The PS5 launch of Starfield hasn’t seemed to go as smoothly as Bethesda would like. As caught by Eurogamer, many players have taken to the game’s subreddit to discuss demanding refunds of the game, with some noting that it is “unplayable” in its current state, thanks to crashes, freezes, and issues with save files. One user reported that they suffered from frequent crashes on the base PS5, while another wrote about suffering similar issues when trying to do anything other than sitting in their ship.
Players have also suggested that the PS5 Pro’s more powerful hardware doesn’t help much with running Starfield. This would indicate that the crashes and other issues don’t seem to be related to the console’s hardware. Rather, it seems to be a case of poor optimization for Sony’s platform.
“Yeah I’ve shelved it,” wrote a player. “I’ve called their tech support line and left a message and submitted a ticket. I have done every single troubleshooting step and it’s the only game I own that hard freezes like this constantly. Feel seriously ripped off. I want to play it because I like what I actually did get to play but this is actually bs.”
It is worth noting that, in our graphical analysis of the PS5 Pro version of Starfield, we found it to be a competent port, at least in terms of visual fidelity. We made a note of “slightly lower-resolution textures” being visible “only if you’re really looking for them.” When compared to a high-end PC, we found that, while PSSR was doing its best to upscale images, the console version still fell short when it came to raw visual fidelity.
Interestingly, not all players seem to be suffering from crashes. One player made a point of having spent 10 hours with Starfield on PS5 so far without having suffered even a single crash. Another mentioned having played for 60 hours without facing any problems.
Starfield‘s PS5 release was quite hotly anticipated, with the game essentially taking over the pre-order charts on PlayStation Store across various regions. While some saw it take first place, others saw it not too far behind, sitting in second or third. This was further compounded by the fact that the standard edition and the Premium edition were both listed separately.
Starfield was originally released on PC and Xbox Series X/S. Its PS5 version—check out our review—was accompanied by the release of the Terran Armada expansion, which introduced a new faction, complete with its own intricate lore and a host of story content. In our review, we gave the expansion a score of 7 out of 10 thanks to its compelling premise and breadth of content, while criticizing the repetitive nature of incursions.
For more on Starfield, take a look at our thoughts about why the sci-fi RPG happens to be so divisive. And while you’re at it, here is a broader look at whether, three years after its original release, Starfield has seen any major improvements.
