Starfield, the first new IP by Bethesda in over twenty-five years, is just a few days away from launch. However, a recent leak about the game’s start screen compelled a former Blizzard dev to make bold claims.
Starfield is all set to be one of the biggest releases of 2023, and people cannot wait to explore the massive space world Bethesda has created. However, details about the game remain elusive until now, forcing players to rely on leaks and unconfirmed sources to satisfy their curiosity. Likewise, a recent leak about the game’s seemingly simple start screen has caused quite a stir online after a former Blizzard developer decided to voice his own thoughts.
Even though Starfield won’t have a playable demo at Gamescom 2023, Xbox has confirmed that Bethesda will reveal more about the game through exclusive theatre presentations. However, anticipation and expectations are almost always followed by negativity, and there has been a massive uproar on social media over Starfield’s leaked start screen since some believe it to be overtly simple. Well, let’s dive in and find out what the community has to say, shall we?
Ex-Blizzard developer makes a bold claim about Starfield makers
Starfield has been touted as a massive RPG in which players will be able to chart their own story as they travel through the galaxy. The game will have over a thousand planets to explore, and one can even assemble a team of companions before participating in massive space battles. However, with Bethesda preferring to keep a tight rein on things this close to launch, the sudden start screen leak caused quite a bit of excitement in the community.
The physiognomy of start screens.
The start screen of a game can reveal a lot about how rushed the team was and how much pride they took in their work.
Starfield’s start screen either shows hasty shipping deadlines by a passionate team overworked, or a team that didn’t care. pic.twitter.com/Ok4gzQ3DVo
— Grummz (@Grummz) August 19, 2023
Unfortunately, the start screen controversy skyrocketed when Mark Kern, who goes by the username @Grummz on Twitter (now X), expressed his opinion on the leak. Kern is a former Blizzard developer who has worked as the Team Lead for OG World of Warcraft as well as a producer for Diablo 2 and Starcraft. Hence, fans immediately took notice when someone this important in the industry claimed a start screen can reveal a lot about a game’s rushed development and even indicate how proud the makers feel about their creation.
Kern pointed out the seemingly simple start screen through his tweet and mentioned that it could be an indication of how Bethesda enforced hasty deadlines on the passionate dev team. However, he also claimed the lack of effort made it appear as if the makers did not care about their own game. Furthermore, the former Blizzard developer even added to his initial stand by stating how start screens are generally created at the end of development, and teams who care often reconstruct the original placeholders shortly before launch.
While some sided with Kern and criticized the start screen, the former Blizzard developer received quite a bit of flak for his tweet. Fans were quick to point out the similarly simplistic start screens of Fallout and Skyrim, claiming Bethesda has always been more concerned about building experiences over appearances. Besides, they even asked Kern to wait until the devs revealed more about the game instead of judging a book by its cover.
Or they designed what they wanted and that’s been our menu for years and was one of the first things we settled on.
Having an opinion is one thing. Questioning out a developer’s “care” because you would have done it different is highly unprofessional coming from another “dev”
— Pete Hines (@DCDeacon) August 20, 2023
Bethesda’s head of publishing, Pete Hines, also addressed Kern’s criticisms by revealing that the team had settled on the start screen early into development and simple was precisely what they were going for. Hines further added that while he recognized everyone’s right to an opinion, it was highly unprofessional for a fellow dev to question a team’s care and commitment because of a difference in preferences. While many supported Hines’ argument, Kern is yet to respond to the tweet as of the time of writing.
Despite the controversy, Starfield remains one of the most-anticipated games of 2023. Click here to learn more about its preload dates and system requirements.
