How Companions Are Changing in Starfield

gamerant.com:

As the focus ramps up on Bethesda's upcoming action RPG Starfield ahead of its launch later this year, the developer is releasing more and more details around the game. With discussions about the new title's storyline, focus on exploration, and NASA-punk aesthetic, Starfield is slowly starting to take shape. While a lot of the game still remains shrouded in mystery, players will no doubt learn more about this expansive space-faring IP as the release grows closer. For now, fans will have to satisfy themselves with the smattering of insights they've been granted and speculate on what they think the game will entail.

In a discussion between some of the game's development team shown in a recently released Starfield video, game designer Todd Howard and a handful of his Bethesda cohorts delved deeper into some of the game's systems and narrative aspects. One feature that fans were particularly interested in was the emphasis on companion characters and the player's interactions with them. Starfield will reportedly be following the example of previous Bethesda games, adapting and improving on some older elements to help bring nuance and complexity to companion relationships and character conversations.

How Starfield Takes a Cue From Cyberpunk 2077's Lifepaths

One game, in particular, was mentioned as a source of inspiration, and that was Bethesda's previous title The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. In an RPG, interactions between the protagonist and the NPCs that inhabit the game world are a fertile source of storytelling, as well as a way for the game to convey its lore. When this is done poorly, the conversations can just feel like a means to an end as players wade through dry dialogue and poorly veiled exposition. However, when