Bethesda fans hope Starfield does as well as Baldur’s Gate 3, but don’t hold your breath

Bethesda fans are rapidly approaching the end of their long wait for Starfield and, though hopeful the title will emulate Baldur’s Gate 3’s success, may see the game fall short of those expectations.

Starfield, the fiercely-anticipated Xbox exclusive, releases globally on Sept. 6—which was when Baldur’s Gate 3 was also set to release before being moved forward to avoid such immense competition.

That move proved to be a masterstroke, as Baldur’s Gate 3 took just three days to break into Steam’s all-time top 10 for concurrent players and the reception of the title has been overwhelmingly positive.

Seen by many as a Game of the Year contender, Baldur’s Gate 3 has been hailed as one of the best gaming releases of recent years—and a release on PlayStation is still around the corner, with Xbox to follow in the future.

Hopeful Starfield fans are wishing for the Bethesda title to enjoy a similar meteoric impact when it finally releases in less than a month, though the chances of emulating Baldur’s Gate 3’s stunning success are unlikely.

While there’s a chance Starfield can go down in history like its older sibling Skyrim, the expectation for Starfield is much, much higher and pressure is on Bethesda to deliver for Xbox.

Xbox’s takeover of Bethesda prevented Starfield from releasing on PlayStation and, having been battered by their arch-rivals in the console wars regarding exclusive titles in the past, Microsoft is crying out for a home run.

Such expectations may simply be too high for any game to achieve, regardless of how good it is, and Bethesda titles have a history of encountering significant bugs and issues upon release that take time and multiple patches to resolve.

Baldur’s Gate 3 avoided the majority of those, having been in early access for years, and certainly has a significant advantage in any potential battle up against Starfield.