The tech experts at Digital Foundry are already playing Starfield and have seen the presentation at gamescom 2023. Actually, they are not supposed to talk about their impressions of the preview version yet, but Bethesda CEO Todd Howard has personally given them the green light.
What is Digital Foundry? It is an association of gaming experts who specialize in the technical aspects of games. Their YouTube channel has over 1.3 million subscribers (via youtube.com).
The think tank evaluates software beyond gameplay mechanics and focuses more on aspects like graphics or performance. However, hardware is also on the agenda or top lists of games with the best graphics.
With the personal permission of Starfield and Bethesda CEO Todd Howard, the members of Digital Foundry are already allowed to talk about some impressions of the preview version – the embargo actually lifts just a few hours before the early access on September 1st.
What they have to say will delight every eagerly waiting fan. Some of the gameplay highlights can be admired in the video:
Digital Foundry: Material from trailers does not do Starfield justice
What do the experts have to say? Actually, only positive things are said about Starfield. In their video on the subject, Digital Foundry even says that Starfield looks better when playing than in the trailer.
The choppy gameplay scenes shown during Starfield Direct or in the trailers are addressed. These stutters do not exist in the game – this applies to the review versions of Digital Foundry and also during the live presentation at gamescom, Starfield ran significantly better.
Two members of the Foundry played the mission shown during the presentation and both can confirm: nothing was reworked, the performance of Starfield is top.
Then the three tech enthusiasts briefly drift off about how such choppy footage for the trailers could have come about.
After that, Digital Foundry goes a bit further into the graphics and it comes to a comparison with the spiritual predecessors: ‘A completely different level than Skyrim or Fallout 4.’
Right from the start, the many objects, the high geometric quality, and great lighting become apparent. But also the shadows that can be seen on faces when illuminated.
The animations, weapon models, and generally the combat have also impressed Digital Foundry. It is not the ‘Skyrim mess’, even though Fallout 4 has already made some progress in that regard.
You can watch the complete English video with Digital Foundry’s assessment here:
Not much longer until the full release of Starfield, with early access already in sight. A bit of skepticism before the launch of a major Bethesda game is certainly warranted, but at the moment everything really looks good.
If you want to read more about Starfield, then check out our big info article: All information about the release of Bethesda’s sci-fi epic – gameplay, editions & content
