Starfield to get official modding support next year, so a Skyrim planet is on the table

Starfield cockpit
(Image credit: Bethesda)

Bethesda games have courted modders for decades at this point and the developer’s space epic, Starfield, is no different. But despite already receiving several handy mods just a week after launch, the game won’t be receiving official mod support until next year. 

Speaking to Famitsu in an interview translated by PCGN, creative director Todd Howard said: “When the mods are ready, you will be able to do almost anything as we have done in the past, and the mods will be supported next year, but we will do it in a big way because we love it too.” 

Starfield has already received several mods, including ones that let players build the gigantic Star Destroyer from Star Wars. So what’s the difference between official modding support and the mods we already have? Well, Bethesda’s past games - such as Fallout 4 - received support for the Creation Kit, an official tool that allows for more complicated mods to be made and shared with others. Essentially, modders will have control over granular aspects of the game and the Creation Kit mods will probably be more interesting as a result. Oh, and that’s likely how Xbox players will receive mod support, too.

Bethesda’s publishing boss Pete Hines recently teased what kind of mods Starfield would allow for. "When you start to think of the kind of communities that come around Bethesda Games Studios games, and putting a tool like that in the hands of people to go, 'how'd you like to make a planet?'" Hines said. "All of that is going to be off the charts when you start getting a community to come in and add all of the different things that they want to bring to it. Build their own stories they want to tell, whatever it is." 

While we wait until next year, check out the best Skyrim mods and Fallout 4 mods to see how creative this community can get.

Freelance contributor

Kaan freelances for various websites including Rock Paper Shotgun, Eurogamer, and this one, Gamesradar. He particularly enjoys writing about spooky indies, throwback RPGs, and anything that's vaguely silly. Also has an English Literature and Film Studies degree that he'll soon forget.