Starfield's Controversial Missing PC Feature Arrives In New Update

An image shows an astronaut gazing at the horizon from inside the cockpit of their spaceship.
An image shows an astronaut gazing at the horizon from inside the cockpit of their spaceship.

Starfield’s long-promised DLSS update is finally available through a beta test on PC.

When Starfield released on September 6, developer Bethesda faced backlash from fans because its space-fairing action role-playing game didn’t support Nvidia’s DLSS upscaling technology at launch. The tech—which allows players to get better framerate performance on their PCs without sacrificing the game’s image quality—was such a hot commodity that fans flocked to a fan-made NexusMod in its absence. Now, Starfield Beta Update 1.8.83 will let you test out the game with DLSS support before it officially launches on Xbox and PC (though the DLSS aspect of the update will only apply to PCs, obviously).

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Here’s how you can access the Starfield Beta update:

1.) Open your Steam Library and navigate to Starfield

2.) Right-click on Starfield and click Properties

3.) Select “Betas” in the Properties window

5.) Wait for the app to download a new build of the game and enjoy

The DLSS feature wasn’t the only thing included in today’s PC beta update. 1.8.83 also introduces a bunch of new gameplay and quality-of-life fixes to the game. Chief among them is the ability to gobble food and drink items the moment you find them lying around instead of having to access your inventory to use them.

Everything in the Starfield 1.8.83 update:

Gameplay

  • Added the ability to eat the food placed in the world

  • Adjusted stealth to be a bit more forgiving.

  • Fixed an issue where Andreja’s head would stay permanently cloaked.

  • Fixed an issue that could prevent players from firing their weapons.

  • Fixed issues where some NPC could be seen not wearing clothes.

  • Fixed an issue where already in-progress skill challenges could stop progressing after reaching the Unity and starting a new game.

  • Fixed an issue that could temporarily prevent opening the inventory or saving after entering the Unity.

  • PC: Fixed an issue where mouse movement could be choppy.

  • Fixed a rare issue that could cause the home ship to be lost.

  • Fixed an issue where the ship services technician might be missing.

Graphics

  • Addressed an issue with how ambient occlusion appeared in ultrawide resolutions.

  • Optimized initial shader compilation that occurs on start-up.

  • Added the ability to adjust Brightness and Contrast in the Display Settings menu.

  • Added the ability to adjust HDR Brightness provided that the system supports it. (Xbox & Windows 11 only).

  • Addressed a number of materials that could sometimes present an unintended pattern under certain conditions.

  • Fixed various visual issues related to the new FOV slider options.

  • Improved the appearance of the eyes on crowd characters.

  • Addressed a number of minor visual issues related to lighting, shadows, terrain, and vegetation.

Quests

  • All That Money Can Buy: Fixed a rare issue where players couldn’t sit during the negotiation with Musgrove.

  • Blast Zone: Fixed an issue where the hard rocks that need to be cleared out by players will not appear on Ngodup Tate’s land.

  • Echoes of the Past: Fixed an issue where the Grylloba Queen could sometimes not be reachable during the objective “Secure the Shuttle Bay”.

  • Eye of the Storm: Fixed an issue where players’ quest progression could potentially be blocked due to a missing docking prompt.

  • Grunt Work: Addressed an issue where progress could appear blocked if “Supra et Ultra” was completed while returning to the Lodge during “High Price to Pay”.

  • No Sudden Moves: Fixed an issue that could prevent the entrance door to the Scow ship from being opened again.

  • Operation Starseed: Fixed an issue where the key that is needed to exit the facility could sometimes not be present.

  • Sabotage: Fixed an issue where David Barron could potentially not be found by players.

  • Short Sighted: Fixed an issue where players could rarely become control-locked while speaking with Vladimir.

  • The Heart of Mars: Fixed an issue where players might not be able to mine The Heart of Mars.

In our review of Starfield, we said the game is “capable of inspiring some deep and complicated thoughts and emotions” despite its flaws. Let’s hope Bethesda’s next big game won’t make the same mistake of launching on PC without DLSS support. I’m looking at you, Elder Scrolls VI.

Buy Starfield: Amazon | Best Buy | GameStop

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