During a stream at Xbox’s Tokyo Game Show 2021 showcase, Todd Howard revealed that Starfield will have thousands more dialogue lines than previous Bethesda games like Skyrim and Fallout 4. The revelation comes with only a little more than a year until the game's official release date of November 11, 2022. And as expectant fans await more information regarding Bethesda’s Xbox exclusive sci-fi RPG, the developers have started to release bits and pieces of new information about the long-awaited Starfield that is 25 years in the making.
Todd Howard previously revealed that Starfield will be an ambitious game like Bethesda’s previous projects, mimicking the size and scope of RPGs like the Elder Scrolls and Fallout franchises. And just as each game in those series pushed the envelope, it seems Starfield is doing the same. Howard claimed that the game is going to be “like Skyrim in space,” but with more robust gameplay options and a wealth of lore built-in. Some of that lore has since been revealed, such as three major Starfield locations that players will get to explore next year. Locales revealed include Neon, a fishing rig turned pleasure city, New Atlantis, the capital of the United Colonies, and Akila City, a walled bastion of freedom and individuality.
To accompany the robust lore and massive explorable world in Starfield, Bethesda’s latest project will also be ramping up the dialogue options for players. Todd Howard revealed during a stream at Xbox’s Tokyo Game Show 2021 that Starfield will have more dialogue lines than Skyrim and Fallout 4 (via Nibel). While Howard explained that the sci-fi RPG will have a complete Japanese localization like Redfall, he confirmed that Starfield has over 150,000 lines of dialogue. For context, as noted by Nibel, Fallout 4 had 111,000 lines and Skyrim had 60,000.
Bethesda’s latest project was already claimed to be bigger and better than previous games from the studio. But with more than double the dialogue lines of Skyrim and tens of thousands more than Fallout 4 – both massive games in their own rights – Starfield is shaping up to be a very large title with a lot of avenues for players to explore. It’s possible the massive list of dialogue lines will help make the game an adaptable RPG, fit for any kind of video gamer, as per Todd Howard’s boast that players can “be who [they] want to be” in the game.
It’s also possible that the additional dialogue lines follow from the fact that there will be many factions players can join, which may entail more NPCs for gamers to chat with. More quests, more NPCs, and more locales to explores could possibly translate into more dialogue lines. Bethesda is known for games that prioritize roleplaying in the virtual world, giving players the ability to choose who their character is by how they express themselves to NPCs. With 150,000 dialogue lines in Starfield, this may be easier than ever.
Starfield releases on November 11, 2022, for Xbox Series X|S and PC.
Source: Nibel/Twitter