Starfield Players Annoyed by 'Lazy' NPC Detail

gamerant.com:

Starfield players are expressing frustration over what they call a «lazy» detail after discovering that three mission NPCs are identical. The detail is annoying Starfield players because of how easy it would have been to fix, and has some lamenting the issues with the game in general.

Starfield had a huge legacy to live up to as Bethesda's newest game and first new IP in years. With nearly a decade having passed since the release of Fallout 4, gamers were more than ready to step into a new world from Bethesda. While many enjoyed the game, it isn't without its flaws. Starfield's procedurally generated worlds struck many as barren, traveling between planets utilizes a fast travel-like system rather than real-time navigation through space, and the game has bugs and glitches similar to prior Bethesda titles. Unfortunately, this recent discovery reveals that those aren't the only bothersome issues with the game, as three different NPCs with ties to different side missions use the same model.

Reddit user and Starfield player JonBovi_0 pointed out this detail to fellow fans, noting that the child NPCs Sona, Cora Coe, and Annie Wilcox are all identical to each other. The three girls share no direct connections to each other, let alone being related. However, the three NPCs have the exact same face and hair, making for an uncanny experience for players once it's noticed. This detail has been described by some players as «lazy» and left many wondering how and why this happened.

Several players spoke up in the comments, pointing out how easy it would have been to change out one or more of the NPCs for one of the game's child models that don't play a significant role in the game, or are rarely seen. The fact that the three NPCs each play a role in a side mission makes the identical appearance all the more egregious. Others noted that simply doing something to change the character's hair or even their textures would have helped to set them apart. Some speculated that the