While there are many Elder Scrolls fans out there who are patiently waiting for news on the next installment in the series, the fact that Bethesda is working on the sci-fi RPG Starfield is still something to be excited about. With it being the first new IP from the developer in decades, it’s clear that Bethesda wants fans to ’lose their minds’ when playing Starfield. With just a few months to go until its release, it will be interesting to see what the studio comes up with that isn’t based in its long-running flagship franchise.

In the meantime, the lead designer for Starfield, Emil Pagliarulo, has been speaking in a new post on the Bethesda website about what’s been inspiring them during the game’s creation. They say that the design team itself has been a source of inspiration for them, especially as they’ve been working there for 19 years. In terms of games, they say they’ve been particularly wowed by the likes of Cyberpunk and Spider-Man.

While they don’t say specifically, it’s likely that Pagliarulo is referring to CD Projekt Red’s Cyberpunk 2077, though they could also be talking about the tabletop RPG from 1988 which is just called Cyberpunk, especially given that both take place in Night City. However, it’s probably the former rather than the latter that they’re talking about here. The mention of the “newest” Spider-Man games is likely in reference to Spider-Man: Miles Morales from 2020 or the Insomniac title which was released in 2018.

Additionally, the designer says that the Thief game from 1998 ranks as one of their “favorite games of all time.” Given that Thief: The Dark project is one of the best stealth releases ever and that one of Pagliarulo’s first projects was working on Thief Gold, which was a modified version of the original, it sort of makes sense that they would still be inspired by the title that kick-started their long development career.

In terms of the game itself, Starfield has been taking notes from Oblivion, particularly in regard to the dialogue persuasion mini-game from the classic Bethesda RPG. In general, it seems that Pagliarulo and the rest of the team are excited to see how fans will react once the game comes out. To some players, it may be a disappointment that it’s not Elder Scrolls 6, but many will be keen to play this new IP from the award-winning studio. Plus, after this, it’s likely that the new Elder Scrolls will get an official announcement, hopefully.

Starfield releases on November 11, 2022, for PC and Xbox Series X|S.

Source: Bethesda