HomeNewsStarfield
Bethesda’s new Starfield lore timeline leaves Earth’s fate a mysteryWill we beat climate change, then?
Will we beat climate change, then?
Image credit:Bethesda / RockPaperShotgun
Image credit:Bethesda / RockPaperShotgun
Bethesda have published a timeline detailing events in theStarfielduniverse from before the player’s arrival. The scrollable chronology, which runs from 2050 to 2160, charts the origins of the war between the United Colonies and Freestar Collective factions, who sound more and more to me like the Union and the Confederacy in the US Civil War. We’re also told about the formation of the Constellation organisation, a group of swashbuckling pioneers who are concerned with the origins of certain mystic Artifacts. And we get to read a little about a few keyStarfield characters, such as space cowboySam Coe, careworn ex-soldierSarah Morganand sciencehunkBarrett. But the timeline also leaves plenty of mysteries. Join me, as I make a show of poking around in the collapsing space-museum with my tricorder.
Starfield fans have predicted the worst for our precious green marble, calling attention totiny hints in certain screenshots. Has Earth become one of those far-future quarantine zones? I’m wondering if Bethesda will need to fully devastate the place for the more practical reason of not having to commit to a realistic rendering of familiar environments. Though I do kind of yearn for the opportunity to take the Constellation crew on a trip to my own birthplace, a creepy village in North Yorkshire. I bet there are Artifacts to dig up there. Perhaps they could just bundle Starfield with a copy ofMicrosoft Flight Simulator, with itshundreds of photorealistic cities.
The timeline also makes room for fresh speculation about Starfield’s overarching plot. You’ve got your principle factional conflict between the Freestar Collective and the United Colonies, which I’m guessing will diminish in significance as the role of the Artifacts becomes clear and some form of galaxy-ending evil reveals itself. Said evil might involve one of the game’s corporations, like fishing-company-turned-drug-peddler Xenofresh, the jolly buccaneers of the Crimson Fleet, or the religious zealots of House Va’ruun, who worship a big snake. Or perhaps the real villain was Constellation all along! Trust nobody, is all I’m saying.
You can read the full Starfield timeline onBethesda’s official site- just scroll to the bottom.Starfield’s Early Accessfalls on 1st September, withseveral editions to choose from. Here’s ourguide to Starfield character creationandan explainer for Starfield’s player background choices.
