Starfield’s Many Loading Screens: A Surprise Even to Devs

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Starfield’s Many Loading Screens: A Surprise Even to Devs

Starfield has a noticeable loading screen issue. Players encounter them frequently: fast traveling, entering/exiting ships and buildings, and even moving between areas within buildings. Surprisingly, a former developer revealed that this wasn’t always the case.

Unexpected Load Times

Nate Purkeypile, a former Starfield developer who worked at Bethesda for 14 years before leaving in 2021, expressed his surprise at the sheer number of loading screens in the final game on the VideoGamer Podcast. He specifically pointed to Neon, the cyberpunk city, where the number of loading zones dramatically increased after the game’s lighting engine was completed.

Purkeypile stated that many loading screens were added for performance reasons, particularly in Neon. He suggested that some loading screens in New Atlantis were implemented to avoid lengthy train ride renders. He also acknowledged that some limitations were inherent to the Creation Engine itself, suggesting it may not have been the ideal engine for a game of Starfield’s scale.

Key Takeaways:

• Numerous loading screens were added late in Starfield’s development.
• Performance issues, especially in Neon, necessitated many loading zones.
• The Creation Engine’s limitations contributed to the problem.

The abundance of loading screens in Starfield highlights potential challenges in developing large-scale games, even for experienced studios.

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