Both Starfield and Skyrim are Guilty

Creating believable, engaging characters has always been one of the toughest challenges in game development, according to Bethesda’s Todd Howard. This often affects some of the studio’s biggest titles, including Starfield and Skyrim. While both games offer worlds filled with deep lore and systems, fans notice that they lack compelling characters.

These games have been exceptional in graphics, exploration, and storytelling. But players often feel disconnected from the NPCs (non-playable characters), who, while functional, frequently lack depth. This aspect remains a notable gap as modern games try to balance characters and visuals.

Todd Howard’s View On Character Design is Absolutely Correct

When Skyrim launched in 2011, it quickly became a cultural phenomenon, known for its expansive world and endless exploration. However, players soon noticed that the game’s NPCs were somewhat lifeless. This has hardly been a big issue for the game and hasn’t affected its success, but it is there.

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Unlike characters in story-driven games like The Last of Us or Red Dead Redemption 2, Skyrim‘s characters struggled to leave a lasting impression.

This right here is what explains why Ellie is the way she is in part 2. The worst and saddest thing Joel taught Ellie is to not talk about feelings or how things affect us. He kept on walking and didn’t say a word. #TheLastOfUs #TLOU #TheLastOfUsHBO pic.twitter.com/yP99ZSjpW5

— Katie loves Ellie 🥰 (@katie__kate_) January 23, 2023

Although some exceptions exist, like Serana from the Dawnguard DLC or the iconic Paarthurnax, the majority of Skyrim’s NPCs failed to convey a sense of depth.

The critique isn’t just limited to Skyrim’s era. By 2023, games had changed completely, and Todd Howard’s words from his 2011 interview with Game Informer are truer than ever.

How they portray their characters, how well done that is on a storytelling level. I think that’s still the trickiest thing to do in games is to get good characters on the screen.

So the critique isn’t just limited to Skyrim’s era. Even games today continue to face this problem. And there’s probably no world where every game that comes out will have that as its focus. That’s completely fine too.

It’s Hard to Balance Priorities in Games These Days

Part of the issue with both Skyrim and Starfield lies in how NPCs are presented. In games where players shape the world and story, it can be challenging to make characters that stand out.

‘Game of the generation’

30 fps
Constant loading screens
Boring, cringeworthy story
Lifeless NPC’s with no daily routines etc, RDR2 fixed that that LAST gen
Starfield overall feels a last generation game
83 rated on Metacritic pic.twitter.com/jAeWuCDMOA

— PlayNationUK (@PlayNationUK) October 25, 2023

Bethesda’s open-world design philosophy focuses heavily on exploration and player agency. By prioritizing exploring big and open worlds, the studio has limited its capacity to develop characters that players feel close to.

As a result, even major characters can feel like mere placeholders rather than integral parts of the story. Comparing Bethesda’s NPCs to those in games like Mass Effect or The Witcher 3 shows just how different these games think of their NPC designs.

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Howard’s acknowledgment of the difficulty in making characters emotionally resonant shows just how complex this aspect of game design truly is. Making characters that adapt to player choices, have complex personalities, and get genuine emotion remains one of gaming’s biggest challenges.

As Bethesda prepares for future titles, perhaps the studio will prioritize character depth alongside world-building. Perhaps the devs could meet the expectations of fans who crave emotionally engaging, story-rich games.

What do you think of this idea of the difficulty of character design? Let us know in the comments!