What is different in Starfield’s New Game +

Ironically, there’s nothing new about the idea of a New Game + mode. Since Chrono Trigger introduced the concept, developers have tapped it time and time again to offer players an outlet for investing more time in their games beyond the end credits. Sometimes this is little more than a second playthrough with tougher enemies, as in Dark Souls, and sometimes it’s a different experience altogether, as in Nier Automata. Starfield’s New Game + mode lies somewhere in the middle. What is different in Starfield’s New Game +, and is it worth taking on after the countless hours it takes to finish the main game? Read on to find out.

What differences await in Starfield’s New Game + mode

The most interesting thing about Starfield’s New Game + is that it’s actually contextualized within the game’s narrative: something seldom seen in other implementations of the idea. At the game’s conclusion, you’ll be given the choice of whether to walk into the Unity, or leave and go back to your ship. Doing the former will cause you to wake in a ‘parallel universe’ (New Game +) as a Starborn, a semi-human guardian devoted to protecting humanity from the power of the Artifacts.

You’ll begin your fresh run with some snazzy Starborn swag, namely a full Starborn spacesuit and a Starborn Guardian II ship. You’ll also retain all of your Traits, Skills, and Powers, as well as The Frontier ship, even if you sold it in your original run. On the other hand, all of your other ships, items, credits, and outposts will be lost, and you’ll need to re-scan all of the planets you scanned previously as well.

Image: Bethesda Softworks

Once you get into New Game + proper, you’ll be greeted by the usual cast of characters in the Constellation Lodge, and you’ll be given the option to reveal the fact that you’re now a Starborn to them. If you do, you’ll skip over the main story and get right into a new quest to track down six Artifacts scattered across the cosmos. If you don’t, you’ll simply repeat the main story as normal, albeit with your new Starborn gear in tow. There are also some new characters and interactions to discover in the game world, including a second meeting with the Mysterious Captain you may have met in your first playthrough.

At the end of the new Artifact hunt quest, you’ll be able to enter the Unity again, thus beginning yet another New Game + cycle. Starting another so soon after the first may seem pointless, but it’s actually the key to the most interesting difference that Starfield’s New Game + mode brings: alternate realities. After completing a few New Game + cycles, the characters you meet in the Constellation Lodge will change. Instead of the usual Sarah and co, you’ll encounter companions you met on a previous run, new versions of characters you’ve crossed paths with before, or even clones of your own player character. These new encounters seem to be random, with different players reporting different ones, so every New Game + cycle is an exciting dice roll that could lead you to some juicy new content.

And that’s that: a full guide to what is different in Starfield’s New Game + mode. Given how mysterious the game is, and how many secrets it hides among its swirling starscape, there may very well be more to this mode than players have uncovered so far. But even as is, it’s a refreshingly diegetic take on the New Game + concept that you should definitely dive into when you can.