Even in 2026, I still find myself booting up Starfield, drawn back to the vastness of its cosmos. Yet, as I navigate another lengthy quest chain, the familiar frustration creeps in. The game is a monumental achievement, filled with breathtaking worlds and stories, but the constant back-and-forth to report to NPCs can grind the grand adventure to a halt. It’s a tedious dance of fast-travel and loading screens that, after hundreds of hours, feels less like exploration and more like interstellar commuting. In an era where other RPGs have streamlined these interactions, Starfield's insistence on physical hand-ins feels like a relic from a bygone gaming age. I dream of a solution—one that wouldn't break immersion but would instead enhance it, making the Settled Systems feel more connected and my time more rewarding.
My dream fix isn't original, but it's brilliant in its simplicity. A few years back, a player on Reddit named Tyolag pitched the idea, and it’s only grown more relevant with time. What Starfield desperately needs is a phone call system, akin to the one in Cyberpunk 2077. Imagine this: you’ve just cleared a pirate outpost on some desolate moon. Instead of trekking all the way back to Jemison, you simply open a comms channel from your ship. Sarah Morgan’s face flickers onto a holographic display on your cockpit console. 'Constellation heard your report. Good work. The artifact data is already syncing to the Lodge.' With a few lines of dialogue, the quest is complete, credits and XP are awarded, and you’re free to point your ship toward the next horizon without breaking stride. This isn’t about dumbing down the game; it’s about respecting the player’s time and the sheer scale of the setting. We have grav drives and pocket-sized universes, but we have to deliver news in person? It doesn’t add up.
The beauty of this idea is how perfectly it fits. Starfield is a sci-fi epic! Implementing a unified comms network—handled through our ships or even a wrist-mounted device—is not just reasonable; it’s expected. It would transform the pace of the game. No more would the thrilling climax of a mission be followed by the anticlimax of a long, silent journey back. The flow would be seamless. Given the major improvements Bethesda has already rolled out, like the land-based exploration vehicle to finally tame those endless plains, adding a communication system seems like a logical next step for quality of life. It would make the universe feel alive, responsive, and truly modern.
Of course, I’m not naive. I know Bethesda’s design philosophy often leans into physicality and discovery through traversal. But there’s a balance to be struck. Some quests, especially those involving delicate negotiations or turning in physical, story-critical items, could still require a face-to-face meeting. The phone system wouldn’t replace all travel; it would just eliminate the pointless, repetitive trips. It would be a toggle for efficiency, allowing me to choose immersion when I want it and convenience when I need it. Think of the possibilities:
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Instant Debriefs: Finish a mission for the UC Vanguard? Call in.
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Dynamic Updates: Receive new objectives or location pings mid-conversation.
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Ambient World-Building: Get random check-in calls from your crew members commenting on your latest exploits.
Bethesda has shown a commendable commitment to Starfield’s long-term health. The Shattered Space expansion was a massive step, adding terrifying new enemies and gear that made the cosmos feel dangerous again. They’ve listened to feedback before. As we look beyond the major DLCs, these smaller, impactful quality-of-life tweaks are what will define the game's legacy. The studio confirmed several more updates are in the pipeline, and for veterans like me, a comms system would be a game-changer. It wouldn’t just fix a pain point; it would modernize the core loop, making the game more accessible and enjoyable for everyone, from new recruits to seasoned explorers.
So here I am, three years after launch, still loving this game but yearning for it to fully realize its potential. The foundation is rock-solid—a universe of unparalleled scope and freedom. But the friction in its quest design remains its greatest weakness. Implementing a Cyberpunk-style phone system isn’t about making Starfield into another game; it’s about learning from the best ideas in the genre to polish its own brilliant framework. It’s about letting me, the player, stay lost in the wonder of discovery without the constant administrative chore of reporting back. Bethesda is in this for the long haul, and I believe they can smooth out these remaining rough edges. When they do, Starfield won't just be a great game; it will be the seamless, immersive, and endlessly playable epic we all dreamed of back in 2018. I’ll keep my comms channel open, hoping for the call.