Starfield has revealed new details and footage for tons of new features coming in its Free Lanes update, coming to the space exploration action RPG on April 7. Free Lanes will add many new elements to it Starfield that players have been asking for since the initial release in September 2023, and they won't have to wait very long to dive into the new content.
The Free Lanes update for Starfield was announced on March 17th, along with the news of the paid Terran Armada story content expansion. While Terran Armada will focus on a powerful new robotic threat and be filled with large-scale missions, Free Lanes will also add some new points of interest to planet maps, along with a bunch of features that make life aboard starships feel more natural and realistic.
Just days before the update's launch, the team at Bethesda has given players a sneak peek at Free Lanes via a new trailer, giving deeper insight into how many of its features will be implemented. One of the most requested features that players have had is the ability to freely travel through space, which many have found Starfields rapid system of grave hopping between planets to be less engaging than floating at high speed between different solar systems. New footage from Free Lanes showcases what many players first hoped to see, as a ship can be seen in the new cruise mode zooming past multiple planets at the speed of light. Players will also be able to activate an autopilot mode, allowing them to plot a course to specific points in the galaxy while spending time freely roaming their ships, and their travels can be interrupted by interdiction, combat events that will interrupt travel and force players into defensive battles against enemy ships.
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In addition to changes to Starfields planetary journeys, there will also be much more for players to do on ships and bases. The Ship Optimization Terminal will provide players with more in-depth ways to adjust and maximize the power flow to ships' weapons, shields, engines and grav drives, and it will arrive alongside a host of new ship upgrades. Additionally, Free Lanes will add some upgrades to bases, including the ability to distribute resources more easily through shared containers, and it will add a special orbital mansion in the form of Asteroid Manor.
Players should also expect upgrades to their collection of handheld weapons Starfieldas they are about to gain access to X-Tech, an in-game resource that allows players to re-roll legendary effects on equipment and upgrade not only their equipment, but also ship systems, beyond their previous capabilities. There will also be a bunch of new weapon skins added via Free Lanes, along with the ability to get special one-hit kills on bots. To take a page out Fall-out universe handbook, players will also be able to collect action figures to get new buffs, and items will be transferable via The Unity to better launch New Game Plus.
While they haven't been confirmed for Free Lanes, a collection of unique companions will be added Starfield through the Terran Armada, giving players more options when choosing a crew to sail around the galaxy with or staff their planetary bases. One character in particular now seems to have leaked through the new Free Lanes trailer, but whether she'll be able to be recruited without the Terran Armada remains to be seen. Players who fell for sassy goth NPC Muria Siarkiewicz when she applies for a job at Galbank may be in for a pleasant surprise, as the trailer appears to show her talking to the player character aboard a ship and recounting her passion for her former job working in a morgue. Additionally, players will be able to adopt a pet in the form of the mini whale, an adorable, palm-sized, eight-legged alien creature that can be seen wiggling around on the floor begging for attention.
- Released
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September 6, 2023
- ESRB
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M For Mature 17+ / Blood, Suggestive themes, drug use, strong language, violence, in-game purchases
