Bethesda’s planet-hopping science fiction RPG, Starfield, has noticeably lacked any semblance of a gameplay trailer despite its planned release later this year. There was the official announcement trailer three years ago, and the teaser trailer debuted at last year’s E3, but the rest of the promotional material so far has focused on Starfield‘s in-game NASA-punk universe and various lore tidbits. With the game set to release on November 11, 2022, Starfield is bound to have a gameplay trailer in the coming months, the only question is when exactly that will happen.
It’s difficult to predict exactly when Bethesda is going to make its big announcements or reveals. Even after the Microsoft acquisition finalized about a year ago, there’s no indication that Bethesda has lost its autonomy. The same company that announced Fallout 4 before releasing it five months later also announced The Elder Scrolls VI in 2018, a game which is still years from coming out. Starfield‘s announcement was part of the same presentation as TES 6‘s, and has long been confirmed to be releasing first. Starfield‘s lack of gameplay doesn’t mean a delay necessarily, but one would expect a more concerted marketing push to be starting any time now.
Gameplay is arguably the most important part of video game promotion, at least from the player’s perspective. Cinematic trailers are a better fit for TV spots, but core gaming audiences tend to like a glimpse at gameplay before buying, even with games like Starfield, where the developer’s style is something of a known quantity. Now that Bethesda is officially part of Xbox Game Studios, the promotion of its games may be heavily tied to Microsoft’s other gaming IP.
Bethesda’s Starfield Could Be Part Of A Massive Xbox Showcase
Bethesda’s involvement in Xbox’s E3 presentation last year was already exciting, with Starfield getting screen time next to other huge properties like Halo and Forza, so it wouldn’t be out of the question to see Microsoft pull a similar stunt. Very little is known about E3 2022, but even if the trade show is canceled like it was in 2020, there’s nothing stopping Xbox from taking a cue from PlayStation and doing a live-streamed, independent showcase of its own. Alongside Starfield gameplay, it would give Xbox a chance to promote games from its more recent Activision-Blizzard buyout, like Call of Duty, Diablo, and Overwatch.
Outside of a summertime gameplay reveal, it’s nearly impossible to guess when Starfield will resurface. Bethesda probably doesn’t want to get the hype rolling just yet in case of an unforeseen delay, but waiting until autumn probably isn’t a smart promotional move either. With a day one release on Game Pass, Starfield is arguably Xbox’s biggest game of the year, so it will likely headline a larger games showcase, or be the sole focus of a separate presentation at some point in the spring or summer.
