So, Starfield was a disappointment (in my opinion). The story isn't interesting. The lore and world-building do not make sense. The game mechanics do not mesh together. (And it doesn't run well on the Steam Deck.)

But the promise of Starfield? The big space game? The big space RPG where you can play as Captain Reynolds type character? That's something I can get behind. I want to traverse space, visit different planets, get lost, meet interesting characters, solve their problems, and shoot some stuff. Two games come to my mind when I think of this:

No Man's Sky
Mass Effect

I've only played a few hours of No Man's Sky, but I think it does space traversal well. To put it bluntly, flying from planet to planet without interruption is better than fast travel. But the gameplay loop did not

Mass Effect nails the space adventure side of things. You visit multiple interesting places, you meet different people with curious problems, and you solve these problems (mainly by shooting). But it's a typical Bioware game: The places you visit are small and confined, and there are (comparatively) few of them. The space traversal is done by clicking a few buttons in a menu.

My question is: Are there any “big space games”? Are there any games that deliver on the promise of Starfield? What are your favourite sci-fi RPGs?

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[–] otp@sh.itjust.works 15 points 2 days ago (2 children)

There's the game that inspired them from the early 90s, Star Control 2.

It's free on Steam as Free Stars: The Ur-Quan Masters, but the best way to play it today is Ur-Quan Masters Mega Mod. So many QoL features!

The game also had some sequels, including Star Control Origins, which is a more modern game, but the story isn't quite as good.

Star Control 3 exists, but sucks.

And then there's the series from the 80s that inspired this one, Starflight. That one was too dated for me to get into, though.

[–] Klanky@sopuli.xyz 9 points 2 days ago (1 children)

The original creators are working on a sequel! ‘Children of Infinity’

[–] otp@sh.itjust.works 7 points 2 days ago

I forgot to mention that part -- yeah, the series is still alive, and fans have been waiting for that sequel from the original creators for what, 30 years now?

A game that meaningful should always be given a look, even if it can feel a bit "dated" in some ways.

Thanks for bringing that up!

[–] winety@lemmy.zip 6 points 2 days ago (2 children)

I often see Star Control 2 mentioned as an inspiration for Mass Effect. How does Star Control compare to Mass Effect? Is there a set story or is it more of an emergent narrative?

[–] otp@sh.itjust.works 2 points 2 days ago

There's a set story, but it's discovered. The world is wide open, and the player can go anywhere right at the start of the game. There's minimal railroading at any point.

Unless I misunderstood what you meant by emergent narrative. The progression through the game requires the player to learn what to do by interacting with aliens and also exploring a bit. There is an in-game hint system (an alien dialogue tree with prices), but there are often multiple solutions to each "problem". The player can even get through the game being good or evil -- whatever they choose!

The game plays very differently than ME, but you'll probably find the dialogue trees very familiar. And I think SC2 actually does them better than ME.

[–] daddy32@lemmy.world 2 points 2 days ago

IMO KotOR was an inspiration for Mass Effect - it may be worth a look.