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After months of anticipation, PlayStation owners finally got their hands on Bethesda’s massive galactic open-world RPG when it launched on PS5 and PS5 Pro this past April 7th. But what should have been a celebratory moment for Sony’s community has quickly turned into a technical nightmare. Widespread reports of frequent crashing, system lockups, and even overheating are flooding social media, with some frustrated players already seeking refunds from the PlayStation Store.
The port arrives as part of Microsoft’s surprising shift toward multiplatform releases, but early impressions suggest the transition hasn’t been smooth. While Xbox Series X users have enjoyed the new “Free Lanes” update with only minor quirks, the PS5 versions tell a very different story.
Digital Foundry confirms instability across both PS5 consoles
In their performance review released shortly after launch, Digital Foundry painted a grim picture. The technical experts found that freezes occurred frequently during testing on both the standard PS5 and the premium PS5 Pro. In most cases, the team had to manually close the game from the console’s dashboard and restart it — a workaround that quickly becomes exhausting when you’re trying to explore distant star systems.
“We encountered hard locks that required closing the application entirely, and on the Pro specifically, the system became unresponsive more than once,” the review noted.
The Xbox Series X alternative, by comparison, remains more stable despite its own set of minor performance quirks. That contrast has only amplified the frustration among PlayStation users who expected a polished experience after the game’s extended delay on Sony’s hardware.
Reddit users report crashes “every 2 minutes”
Over on the game’s official subreddit, user ShogunRaw described an almost unplayable scenario, claiming Starfield PS5 crashing happened “every 2 minutes.” Other threads are filled with similar complaints, though there’s no clear common denominator. Some players report that certain planets trigger the issues more frequently, while others crash randomly during ship combat or dialogue scenes.
One of the most alarming reports comes from ResetEra, where user RedbullCola shared an error log documenting how often the PS5 Pro enhanced game locked up. Even worse, the crashes sometimes became so severe that the entire system would become completely unusable — forcing the player to physically unplug the power cord to regain control. After rebooting, several users discovered corrupted save files, losing hours of progression.
For a game that encourages 100+ hour playthroughs, corrupted saves are a dealbreaker.
Is Starfield pushing the PS5 Pro too hard?
The situation appears even more dire on Sony’s flagship console — the $950 PS5 Pro (in some regions, after price adjustments). Some commentators speculate that the game is overheating the system while rendering space travel or dense urban environments. A few panicked posts described sudden shutdowns with overheating warnings, though thankfully there have been no confirmed cases of permanent hardware damage so far.
Digital Foundry also pointed out the dizzying number of Starfield performance settings available. With so many toggles and sliders — from resolution scaling to shadow quality and ray tracing options — finding a combination that minimizes crashes has become a frustrating guessing game.
RedbullCola suggested disabling the updated PSSR upscaling feature in the PS5 Pro’s system settings as a potential fix. However, other testers reported that this didn’t solve the problem for them. At the moment, there’s no reliable community-proven solution.
Bethesda silent as refund requests pour in
Perhaps the most frustrating element for affected players is Bethesda’s silence. As of this writing, the studio has not publicly addressed the Starfield PS5 freezes or acknowledged the overheating reports. Fans are left scouring patch notes and Twitter accounts for any sign of an upcoming fix.
The lack of communication echoes other troubled launches, though some studios have turned things around quickly — Pearl Abyss recently released a performance patch for Crimson Desert that resolved similar stability complaints. Bethesda has a history of post-launch support, but the radio silence isn’t helping.
For more technical insight into the game’s performance issues on Sony’s hardware, check out this detailed breakdown:
👉 Watch the Digital Foundry Starfield PS5 Pro performance analysis on YouTube
Can you get a PS Store refund? Mixed results so far
Impatient buyers are now turning to the PlayStation Store’s refund policy — a notoriously strict system that typically denies refunds once a game has been downloaded. However, some users have reported success after escalating their cases and arguing that Starfield is functionally unplayable on their consoles.
Sony’s support agents appear to be making exceptions when presented with crash logs, video evidence, or references to widespread technical reports. But results are far from guaranteed. One Reddit user wrote that they were denied twice before a third agent finally approved the refund. Others have given up entirely, hoping for a patch instead.
If you’re considering a refund, your best bet is to document every crash, contact support immediately, and politely reference the known issues highlighted by Digital Foundry and community forums.
What’s next for Starfield on PS5?
At this point, all eyes are on Bethesda. A single stability patch could resolve the majority of these crashes and overheating problems. The fact that the Xbox version runs reasonably well suggests the core game isn’t broken — the PS5 ports likely need optimization specific to Sony’s hardware and software stack.
Until then, prospective buyers may want to hold off. The dream of exploring a thousand planets on PlayStation is still alive, but right now, that dream comes with a constant risk of seeing your console freeze mid-warp.
For ongoing updates, keep an eye on the Starfield subreddit and the ResetEra performance thread where players are sharing workarounds and crash reports daily.
Have you experienced crashes or overheating while playing Starfield on PS5 or PS5 Pro? Share your story in the comments below.
Base PS5 crashing getting out of hand, its unplayable
by u/ShogunRaw in Starfield