Starfield had a massive launch, but its player numbers have recently been dwindling on Steam as fans await new content and improvements. Bethesda gave us a brief glimpse of its future plans for the interstellar RPG a little while back, and we can now expect to see one of the planned patches come to fruition soon in what the developer says is Starfield’s “biggest update yet.”
Not even a year after its release, Starfield is slowly dying compared to Bethesda’s previous behemoth RPGs such as Skyrim. While the dev gears up to drop major updates containing some highly requested changes, the Starfield player count is dwindling just four months post-launch. With mixed reviews and less activity currently than games like Fallout 4, this upcoming new patch which Bethesda states brings “over 100 fixes and improvements” feels much needed.
On Wednesday, January 17, Starfield players can opt into the Steam Beta branch of the game to explore these changes. Two weeks later, all other users can delve deep into the update which “contains a multitude of fixes to quests.” Eye of the Storm issues, including the inability to dock with the Legacy and data transfers not initiating, should no longer get in the way once the patch drops. The dev is also resolving the common Into the Unknown temple bug.
Other notable tweaks include some long-awaited performance fixes, as Bethesda claims the update “brings stability improvements” as well as “numerous graphic improvements.” These include additional widescreen support and improved lighting, shadows, and textures. Space should feel a bit more starry and a lot less potato-y too, as the dev explains that it’s improving upon sun disk geometry, planet ring shadows, and visual celestial body-related elements.
Your Starfield outposts should appear more like you intend for them to after the update as well, with bulldozed objects no longer reappearing when you leave and then return. Bethesda has a new fix for the infamous Starfield asteroid bug with this update, too. Sadly though, we’ve still not gotten any word from the dev regarding the Starfield traveling update which contains new vehicles, or the proposed city maps’ arrival.
While you await Bethesda’s exciting new patch and news regarding its other upcoming 2024 updates, you should browse through our handy roundup of the greatest Starfield mods out there right now to spice your base game up for free. Alternatively, you can check out our in-depth guide on all of the Starfield ships and learn how you can build one on your own.
Still looking for more? While a good Starfield wiki can be a handy source of information, our new Starfield Database goes further, offering you daily news, searchable databanks, and even interactive tools.