While there were lots of exciting updates and announcements during the recent Xbox and Bethesda Showcase, players were holding out for some Starfield news. Their patience was rewarded with the very first glimpse of Starfield gameplay, with a substantive fifteen-minute video that detailed the game’s story, combat, environments, and other fun features. Details have continued to emerge about Starfield now that players have had their first good look at it, including how the main character won’t have a voice actor.

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Confirmation Of A Voiceless Protagonist

Bethesda had been remarkably tight-lipped during most of Starfield’s development, with only a few details shared here and there and some initially vague updates and behind-the-scenes looks. The leaks that have emerged – mostly images that purported to show off elements of the game – were hardly what anyone would call juicy or exciting and consisted mainly of internal and external structures and doorways. The time was ripe for a better look at Starfield, and fans finally have something to see following the years of anticipation.

The developer has continued to provide details about its upcoming game, including tweets that offer more insight into the features and aspects of Starfield revealed during the showcase. One element that has received further specifics is the character interactions that were shown during the gameplay trailer. Bethesda has confirmed via Twitter that dialogue will be in first-person (despite the ability to switch between a first and third-person perspective during combat and exploration), and the protagonist will be silent.

Effect On The Gameplay

The decision to not include a voice actor for Starfield’s protagonist could be a controversial one, but in lots of ways, it could help improve the experience of the game. While some players love to hear their characters interact with others, there are still plenty of games that choose to keep their protagonists silent, and this doesn’t necessarily hinder the game in any major way. Bethesda has been clear that Starfield is about player choice, from the way their character looks to the factions they choose to align themselves with. Exploring the hundreds of systems and even more planets throughout Starfield’s expansive scope will be shaped by player inclination, and while there is a story to follow, gamers will mostly be in charge of creating their own unique experience.

Role-playing will be a key element of Starfield, and the developer is keen for players to take charge and immerse themselves fully in the game. There will be lots of ways that Starfield will help them do this, especially with Bethesda’s stated intention to focus on character interactions and relationship-building. While it might seem strange to some players to try to develop meaningful connections with a silent main character, the expressiveness and realism in the facial animations of other characters and their own compelling voice acting could make a vocal response fairly superfluous, or at least not noticeably absent.

Starfield appears to be full to the brim of choices for players to make, and that is what will hopefully shape the personality of their main character more effectively than a voice ever would. Having a voice actor, even if there were a few ones to choose from when creating the protagonist, could distract from the type of character the player wanted to make, or could not match up to their own interpretation of what they would sound like. A silent protagonist doesn’t face any of these restrictions or create such jarring mismatches, and this blank slate approach could really help with Starfield’s aims to become a completely immersive, play-led experience.

Starfield is scheduled to release in early 2023 on PC and Xbox Series X/S.

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