Even Todd Howard thought that Starfield “never seemed feasible” at one point

Starfield reviews finally came in yesterday, and Todd Howard shared a lengthy letter with those that reviewed it.

After a long wait, reviews for one of the biggest games of the year landed, offering a broad range of opinions on the space faring RPG. Our own Starfield review came away feeling pretty positive about it with a 4/5, though there were still some reservations to be had about it. With this being such a massive release for Bethesda, arguably its biggest since Fallout 4 (sorry, Fallout 76), it’s not surprising that Howard had some thoughts and feelings he wanted to share about Starfield with reviewers ahead of its release. And share Howard did, in a pretty long letter that he notes is his first time writing one to go with one of his games (via Tom Warren).

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“It seems like forever ago that I first started talking about making a grand space RPG,” wrote Howard. “It never seemed feasible, and we had been lucky enough to create games we (and many others fortunately!) loved in The Elder Scrolls and Fallout series. Yet, we couldn’t shake the idea of exploring the galaxy in ways that only video games could do. And so, we took the leap to create not just our first new IP in over 25 years, but our most ambitious.”

Howard went on to note that the first concept art for Starfield was done all the way back in 2013, a full decade ago now, with initial development starting just after Fallout 4 launched in late 2015. Of course, the pandemic also offered some challenges, with Howard writing that Bethesda had to “work in all new ways, and adapt to the many changes to our lives including the passing of our company’s founder and becoming part of Xbox.

“There were many days where we thought the game may never even exist, that we had certainly bitten off far more than we could chew. Development is never a straight road, it’s often a winding and treacherous path. I could not be prouder of the teams’ continued passion and dedication to create something truly special.”

The jury will still be out for most people on whether Bethesda bit off more than it could chew, but it does exist at the very least!

Of course, with such a massive game there’s a chance you’ve bitten off more than you can chew yourself – so maybe you could do with some help, like figuring out which background is the best to start with.

Pre-order Starfield today or get ready with discounted Game Pass codes

Starfield will be launching exclusively for Xbox Series X/S and PC (Windows) on September 6th 2023. Pre-order your copy of Bethesda’s upcoming action RPG from the links below and get set for the new galactic adventure.

Players who pre-order the premium edition can play Starfield early from September 1st. That’s five days before it lands on Game Pass! PC Players looking to upgrade their PC can also get Starfield for free when you buy select AMD Ryzen processors, AMD Radeon graphics cards, or a gaming system that contains both.

Alternatively, you can play Starfield on Game Pass on day one. Our shop here at VG247 is currently offering a 5 per cent discount on Game Pass codes and Xbox Credit – simply redeem the code “VG247” at the check out. The code is valid until 31st July, so stock up now to save money on a Game Pass membership or discounted Xbox Credit if you’re buying Starfield on the Xbox Store.