Starfield finally has a confirmed release date after Bethesda pushed back the title from its original November 11, 2022 launch, and it's later than we expected.
After months of waiting for a crumb of news pertaining to the Xbox exclusive, Bethesda has just dropped a new trailer confirming that the Starfield release date is September 6, 2023. That's almost a full year after the originally planned November, 2022 release but for those of you keeping up with news around the game, that's later than expected.
Back in February, there was as rumour suggesting that the Starfield release date would fall on June 29, 2023. It was based on a listing on the GOG Galaxy storefront, so certainly not something official or set in stone. There are a couple of reasons it was given any credence at all; the first being that this isn't that long after E3 2023 wraps up.
But the main reason is confirmation from Bethesda and Microsoft themselves, that stated the Starfield release date would fall in the first half of 2023. You can still find this (for now) over on the game's support page. So we were expecting a release any time between January and June, 2023. And paired with the GOG Galaxy storefront date, and E3 2023, it seemed like it was a done deal. This is now the second delay for the title, but given the extra time the studio has had, let's hope it's the last.
Starfield deep dive
The cinematic portion of the trailer focuses on the game's anomalies that we'll all be running into and investigating, and there are definitely some 2001: A Space Odyssey vibes at play. The latter half is Bethesda's Todd Howard in the studio with more details, including the date for a Starfield deep dive.
The Starfield Direct that we didn't get earlier this year is set for June 11, 2023 and Howard teases a closer look for fans and prospective players alike. Diehard Bethesda-heads will be pleased to hear that Starfield will bear staple hallmarks you've come to know and love from the developer. But Howards adds that "it's also a very unique experience". So take that as you will.
It's definitely worth pausing frames and rewatching segments of the Starfield release date trailer to catch a glimpse of gameplay. Lead producer, Tim Lamb, can be seen switching between first-person and third-person while he loots wreckage on a dusty sand planet, as well as getting embroiled in a firefight and utilising a weapon wheel.
There's also a brief few peeks at the gorgeous-looking vistas from the game, as well as some of the dinosaur-looking creatures, inventory screen, and a very close shave with something that looks like it could be a distant and much smaller cousin of Star Wars' Sarlacc..
For now though, pencil in the Starfield release date and Starfield Direct into your calendars!
