Starfield is taking the classic Elder Scrolls pickpocketing formula and making it real-time

Pickpocketing is a staple of both old documents and the Fall games but star field things are changing a bit.

There are two things I love to do in Bethesda games: pick locks (it’s so satisfying when you click that) and pick pockets. Who doesn’t love a bit of crime? And if you can get away with it, there’s nothing better than taking something out of someone’s pocket. In previous Bethesda games, pickpockets would essentially act as a pause menu, giving you all the time you need to pull off your heists. But as some fans on the game’s subreddit pointed out, pickpockets are quite different in Starfield as they take place in real time (thanks, GamesRadar).

This is the first Bethesda game to feature pickpockets in real time.
by u/OkPain2022 in star field

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Before, in something like Skyrim, you could sneak up on someone, pick their pocket, and leave as fast as you approached them. Now, you will have to actively follow someone to take what is hidden in their pockets, which means that you will have to work harder to be sneaky. You can also see percentages of the probability that you’ll take something without getting caught, so you can at least assess the risk fairly easily. This is a sci-fi game though, so hopefully those who aren’t very good at that part can unlock some kind of cloaking device to make things easier.

One fan wondered if lock picking would work the same way, noting, “It’s in Dying Light and it adds a fair amount of anxiety when trying to pick locks with bad guys nearby.” Another wrote: “No more putting the kettle on while I ponder what to steal, huh…”

If you can believe it, it’s been almost a decade since Fallout 4’s release (nearly eight years, to be precise), so it’s not a huge surprise that Starfield may be doing some things differently. Let’s hope he’s learned a few lessons from one of his worst-reviewed RPGs.

Starfield is finally almost here, coming out on September 6th and launching on Xbox Series X/S and PC.