Although Starfield received mostly favourable reviews, a fairly unanimous body of critics seemed to agree that the game was not the same masterpiece as, for example, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and Fallout 4.
Many had hoped that the first major expansion, Shattered Space, would be up to the usual level we have come to expect from Bethesda – but instead it was considered a step down.
Now Emil Pagliarulo from the studio has responded to much of the criticism Bethesda received in a long multi-post on X. He writes, among other things, that he and the developers are proud of what they have created:
“I’m also very proud of Shattered Space. We all are. Most of the quests and levels were done by designers who have worked on previous Bethesda games and DLCs, going all the way back to Morrowind. They’re good at what they do, and it shows.”
He writes that they hear what the players are saying and Bethesda are not so smug as to give themselves a pat on the back while the community complains, but explains that Starfield is a huge title and therefore it takes time to change things:
“Here’s what I can tell you – nobody, and I mean nobody, at Bethesda is patting themselves on the back while ignoring our players.
In addition to Shattered Space, we’ve also spent a lot of time this year addressing community concerns and making fixes. We’ll continue to do so, and will be listening to our fans every step of the way. We make these games for all of you.
Starfield is a massive game, and it takes time for us to address things. We move as fast as we can, as safely as we can. Game development is always tricky, but with a game as big as Starfield, every fix could potentially break something else.”
Pagliarulo concludes with the following (you can check out the post below):
“I love games. I love Bethesda’s games. I’ve been playing them since the Terminator days. All I or anyone here wants to do is make those games… and then make them better. No ego. No arrogance. Just a lot of hard work, and appreciation of our fans.”
Have you played Shattered Space yourself yet, and what did you think of the expansion?