Starfield has long advertised its “NASA Punk“aesthetic, using sci-fi elements that still feel grounded in modern tech. It turns out that Bethesda nailed that aesthetic, as the European Space Agency has praised the sci-fi RPG for correctly mimicking NASA’s iconic look.
During an interview with Eurogamer, Emmet Fletcher from the European Space Agency praised Bethesda for nailing the look and feel of “grounded” sci-fi. While the game has a lot of strong sci-fi elements, the representative feels that the NASA Punk look “humanises” the experience.
"This is the aesthetic where you basically have worn and loved futuretech? Actually, if you look at some of the things we have, it's a little bit like that already," Fletcher told Eurogamer. "We have things that if it works, it carries on working. And there's no need to change it. It's about reliability, and if it's reliable, it carries on."
Bethesda worked hard to make sure that Starfield would be a realistic sci-fi RPG, even making a timeline that details the game’s setting. Although the game does have some more fantastical elements, the NASA inspiration is all over the game.
We’ve seen NASA Punk used in other media before, with Blade Runner being a major example. Most games tend to go heavy on the sci-fi but Starfield has managed to find a good balance between the two.
Obviously, it’s not all grounded sci-fi in the RPG, as players can go to various planets without lightyears taking place. There are also jetpacks players can freely use in battle, which is still far off from what they can do in real life.
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Starfield is finally available for fans who’ve purchased the Early Access version on Xbox Series and PC. Everyone else will be able to purchase the game on September 6.