Starfield Lets Players Do Old Skyrim Trick

Article Summary:

Starfield lives up to player expectations with an expansive open world, engaging questlines, and the ability to put buckets on NPCs' heads, a fan-favorite prank from Skyrim.

Players are delighted to find that Starfield allows them to interact with objects in the world, including placing buckets over NPCs' heads, although it doesn't obscure vision as it did in Skyrim.

The inclusion of these familiar quirks adds to the appeal for long-time fans of Bethesda games.

Since Starfield's early-access release, the game has been living up to everything players have come to expect from a Bethesda title: an ambitious, expansive open world, engaging questlines and factions—and, of course, the ability to put buckets on NPCs' heads. Bethesda games are well-known for their highly interactive worlds that allow players to pick up and move objects freely, and players were delighted to discover that this fan-favorite prank from Skyrim has made it into Starfield.

Starfield is the brand-new sci-fi action role playing game developed by Bethesda Game Studios. Currently, the game is in early access for players who pre-ordered the Premium Edition. As this is Bethesda's first new IP in over 25 years, comparisons to previous Bethesda titles are inevitable, with many players hoping that the studio would not only live up to the success of its previous mega-hits, The Elder Scrolls and Fallout franchises, but also carry over certain Bethesda-specific quirks that make for funny or meme-worthy moments in-game.

One of those quirks is how the games allow players to interact with items in the world—picking up, carrying, and throwing most items freely—and Bethesda didn't disappoint in that respect. As highlighted by Reddit users Potential-Zucchini30 and Photoproguy, Starfield allows the player to pick up objects such as buckets, pots, baskets, or cauldrons and place them over NPCs' heads. The former included a clip of an unsuspecting miner falling victim to this prank. This was a well-known trick in Skyrim, and players have found it endearing that the studio's newest title continued the trend. A key difference, though, is that in Skyrim this trick actually obscured the NPC's line of sight, allowing the player to steal undetected—one of many helpful glitches that players have been able to exploit in Skyrim.

This doesn't appear to be the case in Starfield, with a handful of players noting that this ruse hasn't worked for them so far. Still, players have already been having fun with this familiar gimmick, and users on this thread pointed out other funny NPC reactions they have encountered in Starfield, such as characters berating the player for stealing their sandwiches or notes.

Starfield is already receiving praise as an ambitious and captivating game in its own right, but the smaller details that mark it as a truly Bethesda-esque game make it all the more special for long-time fans of the studio. Bethesda has long placed Easter eggs and callbacks to previous titles in its games, and although Starfield presents us with a vast new world, it's still a somewhat comforting one for those familiar with Bethesda's unique style.

Starfield launches on September 6 for PC and Xbox Series X/S.