I've been a big fan of Dan Stapleton since he was at PC Gamer. He's introduced me to some of my favourite games. I trust that he really feels it deserves a 7 and maybe it does. I've seen reviewers turn a blind eye to Starfield's shortcomings by calling them "a Bethesda thing". The inventory system sucks; there's no proper map; the faces look weird. These are all criticisms that we've heard before, and if you're honest they deserve to be considered when deciding on a score.
There's also the fact that game review scores are kinda ####ed anyway. A 7 is a solid B and should mean that it's a really good game, but in fact it's seen as a kiss of death in this industry, hence why we're talking about it. No game should get over a 9 except absolute masterpieces like TOTK and BG3.
Anyway, I haven't had much time to play, but I've enjoyed the time I've spent with it and look forward to getting really deep into it this winter.
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