The first Starfield expansion is here, and if Shattered Space’s Steam reviews are anything to go buy, it’s not finding a particularly welcoming audience. Shattered Space launched on September 30, 2024, and it’s currently sitting at “Mixed” or 6/10 with just over 700 reviews, though if you scroll down to the reviews, it turns to “mostly negative.”
The most common complaint is the lack of new features, especially a dearth of ship parts, and by dearth, I mean zero new ship parts. That last issue is maybe not too surprising, when you consider that Bethesda intends Shattered Space as a standalone experience with few ties to the rest of Starfield. However, with almost no communication about what Shattered Space offered prior to the expansion’s launch, it’s no wonder folks are disappointed by what it doesn’t do.
“The writing and story are far better than the main campaign and even added a couple of (very) minor but rather likable companions,” one reviewer wrote. “However the story being “better” than the main campaign is damning it with faint praise because it is rather mediocre and is over fairly quickly.”
“You get one tiny city, re-skinned weapons and clothing and nothing really notable,” another said. “I mean you have heard so much about this culture and its just what… four buildings and with twenty people and fetch quests.”
“Most of the weapons are reskins” was another common complaint, and several people were unhappy at the limited role Shattered Space’s companions played. They aren’t permanent or especially plot important like the main Starfield companions are – or like Far Harbor and Nuka World’s unique companions are – and even though Andreja, the former Va’ruun follower, accompanies you, the general consensus is that she has very little to do with Shattered Space’s story.
“Immersion? What happened to that?,” went another review. “You visit a group of people that supposedly hadn’t been visited from anyone in the settled system but they still have all the same ship parts, weapons, and gear? So right off the bat, it’s strange. Not to mention they use the same currency as everyone else?”
Which is a hard point to argue with. As someone who was lukewarm on Starfield and felt hopeful at Bethesda’s comparisons to Fallout Far Harbor and promise of fun, gross weapons, it’s disappointing to hear that Shattered Space is just slightly more focused Starfield without much new or interesting to discover.
Bethesda is still cooking up a second Starfield expansion, though there’s no indication what it might be or when it could launch.
