With the release of Starfield back in early September, we immediately began seeing comparisons to Cyberpunk 2077 online, but that's been taken to the next level over the past week with the arrival of Cyberpunk's 2.0 update.
And that's across the communities of both games, by the way! Even amongst Starfield fans, there's been a lot of discussion about the similarities with Cyberpunk 2077 and some of the areas in which each title excels and falls short.
Here's just a quick example of some of the comments we've being observing on the Starfield subreddit:
The folks over at PC Gamer also published an opinion piece recently about why playing Starfield made one of their writers "appreciate Cyberpunk 2077 so much more", which is an interesting read regardless of whether you agree or not!
"There have been bright spots, or I wouldn't have played for more than 60 hours, but from its intro to its over-reliance on fast travel, I just keep being disappointed. But what it has done, and I thank it for this, is make me appreciate Cyberpunk 2077 so much more."
Ultimately, even though there's been some pushback over the desire to compare these two games, there's clearly a lot of interest in doing so. You'll find countless Reddit threads and social media posts about this topic online, and it admittedly feels like a lot of them are using Starfield to highlight why Cyberpunk 2077 is a "better" experience. Is that true? Is it fair? There's a lot to unpack here, so let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
What do you make of all this? We'd love to hear from you!
Which Do You Prefer, Starfield Or Cyberpunk 2077? (403 votes)
- Starfield
- Cyberpunk 2077
- I can't really pick one over the other
Is It Fair To Compare The Two? (369 votes)
- Yes, of course it is!
- Maybe, I'm not really sure
- I don't think it is, no
Comments 32
The Cyberpunk 2.0 update & Phantom Liberty DLC has made me - temporarily at least - shelve Starfield. I just don’t have time to play both and tbh I’m enjoying Cyberpunk more.
I can't really say which I like more. Visually speaking and combat wise cyberpunk takes the edge but story and RPG mechanics Starfield is ahead. My favourite game is Witcher 3 and in that regard cyberpunk is not in the caliber but it is very solid. Starfield is Skyrim in space and that will never be a bad thing. In the end both games suffer from expectations.
P.s: well and cyberpunk from releasing as it did lol
I'm kind of bouncing between the pair of them, with a greater focus on Phantom Liberty for the moment but don't really see them as similar games outside of being an RPG. If anything I'm happy they have very different strengths and weaknesses as I'd hate for all games just to play like one another.
Once I'm done with Cyberpunk's dlc I suspect I'll probably leave it at that, whilst Starfield like Skyrim before it, will be one I return to again and again other the years
Cyberpunk 2077 had a very rough release. I actually pre-ordered it on my PS4 and shortly after asked for a refund, because it was a mess, a barely playable blur. I haven't touch it ever since, but it seems like it's time to give it another chance now, with all the praise that update 2.0 is getting.
But it took three years for Cyberpunk to get to its current stage, so I don't think it's really fair to compare it to Starfield right now.
I can say that Starfield today is in a much better state than Cyberpunk 2077 was in 2020. And most of my issues with Starfield are easily fixable QoL stuff.
Today Starfield is an 8.5/10 game for me, but I believe it can easily become a 10/10 in three years. Whereas Cyberpunk 2077 was a 3/10 for me in 2020. I can't score it now, since I haven't played it, but by the online discourse, it feels like it climbed all the way up to a 9/10. Starfield has a much smaller gap to climb.
The games are barely like each other past some very basic comparisons that can be made with a lot of games.
Personally, massively prefer Starfield. It's everything I expected from it and is everything I would want from space game like this.
That's not to say Cyberpunk is bad, I'm really enjoying it. It's just Starfield is just a lot more my style of game and is probably my GOTY.
Starfiled is mess of a game it's borderline unplayable the game keeps crashing constantly It should never have been released in this state don't believe the hype with starfield its average at best
@Dan1283 while it does crash a lot, and that whole talk of being "Bethesda's most polished game to date" is a very low bar to clear, I only started getting frequent crashes in the late game, 50+ hours in. I wouldn't say the game is unplayable now that I'm beyond 150h in, but it does crash every couple hours or so and it's annoying. Hopefully Bethesda can fix that soon.
Starfield launched as a 7/10 and Cyberpunk launched as a 4/10 (6/10 if you ignore the jank). Starfield is a better game, but both of them pale in comparison to Skyrim.
@Dan1283 don't know what you are playing on, but I've had no major issues on the Series S and I'm well into the game.
A game with no major issues isn't unplayable imo.
"Don't believe the hype" - you mean people's opinions? A lot of people love this game, myself included, and they are perfectly entitled to, even if you personally believe it's average at best.
Obviously, they are very different games. Also, Cyberpunk has had lots of evolution that Starfield has not yet benefited from.
I have 45 hours into Starfield now and......it is both awesome and a complete mess. Honestly, I don't know how any serious review outfit could rate this game 10/10. It is definitely a good game but it is tragically flawed in multiple ways.
The obvious one is that it is littered with obvious bugs. I have multiple times had NPCs float away from me while talking to them. Once this happens they seem to be permanently gone. This has broken quests for me. I have also had some crazy graphical glitches like most of the models for NPCs disappear leaving them as strange floating polygons. Plenty of other strange bugs as well. I suspect most of these will be fixed over time.
The act of interfacing with the game is rough in multiple ways. I find I have to switch between using a kb/mouse and a controller as I play the game.
There are also a bunch of gameplay issues:
All that being said, it is still a good game and well worth playing.
@Lightning720 I do believe it's average especially with all its problems I'm playing it on series s its crashing constantly and it does have major issues I aren't trying put my opinion on yourself sorry if it comes across like that I'm just annoyed it keeps crashing on me
@RazputinAquato once the crashes and bugs are fixed it will be pretty good
I enjoyed Cyberpunk much more. The story and characters were so much better than Starfield.
Starfield obviously has the edge in terms of exploration and freedom but that’s not what makes a game good for me so it’s quite a bit behind Cyberpunk.
@evan23 I really love Starfield, despite of all its flaws, yet I completelly agree with you. This game has loads of issues. And according to Todd Howard, Starfield was pretty much ready for launch in late 2022, but they decided to delay its release for one year in order to polish and fix bugs. Can you imagine how Starfield would look like if they didn't get more time?
I'll take both thank you very much.
Don't know if that guys trolling or not....but I have played about 30 hours of Starfield and haven't had a single crash or any issues...so him saying it's unplayable hmmmm
@StylesT then you are super lucky. Because it crashes. ALOT. And seems to crash more the longer you play it.
@Lightning720 I'm playing on PC and after 80 hours I haven't had a single crash. So far its been by far and away the most reliable Bethesda game I've played, the worst I've seen is a couple of npc's float away.
I prefer Starfield.
Just a hunch but I doubt people would have any doubt if we were comparing the first month of Cyberpunk to the first month of Starfield. Bethesda does not need to spend 3 additional years making it a playable game.
Since Todd Howard explains that there will be "a lot" of add on content post launch including story expansions, I think my preference towards Starfield will only grow. Expansion 1, Shattered Space, is expected early 2024. At least I won't need to wait 3 years.
Honestly, at this point in time, Cyberpunk 2077 feels like a much better game. But, I tried it on day 1, and I tried it before 1.5 patch.. and it was not in a good place. So much so I decided to shelf it. With patch 2.0 game has really came into its own, I'm doing a playthrough and enjoying it now.
All that said, Starfield has 3 years od patches and support to get to that point. If comparing day 1 releases Starfield wins on basically just working
I was thinking about this last night. While they are both on paper massive open-world RPG's, and while I am early in Cyberpunk, it's clear they are VERY different games.
Cyberpunk is really more of an action game with light RPG elements. It pushes technological boundaries. It's exploration and world is more about density than sheer size. Choice, in the base game at least, is largely superficial, it's got a story to tell and you are mostly along for the ride.
Starfield is a purer RPG, with FPS combat. It's built on an antiquated engine and old game design. It's exploration is pretty empty despite it's vast size. But there is real choice and consequence to your actions.
They are both jankfests, and filled with bugs.
To be clear i'm not comparing the two in terms of which is BETTER, I think it's entirely possible to enjoy them BOTH in different ways, just pointing out how different they are. That said I completely agree with the statement "I wish Cyberpunk and Starfield had a baby" somewhere between these two is my perfect game.
I honestly love starfield and thought cyberpunk was meh
I like both games, but ultimately neither of them exel.
I've yet to play the new dlc on cyberpunk, but at least v2.0 seems to have fixed some issues. Its still utimately an action set piece type of experience. Starfield story choices do have more consequences so it seems slightly more rpg.
But if its rpg you want, with strong narritive where every choice has a consequence, BG3 blows both of them out the water, not even close.
I do like a bit of action/combat however, so Im happy to play them all. I imagine I'll be playing starfield for several weeks yet, its a kind of love/hate thing I have going with that title and I want more.
Why bother comparing as Cyberpunk and NMS came out years ago. Give Starfield room to breathe and a few DLC and then if you want to compare then fine…
@AlwaysPlaying people will compare, because they have vague similarities. Heck people were comparing Forza to Mario kart in another article.
CP and NMS may have been out a while, but Starfield was also delayed by a year for polishing etc.
I want to get to comfortable position in Starfield (levelling perks, bases, mining/crafting, built ships) before I entertain starting something new. At the moment, I am bouncing between Starfield, Lies of P, MK1, and Dishonored 2 (almost done).
It's true what some people are saying. SF is lacking any kind of soul. I find it dull and boring. Forgetfull characters and don't get me started on the loading screens. Even the same animations of clicking the same buttons everytime on the ships panels no matter where you go. Very samey... I'm forcing myself to play it now and then because I paid for it, but it's a drag really. Somethings missing. I think FO and Elder Scrolls with be played for years to come, but I think SF is not in the same league.
Reminder to everyone (especially Sony fanboys) cyberpunk was released a buggy state of 2020. That was 3 years ago, so much update has put onto the game. No point comparing it to starfield.
If I could take anything from Starfield to implement into other games it would be the lip sync technology. It's very good.
witcher 3 and cyberpunk put me to sleep with their long and boring conversations.
I’m an owner of both games, currently on my 3rd play through of Cyberpunk to experience the 2.0 update and Phantom Liberty. Loving Cyberpunk all over again!
My starfield experience is paused at something like 25-30 hours at the moment. I will definitely get back to it, but I decided to play other games while additional patches come out and smooth the Starfield game out.
I managed to get my Platinum trophy in Final Fantasy 16, and might try for it in Cyberpunk as well before heading back to the stars.
Is it fair to compare the two - no. Is it pointless to compare the two - yes. Just apreicate them for what they are and play what you enjoy.
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