Potential minor spoilers ahead for Starfield.
While we may have to wait until June to get our next big look at Starfield, the game’s ESRB rating has appeared online and confirms it will include drugs, in-game purchases, and… jetpack sex.
The ESRB, or Entertainment Software Rating Board, has given Starfield an M for Mature 17+ for “blood, strong language, suggestive themes, use of drugs, and violence.” Many of these classifications are pretty standard for an M-rated game, but the rating summary is filled with some very interesting details.
First off, it confirms Starfield is an “open-world role-playing game in which players assume the role of a miner tasked with finding Artifacts across the galaxy.” The next bit of text describes some more standard features, including that Starfield allows for first and third-person perspectives, and that it will feature character interactions, quests, futuristic guns, lasers, axes, and explosives, and more.
The ESRB’s rating summary then gives some examples of the “suggestive material in the dialogue” players will find in the game, specifically after they share a bed with another character.
“The game contains some suggestive material in the dialogue, and after sharing a bed with characters (e.g., “Life is a sexually transmitted disease that’s a hundred percent fatal”; “I’m all for getting a little wild, but next time let’s try it without the jetpacks”; “Talk about seeing stars, whew… that was amazing.”),” the summary reads.
We obviously don’t have the full context and it may not be exactly as it sounds or even appear in game beyond a mention, but next-gen jetpack sex is probably not something many had on their Starfield bingo cards.
The summary goes on to describe a fictional drug called Aurora that will be prominent in the game and states Starfield will feature a section with “players’ characters working in an illicit drug lab.” Aurora can be stolen or purchased from vendors, and using Aurora will result in a “distortion effect on the screen.”
Oh, and the words “f**k* and “bullsh*t” will appear in the game.
Alongside all the previously mentioned details, the ESRB’s rating page additionally confirms Starfield will feature “in-game purchases” for both PC and Xbox Series X/S. It gives no further details as to what we may be purchasing, but it most likely means we could see cosmetics for players’ characters or ships (space horse armor, anyone?) or more substantial DLC like new story content or full expansions.
Starfield is set to launch on Xbox Series X/S and PC on September 6, 2023, and a Starfield Direct will follow the Xbox Games Showcase on June 11 at 10am PT/1pm ET. This dedicated Starfield deep dive will feature “tons of new gameplay, developer interviews, and behind-the-scenes insider information.”
Starfield was originally planned to be released on November 11, 2022, but it was delayed back in May 2022.
For more, check out Starfield’s official gameplay reveal from June 2022, everything we learned from our interview with Bethesda Game Studios’ Todd Howard about the game, and why we believe Starfield has to have a perfect landing, especially after the troubles of Redfall.
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Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.
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