Starfield is taking the classic Elder Scrolls pickpocketing formula and making it real-time

Pickpocketing is a staple of both The Elder Scrolls and the Fallout games, but Starfield is changing things up a bit.

There are two things I love to do in Bethesda games: lock picking (it's just so satisfying when you get that click), and pickpocketing. Who doesn't love a little bit of crime? And if you can get away with it, there's nothing better than nabbing something right out of someone's pocket. In previous Bethesda games, pickpocketing would essentially act like a pause menu, giving you all the time you need to carry out your thievery. But as pointed out by some fans on the game's subreddit, pickpocketing is quite different in Starfield, as it takes place in real-time (thanks, GamesRadar).

This is the first Bethesda game that features pickpocketing in real-time
by u/OkPain2022 in Starfield

Before, in something like Skyrim, you could sneak up behind someone, pickpocket them, and leave just as quickly as you approached them. Now, you'll have to actively tail someone in order to take what's hiding in their pockets, meaning you'll have to work extra hard to be sneaky. You can also see percentages of how likely you are to take something without getting caught, so at least you can assess the risk pretty easily. This is a sci-fi game though, so hopefully for those that aren't very good at that part can unlock some kind of cloaking device to make things easier.

One fan wondered if lock picking would work the same way, noting, "It is in Dying Light and adds a considerable amount of anxiety while trying to lock pick with baddies nearby." Another wrote, "No more putting on the kettle while I mull over what to steal huh…"

If you can believe it, it's almost been a decade since Fallout 4 release (almost eight years, to be precise), so it's not a big surprise that Starfield might be doing some things differently. Let's just hope it learned some lessons from one of it's worst reviewed RPGs.

Starfield is finally almost here, due out on September 6, releasing on Xbox Series X/S, and PC.