Todd Howard thanks the Starfield Reddit community ahead of launch and says he's "a long-time lurker"

Ahead of the Starfield early access launch this week, Bethesda's Todd Howard has thanked fans for their support and outed himself as a long-time Reddit lurker.

"Hey everyone! Long time lurker here," Howard wrote in a post on the Starfield subreddit. "A quick THANK YOU for your passion and excitement for Starfield. I can remember when this sub started, and as it's grown, your excitement has fueled all of us at Bethesda."

Howard went on to make a bold proclamation: Bethesda's fans are smarter than other gamers. "We like to say we have gaming’s smartest fans, and you certainly are," he said, adding, "Starfield has been a labor of love for us and the fact that all of you care enough to build a community around it means the world to us. We can’t wait for you to play."

As you might expect, the replies are filled with eager fans wondering aloud how they'll find the patience to make it through the next several hours before launch, and expressing their gratitude toward Howard and the larger Bethesda Game Studios team.

Starfield is entering a five-day early access period for those who shelled out for the the Premium or Constellation Edition of the game, and it'll launch for everyone else on Xbox Series X/S, PC, and Game Pass on September 6. 

Here's a guide to Starfield release times so you know exactly when you can dive in, and don't miss our Starfield launch live blog for up-to-date coverage leading up to the big day and beyond. We've also got you covered when it comes to Starfield Steam Deck compatibility, as there's reason to believe the RPG should run on Valve's handheld PC.

In case you missed it, a Starfield gameplay leak recently confirmed a brand new feature to Bethesda RPGs: ledge-grabbing.