The hype for Bethesda Game Studios’ latest RPG has nearly reached its peak, with the launch being just a few weeks away. Starfield will be available worldwide on September 6, and reviewers have already received codes for the game.
However, this has also resulted in leaks, leading to the first look at Starfeld’s main menu screen. While the menu screen does not have much to it, it has led to a massive controversy on Twitter.
A former Blizzard developer had harsh words for Bethesda Game Studios, claiming that the menu hints at a lack of care from the studio or a rushed design. However, Pete Hines from Bethesda was quick to respond and called the developer unprofessional for his comment.
Why it matters: UI and main menu screens are very different from game to game and rarely represent a game’s quality. Therefore, this criticism was seen as an unwarranted comment from the developer.
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
As stated earlier, Mark Kern worked at Blizzard for several years and was involved in games like Diablo 2.
Following the Starfield leaks, he noted that a menu screen and UI could tell a lot about any game. He then went on to criticize this aspect of the Bethesda RPG, claiming that it hints at a lack of care or rushed development.
This was seen as a poor criticism and a nitpicky comment by the developer, and many appeared to disagree with Mark Kern. Various people pointed to minimalistic and simple menu screens from games like Elden Ring and God of War.
Several Twitter users believed the comparison was made in bad faith since many famous IPs have used simple start screens in the past. This discussion also caught the attention of Pete Hines, the Head of Publishing at Bethesda.
Pete Hines did not let the criticism slide and was quick to call out Mark Kern.
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
Pete Hines said:
“Questioning a developer’s care because you would have done it differently is highly unprofessional from another dev.”
Kern stated that it is common for start screens to be changed completely when the game is about to go live, but Hines clarified that this menu was designed years ago, being one of the first things Bethesda Game Studios settled on.
Starfield is the biggest project for the studio, and the developers have worked hard to ensure that it lives up to the promise of a vast universe for players to explore.
While it remains to be seen if the game will live up to these promises, early impressions have shown incredible potential, with one reviewer claiming that he did not run into any bugs in the first 15 hours of the game.
As such, Pete Hines felt the criticism was uncalled for. On the other hand, this is not the only controversy surrounding Starfield. The popular RPG is facing a review bombing threat ahead of its release.
However, the game is unlikely to be adversely affected by these controversies if it can live up to the promise of Bethesda Game Studios’ biggest and most ambitious project in several decades.
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