Starfield physical edition may not include an actual disc

Battle Beyond the Stars

Bethesda has confirmed that the physical editions of its upcoming space opera Starfield will not contain an actual disc of the game itself, and will instead feature a download code for the chosen platform. The publisher noted this controversial development in a tweet from its support team.

“Hello!” said the team, responding directly to a fan’s question. “All physical editions include a code for the chosen platform. There are no physical discs”. The tweet has since been deleted from Twitter.

The community has responded unhappily to the news, with some decrying the return of “non-physical physical editions”, while others pointed to the continued slant toward a future where archiving games becomes a much-more-difficult venture without hard copies of the games themselves. The response was overwhelmingly negative, with some, (some as Twitter’s Wario64), pointing out that certain adverts for Starfield’s physical release had clearly stated that a disc was included.

The removal of the initial tweet suggests that either talks are being had, or that there are crossed wires somewhere along the chain of communication. Perhaps we will receive more direct confirmation on the situation from Bethesda this week, (and if so then we’ll be sure to keep you informed). For now, however, it appears that anybody purchasing Starfield in its princely $250 Constellation Edition might have to prepare themselves for a trip to the Microsoft Store and a meaty download come launch day.

No disc and no space fishing? This deal is getting worse all the time…

Starfield launches September 6 on PC and Xbox Series X/S.

Chris Moyse

Senior Editor – Chris has been playing video games since the 1980s and writing about them since the 1880s. Graduated from Galaxy High with honors. Twitter: @ChrisxMoyse

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