Starfield players frustrated by absurd gameplay mechanic

Starfield fans are already cracking jokes about some of the most confusing mechanics and features that don’t make sense, like the cost of starships being a total bargain. But some mechanics make absolutely no sense at all, like needing to register your starship with pirates to be able to sell it to them.

In a Reddit thread on Oct. 9, a Starfield player shared their outrageous experience when trying to sell their stolen starship to pirates.

After stealing a starship, you’d think that you’d need to lay low and evade all forms of bureaucracy to avoid getting caught. But not in Starfield and not with the Crimson Fleet. These pirates follow procedure to the letter.

Suppose you want to sell that stolen starship on the black market. You need to register it first, which makes no sense—on top of that, registering it costs almost as much as you’d get from selling it, which makes this confusing Starfield mechanic even more nonsensical.

Players jokingly suggested that this feature was in place so players could avoid getting on the wrong side of the IRS. We all know what they’ll do if you don’t pay your taxes, and we’re sure toppling an interstellar crime organization like the Crimson Fleet is something they’d manage by lunch. 

Others defended the mechanic by theorizing that the Crimson Fleet fills out all the proper paperwork to avoid heat from the law and that by registering starships, they’re laying low. 

We think this feature doesn’t make sense at all. Why be a pirate that steals starships if you have to register and pay for them later? Where’s the fun and profit in that? We hope Bethesda will address the issue, and in a future update, add a place to sell our illegally obtained ships.