Mind-Blowing Glitch Turns Starfield Into Astonishing Flat Landscape

Highlights

A Starfield player discovered a bug that caused a planet to be completely flat and barren, showcasing the game's well-known tradition of curious bugs.

The technology of procedural generation in Starfield generates individual planets for players, each one with its own distinct characteristics. These planets start off with no features and are then populated with randomly generated terrain, plants, and animals.

Although not intentional, there is a bug in Starfield that causes some planets to appear flat. These planets have a unique texture resembling marble and the land gradually darkens as it extends towards the horizon. Despite its odd and unnatural appearance, this bug creates a strangely beautiful sight.

A Starfield player recently discovered an amazing flaw that transformed a visited planet into a desolate, completely flat landscape. Bethesda, known for their games' infamous collection of intriguing bugs, continues this tradition with Starfield. The procedural generation technology used to create Starfield's planets is ripe with these peculiar glitches. The flat planet bug in Starfield is particularly fascinating, showcasing unexpected beauty.

Bethesda has proudly boasted about the vast expanse of Starfield, promising over 1,000 explorable planets. However, each game experience offers a unique set of planets. The majority of these planets are procedurally generated, meaning they are constructed from scratch as players approach them. Consequently, except for a few handcrafted planets by Bethesda, most planets are essentially blank canvases. Players venture towards these celestial bodies, and the game utilizes algorithms to populate them with randomized terrains, flora, and fauna.

While there are numerous instances highlighting the repercussions of faulty planetary procedural generation in Starfield, this particular example stands out as a complete malfunction. A Reddit user named CaptainAde shared a post titled "An interesting bug rendered a flat world, which led to some nice pics of my suit" on the Starfield subreddit. As evidence, they included several images portraying the stark emptiness of a Starfield planet.

The flat Starfield planet is notable for its depth and texture, contrary to initial expectations. Instead of appearing colorless and lacking depth, as if in developer mode, the planet exhibits a marble-like texture and a gradual darkening towards the horizon. Despite not fully loading, the planet still retains the appearance of a typical Starfield planet, albeit in a peculiar and unnatural manner.

According to some Starfield players, while this may be considered a bug, adding additional detail could transform it into a believable biome. It bears similarities to salt pans found in deserts on Earth, natural flat formations. However, an entire planet consisting of salt pans would be a spectacle to behold, resembling this peculiar Starfield bug.

Regrettably, there is currently no direct method for Starfield players to replicate the appearance of a comparable planet in their own game instances. The generation of planets through procedural algorithms does not extend to the games of other players. As an illustration, an ambitious Starfield player conducted an exhaustive exploration, visiting a grand total of 1,441 planets within their own game. Despite witnessing the vastness of the universe, they were unable to encounter this peculiar yet captivating flat planet. This distinctiveness is one of the defining features that sets Starfield apart. Starfield is currently accessible on PC and Xbox Series X/S platforms.

Source: Reddit