The Outer Worlds is a space-themed RPG, and Starfield is an upcoming RPG set in space. Although these two games will likely be different in many ways, there are also lots of features and mechanics that could be brought over from The Outer Worlds for the perfect RPG experience. The companions and dialogue choices in The Outer Worlds are just two examples.
One thing to consider here is that the studio that made Outer Worlds was none other than Obsidian. Bethesda fans will know them for making the incredible Fallout: New Vegas. As such, Starfield can learn a lot from The Outer Worlds, but these are some of the most important things that Starfield should implement.
10 Expansive Skill System
There are many different skills that you can choose from to customize your character at the beginning of The Outer Worlds. You can also choose skills and perks to unlock when you level up.
A skill system such as this one is perfect for Starfield since it is set to be an RPG. Choosing from many different skills and perks allows for replayability and a more personalized role-playing adventure.
9 Humor Works Well In An RPG
Although the main story of The Outer Worlds is serious in nature, it's filled with humorous dialogue and side quests that help keep the player engaged. This is also notably true for other RPGs, such as Sheogorath in The Elder Scrolls franchise.
Starfield likely won't have too much humor involved, but funny dialogue here and there would be great for players who enjoy it. Even if it means that only player dialogue options are humorous.
8 Keeping A Story Short Is Better Than Creating Filler
The Outer Worlds isn't as long as Skyrim or Fallout 4; however, it still has a lot of great RPG content packed into it. There aren't any repetitive quests in The Outer Worlds, but every side quest is unique.
It's unknown whether Starfield will be as long as other Bethesda RPGs. Hopefully, it will have unique content instead of locations and quests that felt copy and pasted with little effort.
7 Good And Evil Choices
Good and evil choices are one of the most important aspects of a good RPG because they give you the chance to be whatever type of character you want. In The Outer Worlds, you could choose between saving the solar system or helping the evil corporations, and a choice like this would be fun in Starfield.
Moral choices during side quests are also important, and these are present in The Outer Worlds, as well. Time will tell if Starfield is linear or not, but hopefully, there will be a lot of moral decisions.
6 Personal Ship That You Can Travel In
Starfield is a space-themed game, similar to The Outer Worlds which means that you will need to travel around the different worlds on a ship. The Outer Worlds features a ship that you can travel in with many extra mechanics, including storage and a room for every companion.
Starfield could also feature customization for your ship so that you can create a personal look for it. It's almost certain that Starfield will allow you to have your own ship, but the size and customization will hopefully be at least on par with The Outer Worlds.
5 Having Multiple Companions Is Great
Companions add variety and help to an RPG adventure. However, one mechanic that was present in The Outer Worlds was the ability to have 2 companions with you at all times. Although The Elder Scrolls and Fallout franchises have good companion systems overall, they only allow for one human companion at a time.
Starfield could allow you to have two or three companions following you at any given time so that they can communicate with each other and help add extra dialogue and perspectives during quests. The conversations between the companions in The Outer Worlds were very memorable, and it's a mechanic that we'd like to see added into Starfield.
4 The Diverse Settlements
There were many different settlements that you could explore in The Outer Worlds. From a space station to a small space town, all of the different towns and cities had a unique charm about them. Some RPGs have settlements that feel repetitive; however, The Outer Worlds never had this problem.
Since Starfield will likely have many different environments, it's important that the settlements in this game are diverse both in building structure and in the cultures surrounding the individual cities.
3 The Science Weapons
Science weapons were one of the most fun features in The Outer Worlds. You could only obtain each of these weapons once. They also had a unique appearance and a special effect. For example, one science weapon could shrink your enemies down in size, making them weaker.
Starfield won't have the exact same system, but it's important that it features many different unique weapons to obtain so that the quests and locations in the game feel rewarding to the player.
2 Large Areas Are Better
Although there are many great things about The Outer Worlds, it's also important to acknowledge what most players disliked about it so that future video games can improve upon the RPG formula. One of the biggest complaints about The Outer Worlds was that the open-world areas weren't large enough. This could become a problem in Starfield since it will likely feature a few different areas based on different planets.
The best way to avoid this problem for a space-themed RPG is by creating 3 or 4 large open worlds the size of a Bethesda DLC area, such as Solstheim.
1 A Silent Protagonist
Some games are perfect for a voiced protagonist, like The Witcher 3; however, for RPGs where you create your own character, silent protagonists usually receive a better reception from the player base. Fallout 4 is a good example of the majority of players not enjoying the dialogue system.
The Outer Worlds featured a silent protagonist and many different dialogue options to choose from while conversing with characters. Starfield should have a similar dialogue system so that the player can roleplay what their character says and sound like.