While Bethesda Game Studios (BGS) doesn’t enjoy the strongest reputation for Starfield right now, the game’s composer sees a different future.
Renowned composer Inon Zur recently spoke at length with RPGSite about some of his best-known scores, including his work on Starfield, which he named as one of his favorites alongside Fallout 4, Rise of the Ronin, and Syberia. The game itself didn’t reach the same level of success as Fallout 4 or The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. Still, Zur believes that, in a sense, people simply weren’t ready for it – and regardless of whether that’s true, he thinks it will eventually become just as legendary as those titles.
“With Starfield, you have to find the right balance between the elements people identify as ‘space’ while also trying to develop a new language. I remember we spent a lot of time thinking, and I essentially brought into that world something that is huge, vast, and almost motionless like a void – but within that space, there are many elements that move quickly, happen quickly, zoom in and out, and so on.
Instead of trying to mimic John Williams or Jerry Goldsmith, or more electronic elements like Vangelis and others, I tried to capture the main emotion. I knew that because I know John Williams’s music, I know Jerry Goldsmith’s music, I know Stravinsky, those elements would slip in and surface. There’s no escaping that, and that’s fine. There’s nothing wrong with being influenced by great composers, but it’s the underlying idea that makes the Starfield score feel complete and unique while still accessible to the audience – and it also conveys the real story behind Starfield.
Todd Howard is one of – if not the – most creative and inspiring people in the industry. He simply doesn’t stop. He always has new ideas. He always knows what he wants. He’s very convincing and has a very strong character. He finds a way to describe what he wants without naming it directly. He knows how to give creativity room, and he also knows how to steer it toward his own vision. He’s a visionary. He sees things people will only discover years later.
That’s true for Starfield as well. When Starfield came out, I don’t think people were ready for it. It’s a different approach, but Todd is very confident, and he said in a very, very relaxed tone: ‘Look, if you don’t like it, you don’t like it – but this is the new direction we’re taking, and we’re sticking with it.’ He believes in his method, and time and time again it has proven that people will eventually understand his vision. It just takes time, and that’s true for all great visionaries. Sometimes people truly don’t understand them at first, but they’re strong enough to hold the line – and Todd is holding the line with Starfield. Starfield will eventually become legendary. I have no doubt. It’s only a matter of time.”
This isn’t the first time Zur has spoken in such glowing terms about the project. A year before release, he said it was a massive game that could offer players an entirely new perspective on their own existence – likely pointing to the vastness of space compared to the span of human life.
