Starfield Beginner Tips

Starfield is the first epic single-player role-playing game from the world-renowned Bethesda Game Studios in eight years. Few game launches are treated with as much excitement, but that's what happens when you sell so many copies of Skyrim. Starfield is a space-based science fiction extravaganza, brimming with stunning visuals, sounds, a captivating story, and seemingly endless gameplay.

It is the hallmark of every great Bethesda role-playing game, but Starfield can be quite intimidating when you're just starting to get familiar with it. In fact, there are many things to learn; you'll be piloting a combat-ready spaceship through the vast galaxy, and that's just the beginning of the story. Here's what you should know before taking a seat in that cockpit.

In A Scanner, Brightly

The Starfield scanner is even better than it appears at first glance - and it leaves a pretty solid first impression. Consider this thing as your best friend. From the moment you realize how vast New Atlantis is, to the last wave of enemies in the final story mission and beyond, never forget that this thing is only a quick button press away.

What makes it so great? Aside from the whole resource scanning thing and the way it highlights the numerous interactive objects everywhere, so you can distinguish epic weapons and credit stashes from coffee cans? The scanner also allows you to differentiate between the thousands of nameless NPCs roaming around Starfield's settlements and the hundreds of named NPCs who offer quests, provide important information, or may be connected to something you'll encounter later.

Furthermore, the scanner can also help you keep an eye on all those murderous space dwellers and violent misunderstandings you're inevitably going to encounter. It marks enemies in your field of view and keeps modest information about them, making it the perfect companion for your advanced targeting weapons. Make sure to upgrade your scanner early on to ensure its maximum usefulness!

Toggle Your Close-Up

Bethesda's role-playing games have never quite felt right in the third-person perspective, at least in our opinion. But Starfield is making some nice strides to make it work. That's great because what's the point of all that decorative, albeit defensively useless, clothing if you can never see yourself twirling around in it?

In addition to the two options for the third-person camera perspective, there is also a handy option in the inventory menu to hide your helmet in settlements and similar locations. If you have even the slightest interest in how your spaceship captain looks, you'll likely find it cumbersome to constantly put on and take off the helmet without this setting. Therefore, we strongly recommend it.

If At First You Don't Persuade

Starfield is packed with conversations where players can try to win people over. This is a staple of several Bethesda games and by no means an invention of Todd Howard - but it always adds a welcome layer of non-combat depth that helps enrich the role-playing atmosphere.

There is a lot to say about the persuasion system in Starfield, and we will provide a comprehensive report on it shortly. The point for now is that sometimes, if you fail a persuasion attempt, you can leave the conversation and come back later. This won't work in many story-relevant parts, including a lot of faction-related content, but give it a try whenever you're in less dramatic scenes, such as many side quests.

An early example involves Sergeant Yumi's assignment in New Atlantis, where you're tasked with mediating a dispute between former lovers. One of them seems to have run off with the other's ring. If you fail in your attempt to resolve things with the man, you simply say that you'll come back later, wait a few hours on a chair, and he'll be ready to listen to you again.

Hey, Listen

Take your time when you dock in ports. Many of the quests in Starfield offer multiple solutions, including listening to conversations of the residents as you navigate through the cities. Right from the start, you'll likely hear about a scientist located near a tree in New Atlantis, among other gossip stories.

That doesn't stop when you explore space either. People like to talk in Starfield, and it's worth listening. If you eavesdrop on NPCs having a conversation and it's something you haven't heard before, slow down so you can catch everything.

Put Down That Fork

Understand it. We understand it. The temptation to grab every plate, every digital photo, every pill bottle, every notebook, and of course, every weapon can be overwhelming. Except for ammunition, everything in Starfield has a certain value in credits, and who knows when you'll need another six genetic samples from aliens?

Starfield is quite brutal in terms of carrying capacity, although it offers more storage options than ever before. Almost from the beginning, you'll have a place to stash your stuff, a spot to unload all the junk. You'll have cargo holds in your spaceship, not to mention the ability to store additional items in the inventories of your allies.

All nice and true, and yes, there are skill points you can assign to improve your abilities, and there are stimulants and all that stuff. But it's still tough. Only take what you're certain you either need, will need at some point, can sell for many credits, or are sure will look good in your house.

That does not include the paper clip.

You Can Delete Your Parents

Don't be afraid to dive right into the attributes you can assign during character creation. You can add up to three of them, although the game doesn't force you to. There are pros and cons to each of these attributes, and in fact, the game lets you know that you can remove them later. But it doesn't say how.

It turns out that many of these removals are surprisingly easy, so feel free to experiment with the attributes. For example, if you take the "Childhood Stuff" attribute, it turns out your parents live in a nice apartment in New Atlantis. They're nice people. Dad gives you a gun, so that's something. On the other hand, you have to send them about 500 credits weekly to support themselves. How easy is it to stop doing that? Just tell them to their faces that you don't want to do it anymore, and uh, they're more or less completely out of your life.

Engage in conversations with doctors to get rid of the "Empath" attribute. Tell a prominent political representative of the UC (United Colonies) that you no longer really feel like a UC supporter. Everything is possible, so have fun and have no regrets.

You Wouldn't Download A Ship

Of course, you would. No matter how altruistic you want to present yourself in your role-playing options in Starfield, there are still some ships you can steal without real moral consequences. That's because these ships belong to malicious groups like the Eclipse mercenaries, the Crimson Fleet personnel, and the scum in space. Whether you board one during a space battle or find one while exploring a planet, clear out the crew, and the ship is yours.

In fact, you can do this very early on by adding a second ship to your name or simply selling it for a good amount of money. From the docking end of New Atlantis—which takes a while, just FYI—exit the city completely and follow one of the 'Unknown' map markers a kilometer or two into the wilderness. Some of the aforementioned Eclipse mercenaries are hanging around near a ship. Kill them all, and voila, another spaceship barely an hour into Starfield.