Last year, Bethesda announced Starfield's release date as November 11, 2022. This has always been a special date for Bethesda and some may recognize it as the anniversary of Skyrim's release. While this release date announcement came incredibly early, it made sense. Bethesda has also iterated time and again that it was confident it could meet Starfield's release date. However, in a shocking announcement, Bethesda has delayed the highly-anticipated Sci-Fi RPG, as well as Arkane Studios' Redfall.
Starfield was positioned as one of the biggest releases of the coming holiday season, particularly for Xbox. Starfield's delay means that there is currently no major Xbox first-party exclusive set for the busiest gaming season of the year. It should be noted, however, that this could easily change at the upcoming Xbox and Bethesda Games Showcase, which is scheduled for June 9 at 10 am PT/12 pm CT.
In an announcement on its social media page, Bethesda confirmed the delays of both Starfield and Redfall, revealing they will now release in the first half of 2023. This delay, depending on when exactly it releases, means Starfield could hit the market 2-7 months later than intended. Redfall never had a publicly revealed release date, just a release window. On the one hand, the past couple of years have seen a ton of delays, but on the other hand, this one is shocking simply because of how special that date was to Bethesda.
Bethesda and Arkane are both dedicated to releasing their games in the most polished state they can, which is the reason given for this delay. Bethesda ended the announcement by saying it can't wait to show fans gameplay of Starfield and Redfall "soon," perhaps suggesting both games will still be at the Xbox and Bethesda Games Showcase. Both were pretty much a given before, and it's unlikely that they'll skip it now. This breaks Bethesda's typical approach of a big reveal over summer followed by a release later that year, but if this results in a better game at launch, then many will be happy.
Recently, a former Bethesda employee leaked a few Starfield details and commented on the possibility of a delay. While they suggested it was possible, they also suggested Bethesda may cut content to meet the now-delayed release date. They actually suggested the game has too much content, with Bethesda focused on "finding the fun" and working out bugs in this "overabundance of content," but ultimately how all of this shakes out remains to be seen.
Starfield and Redfall now release in the first half of 2023.