New Game Plus is a feature in many games from the current year, and Starfield is not oblivious to that. The system allows you to continue playing the game on a new save while carrying forward all of your past progressions. This means unlocked skills and features. For the most part, the game stays unchanged, which means you will find the overall experience to be the same. In the case of Starfield, however, things change in an exciting way to accommodate the story themes in New Game Plus.
This article reveals what changes in the New Game Plus of Starfield, what you can or cannot do, and whether you should try it. This article is spoiler-heavy. So, unless you have finished the game once, we do not recommend reading through this piece.
How New Game Plus Mode Works In Starfield
You need to understand the game’s overall story to understand how the system works thematically. Starfield has some odd nineteen main missions for you to complete, which involves entangling yourself in various scenarios in search of the artifacts.
Once you go through all of the main missions and finally arrive at the Unity, you need to walk inside it. Doing so will complete your first playthrough of Starfield. From here on, you are reborn as an elusive Starborn. You know, the same group of people who were out for your and Constellation’s blood for collecting the Artifact. If you decide to walk away from the Unity, you will return to your ship and can explore the expanses of the universe in your existing game/ playthrough.
However, if you decide to walk into the Unity, you will be able to either play the entire game at your pace comfortably as a Starborn, or you can finish the main storyline by collecting the remainder of the artifacts within 90 minutes, finish your playthrough, and start another new game.
In short, Starfield’s New Game Plus is a time-loop across multiple universes. With each successive game, you are loading into another brand-new universe. And when you end your playthrough, you leave that particular universe for a newer one.
New Start at Your First Constellation Encounter
The biggest change to Starfield in New Game Plus mode happens in your first encounter with Constellation. It plays differently from the very first time you begin the game. Since it is a new universe, the outcomes play differently. While I managed to find a single outcome from my first playthrough, everyone has confirmed that the first Constellation encounter in NG+ has ten different variations.
In one of the encounters, Sarah Morgan, well, turns into a plant. This can change into a scenario where you meet your current universe self standing at Constellation, ready to embark on this space journey. In another instance, Andreja is a devout House Va’arun Zealot who wipes off every member of Constellation.
With each subsequent beginning, your Constellation encounter changes, as it is a new universe with different outcomes and timelines. You also gain access to brand-new dialogues as a Starborn. Outside of this, the rest of the game stays unchanged. You can grab the pieces of the artifact, recruit members from Constellation, track down the remainder of the artifact pieces, and end the game in 90 minutes.
Alternatively, you can play the rest of the game as it is till the end. You can romance your favorite Starfield companion, do the side quests, and finish the game again. Here are the ten confirmed encounters:
- Andreja kills Constellation with House Va’arun Zealots.
- The Hunter kills the Constellation members.
- Walter purchases a bankrupt Constellation. Is much more money-minded in this universe.
- Children play a make-believe Constellation, portraying the companions.
- Sarah Morgan is a plant, named by Noel after she retires.
- You meet yourself at Constellation.
- You meet various variations of yourself in Constellation.
- Sarah Morgan is the surviving constellation member, injured, with an evil you standing above.
- Cora Coe grows up and seeks revenge for you killing Sam Coe.
- Vasco is the only surviving member of the Constellation.
What Carries Over in Starfield’s New Game+ Mode
Naturally, one might question what you carry over to your progression to the new save. After all, that is the whole point of starting with a New Game Plus. In the case of Starfield, you carry over certain progressions.
If you begin a new save, you bring over every skill and power you unlock in your original save file. Your originally unlocked skills, like boost pack and grav jump proficiency, will still carry over to the new save. Starfield has no level cap on how much you can level up. Hence, you continue unlocking every skill in the skill tree in subsequent new game saves.
What does not carry over are the ships you discovered or possessed, the various best guns or resources you managed to procure, and every single planet discovered. You also lose access to the money you’ve earned in your Starfield playthrough. It also makes sense for all of this to not carry over. Since you begin an NG+ in a new universe, your progression resets, as you never discovered these items in the new Starfield universe.
Outside of this, you get a new Starborn spacesuit Astra, similar to the one The Hunter wears, and a Starborn ship. This ship allows you to bring over five companions and high energy distribution in the grav drive. Furthermore, with each subsequent playthrough, the name of the Starborn ship changes with a number suffix. For example, in NG+ 3, it is called Starborn III. Similarly, all future NG+ playthrough also changes your spacesuit design to look edgier.
Overall, there is zero downside to not playing the new game plus in Starfield. The only downside; your exploration data and guns can easily be fixed by replaying the title. After all, this is a massive game, and I’m sure you haven’t explored every bit of the galaxy. Moreover, you can always install the best Starfield mods to expand your horizons. Official mod support from Bethesda is confirmed to come next year, so stay tuned.
