Starfield's new release date is much later than we expected
Starfield won't be coming in the first half of 2023 after all
Bethesda’s much-anticipated space RPG finally has a new release date, although it’s much later in the year than many had expected.
As revealed in a fresh teaser trailer, Starfield is now set to launch on September 6, 2023. That’s nearly a full year after its initial November 11, 2022, release date and a few months later than we had hoped.
➡️ The Shortcut Skinny: Starfield release date
🚀 Starfield finally has a new release date
📅 The space-based RPG will launch on September 6 this year
🤔 It was expected to release in the first half of the year
🌟 At least Bethesda is taking its time polishing everything up
When the RPG was pushed back last May, Bethesda said it had “made the decision to delay the launches of Redfall and Starfield to the first half of 2023”. It looks like Redfall is sticking to that plan – of the many Xbox Series X games of 2023, the co-op vampire shooter is coming in May – but Starfield will miss the mark by a few months.
Although we won’t have to wait long to see more of the game. Following the debut Xbox Direct showcase in January, Starfield will get a dedicated standalone preview stream on June 11.
“There’s so much that we still have to show you”, said director Todd Howard. “The game has many of the hallmarks you’d expect from us, but it’s also a very unique experience.
“We know you’ve waited a long time to play something from us, believe it or not, we’re kind of the same. We miss it and we really just can’t wait for you all to play it.”
The late-year release date will be disappointing to many Bethesda fans, but September is only six months away and the extra development time can only be a good thing. While I expect Starfield will have a good chance of hitting our list of the best Xbox Series X games, I’d much rather Bethesda take as much time as they need to polish it before rushing it out the door.
Plus, you’d hope it’s as bug-free as possible when you’re buying it for such a steep price. Microsoft revealed last year that it’s pushing up the price of Xbox Series X games to $70 in 2023 to reflect their “content, scale, and technical complexity”.
It’s a good thing, then, that Starfield will also be available from day one on Xbox Game Pass. If you’re not yet a member of Microsoft’s subscription service, use our Xbox Game Pass discount code to pony up for a little money off.