Having not bought it yet myself (waiting for both a sale and adequate time to patch bugs), I do care about what both naysayers and diehard fans say about it. ... So I'm trying to glean basic pros and cons without spoiling anything.
I will try to give a few thoughts. Spoiler free. Hope they are helpful.
Right now the biggest con that I think would frustrate me personally is the NMS "You're always flying in a forward motion like a plane through atmosphere" flight model, which drives me nuts in a space game. I blame Elite, X4, and Space Engineers for spoiling me with 6DoF and FA-off flight mechanics. I really wanted Starfield to have more spaceship-based gameplay, but it sounds like a Mass Effect game rather than one of the aforementioned ship-centric games. That said, I loved playing Mass Effect, so I suspect I'll like Starfield when the day comes, but it definitely won't be replacing X4 or Space Engineers as my favorite "flying a spaceship" game, at least not without some heavy modding.
The spaceship element is not as thin as I had expected, based on other's comments. To be clear, this is not a game where I am steering the ship between distant locations, turning and flying around between planets.
But I am able to steer the ship between points in "local space". Throttle has an optimum turning speed band, and boost, like Elite. I can throttle to zero and float still in space, then pivot around in-place. I can toggle a sort of FA-OFF mode, where I can fly in one direction, and then pivot in-place to fire side or backward. Some of this requires pilot training.
Weapons (that I have) are a gimbaled type mount. Lasers cut shields, cannons and missile punch through the unshielded hull modules. There are also EMP type weapons which I've not used yet. With Targeting skill, I can target sub-modules and disable them with focused fire.
Things like docking with other ships or stations are just close within 500m and press a button. There is no manually trying to align or anything. Boarding and entering ships is exactly as I imagined. The enemy ship looses thrust when I take out the engines. The disabled ship can keep shooting, unless I take out the guns, too. Move in close, dock, and head in through the hatch.
Ship-to-ship combat has so far felt a bit similar to what can happen in Elite. Head-on pass taking/giving fire, then turn around and run again. Some ships are less maneuverable, and I've been able to get into a trailing position with careful throttle control, and hammer rear aspect fire into them. So far there does not seem to be much "drift" like when trying to turn a fast Cutter in Elite.
But yes, I have been a bit surprised that there is a decently large option for spaceflight elements. Over there is a ship or station where I want to dock. Over here is a ship that I need to combat first. I can fly and fight, then move back over and dock all in the same local space.
It's possible to put the ship into a low emissions state, and sneak fairly close to other ships undetected. Hiding behind asteroids seems to work, too.
I've also read that while Starfield mimics Mass Effect's gameplay in some regards, it lacks the "passion" of that game. I'm not talking about romancing, but rather the voice acting and general storytelling. Many reviewers say Starfield's presentation in this regard is "bland". To be fair to Starfield, they compare it to some games that I feel are "over the top" in their scripts and voice-acting (like Cyberpunk), so I'm curious what the fans of Starfield in this thread think about this critique.
I cannot fault Starfield so far on the story elements (so far that I've seen). I am personally not a big fan of "over the top" type characters, hubris type stuff, and salting every conversation up to make them feel "real".
IMO, the writing and voice acting is deliberate, and generally to point. There can be a bit more color if you pry a bit during conversations, which works OK for my preferences. The conversations seem decently natural, I think.
Yea, the faces and animations aren't Hollywood style full motion captured. But the animations work OK, IMO.
Story freedom thoughts:
With regard to the story elements themselves, I find them to be "pick up/put down" in a very relaxed way. So far I've not be railroaded into anything I didn't want. When a main story mission completes, I've got the option to say something like "I've got some personal things to work on" and just walk away. I can unassign the Constellation people from the ship crew, even VASCO, and just head out all alone if I prefer.
Exploration thoughts:
Exploration in Starfield is the most enjoyable space exploration in any game I've ever played. I spent 4 hours at a single landing site (no mission or whatnot, just me out landing somewhere), and still have not completed the planet survey. Some of that time was me getting sidetracked. But the play was (IMO) dense with activity and content. I will return to that same landing site again, since I saw another feature in the distance which I didn't get a chance to explore.
Moving between planets, there is a chance of encounters. Unless they are actively aggressive, I don't have to engage with them. Once down on a planet or moon, the exploration elements come into full. Locating and scanning not only flora/fauna, but also finding some caves, geological, and ecological sites.
The more barren worlds are thinner in explorable content, of course. But even so, I've found caves and geological discoveries on otherwise frozen over ice moons (this all aside from the mining resources, of course).
The exploration UI (overlaid on the left of the scanner HUD) is always clear what I've already explored, and what I need find next. It doesn't tell me where that next thing actually is located (or even what it IS), but that is exploration (IMO). Exploring to completion seems to rely upon me, making observations as to what looks new. The scanner only works for a limited range, and I can see things much farther. So the manual aspects of exploring, looking and observing, feel good for me. Is that a new plant? New animal? Go and see.
Exploring a surface comes with risks. Animals and plants of course, they can do anything from seem friendly/inert, to infecting me with some biologicals, to just trying to eat me. The sense of game-fear is real when I find a herd of a risky creature I need to scan. I can use my stealth skills to sneak up when a creature is at rest or sleep, I can do this and get away with my scan having never awakened them. Other times, I actively avoid an area where that same creature is active, because I just do not want to get into that mess right now. Increased scanner range has been a help for some sticky situations.
Even on barren worlds there is danger. Toxic gasses from geological features (get a helmet with good seals to reduce risks). Low/high temperature risks. Solar radiation risks. Careful gear selection based on my needs. Or make modifications to that gear before exploring that location, if need be (which can be done in the ship interior, if you're outfitted for it).
Crafting thoughts:
I can sometimes scavenge gear with special attributes, or I can find these in a shop (at a higher price than base models). Or I can modify them myself, mix and match my desired attributes. The resources for modification can be scavenged (legal), stolen (not), bought (hardware store). I am finding work benches for various modifications scattered through different places, as though every NPC in the game world also uses them. I have been able to use all of the work benches I've come across. No need to go home, or to any specific place to mod. See a workbench, even in an abandoned place, and I can use it (so far).
Sorry for the long post. Again, hope it's useful.
The rest of the session was spent learning the intricacies of the outpost system. No screen shots today… was to focused on what I was doing to take any. Did gain another level, though. 
. I tried space stations( I'm level 4) but there are some nasty beasties that kill you really quick so I kill the bad guys and run ( well sort of waddle because I have a collection of fire extinguishers and toilet roll ( British thing ). My ship is full Vasco is and so am I ... and that's after I sold stuff . Any one want foam cups ??
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