“It Felt More Like Work Than Play”- Starfield Players Have Seemingly Dropped Out of the Game

Published 12/19/2023, 12:10 PM EST

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Microsoft’s big release for the year, Starfield, is apparently not performing too well. When the game released in September, Xbox Boss Phil Spencer reported during the CCXP event in Brazil that the game has over 12 million players. But recently, players online have noticed the fanbase dwindle.

The official Starfield subreddit had some players noticing a decline in the player base in recent days. A simple question,” Do you still play Starfield?” has players storming to the post. It seems like the general opinion of the game has changed over time.

Starfield player notices a change in the general behavior of other players in the game

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The question asked on Reddit had hundreds of comments on it with players sharing just how they feel about the game. The original poster stated, “I feel like the Fanbase for it dwindled down a bit… so I’m just curious if ya’ll still play Starfield. I myself have about 400 hours combining all saves and 300 alone in one NG+.”

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Considering that the player has spent 400 hours in the game makes it clear that they are enjoying their experience with the game. But they have also noticed that other players have stopped engaging with the game the same way they did when it just came out.

Many players have been playing fewer hours of the game and many are quitting the experience altogether. After noticing this, the players asked and now the comments section is being filled with discussion of how players feel about the once highly anticipated game.

A player with 200 hours spoke about how they got tired of playing the main quests and visiting the temples. They added how they hadn’t found the motivation to start the game after they stopped. The comment read, “I was in the game for 200 hours and had a lot of fun, then I continued with the main quest and visited the temples. Somehow I got so tired of it that I stopped playing. I haven’t had any more motivation to start the game yet.”

As a reply to the comment above, another user stated their plan to download a mod that removes the repetitive mini-games to get power once the game is released on the console. They stated, “I’m instantly downloading a mod that removes that bullsh*t repetitive mini game to get a power.”

The game is reportedly around 20 hours for those only interested in the story. And apparently upwards of 100 hours for completionists who want to explore every nook and corner. Typical of a massive open world game. Another user expressed how after enjoying the game for a while, it started to feel like work rather than play. They said, “Nope. Loved it for a while, then suddenly realised it felt more like work than play.”

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More players started expressing how the game feels like a grind. This player felt like the quest line got boring after a while, which led them to stop playing. “Loved it for a while, especially some of the side quest stories. Untill i started to feel i was just an errand boy, non stop fast travelling just to kill off one person or to get an item and fast travel back again.”

Another player with 200 hours agreed with the comment that said the game feels like work. They shared how they wanted to love the game but are struggling to revisit it. “I wanted to love this game so badly, I tried – put in 200+ hours, but struggling to revisit. You nailed the reason, it’s more like work than play.”

Many players are finding the game to be an endless grind with not enough gratification from the game. Often games might feel like some missions don’t end up to anything, but the storyline keeps things in play. But with Starfield, it has been getting lesser mentally rewarding for players to continue to play the game.

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With that said, we’d like to ask you. Do you still play Starfield? Let us know in the comments below.

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Written by:

Viren Mirpuri

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“What doesn't kill me, gives me EXP.” I'm Viren – part gaming journalist, part audio enthusiast, and a full-time gamer. Armed with a degree in Mass Media and a love for competitive gaming, I'm on a mission to redefine eSports journalism.
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Edited by:

Rohan Karnad