It’s fair to say that last year’s debut of Starfield was a messy launch. On the one hand, thousands of gamers loved Bethesda’s latest creation and reveled in its space exploration and ship customization. However, there were many left feeling disappointed, with much of the criticism being thrown at the title’s lack of content due to the use of procedural generation.
Although Starfield is definitely not the game many were expecting from the start, the upcoming Shattered Space DLC is likely going to be the turning point for the game’s longevity. The expansion has received a brand-new deep dive, revealing more about what players can expect. However, concerns loom around the IP’s future if this DLC ends up being a bust.
Starfield Shattered Space Expansion is Bethesda’s Last Hope
The Starfield Shattered Space expansion that’s right around the corner has just received another deep dive trailer via Bethesda that gives us a closer look at the upcoming Va’ruun-focused DLC.
The nine-and-a-half-minute trailer showcases a host of new stories, weapons, and much more content than we’ve ever seen before. The biggest news is that the DLC will be placed in handcrafted environments, matching Bethesda’s previous work.
The development team has outlined how it has approached the Shattered Space DLC and the key differences from the base game.
There’s no doubt that the unexpected horror tone of the DLC is an exciting change of pace that holds a lot of promise. If the developers are able to stick the landing with this horror-tinged look into House Va’ruun, it will be a high point for the game since its horrendous launch.
However, let’s not forget that there’s a possibility of the DLC completely flopping. So far, the studio hasn’t delivered anything meaningful to resolve the biggest criticism of the game and is completely banking upon the upcoming expansion’s success. Bethesda has had a dodgy history of delivering post-launch DLCs that bring nothing to their games.
Despite all its issues, the game still has a chance to turn around and achieve the same success as No Man’s Sky. However, if the DLC ends up failing, we’re looking at another dead IP for the studio, which could have huge implications in the future, especially for games such as Elder Scrolls 6 and Fallout 5.
Shattered Space Brings a New Adventure
The Shattered Space DLC will take place on the Va’ruun planet and the last stronghold in the Kavnyk system, Va’ruun’kai. This is a handcrafted and isolated environment, just like the studio’s previous expansions for popular titles such as Skyrim.
The story aims to explore the background of the people of Va’ruun and how they’ve survived in this isolated area since they were exiled from Seattle Systems.
As the studio puts it, a horror experiment gone wrong using grav drive technology led to a rupture in space-time. This created a vortex transporting a number of Va’ruun people. Shattered Space will occur just a few weeks after this incident, and gamers will have to deal with the fallout. It’s been revealed that Anasko Va’ruun is the current leader of the group during the events of the DLC and talks directly with The Great Serpent.
Gamers will be tasked with dealing with the torn-apart Va’ruun factions, as Anasko has disappeared since the incident. One of the factions called the Zealots, is desperate to gain control over Va’ruun society. Many in Va’ruun’kai think The Great Serpent translates to some massive catastrophe.
Starfield Shattered Space uncovers the truth behind all these mysteries and adds new content alongside creatures that will change how we experience the game when it debuts on September 30th.
With that said, are you excited about the Shattered Space DLC? If so, let us know in the comments below.
