work remains a mystery. It’s not clear what some of the other meters are for, but based onStarfield’s leaked imagesthey could be related to some of the meters seen on the compass in the player’s UI. These meters include oxygen, CO2, and what seems to be varying gravity levels.
With developers suggesting thatStarfieldcould see the return of a more traditional and complicated RPG systems from the studio’s past, a complex spaceflight system is not out of the question. While some of the details seen in theXbox/Bethesda showcasetrailer are likely to be purely aesthetic, the new teaser offers potential insight into some of the ways flight and ship combat may work whenStarfieldlaunches next year.
Starfieldwill release on July 16, 2025, for PC and Xbox Series X/S.
MORE:E3 2021 - Schedule, Where To Watch, Everything Announced, & More
