First of all, when I speak of NASA realize that there are many organizations directly or loosely involved in the conceptualization, science, and virtualization of Starfield. If I start listing them I’ll forget someone and everyone a disservice. So, please think of “NASA” as  the space science organizations in the broadest sense.

Second, an physicist I follow, Professor Brian Keating, recently remarked about how science “infers“ much of its knowledge about the cosmos. I love it when a single word triggers something in my mind and connects it to something I’ve been thinking it about. In this case it’s how Starfield created a massive virtual galaxy with literally a thousand stars that can be explored. If you visit the starfield, you should be aware that a huge amount of the space-scape was created from the inferences from astronomy, astrophysics, and other scientific disciplines.

So, in every way this post is a tip of the hat to NASA and the vast corps of contributors to this game.

The Third Reason

I’ve crossed The Unity like other gamers who’ve become Starborn. I’m in my third New Game (NG3) and I’m in the process of taking the next step into NG4. However, I have many more concerns than the first time.

The first time I entered The Unity it was all about gaming and I didn’t pay attention to the elaborate details that Bethesda had created in order to make the decision a difficult one. I was a little upset that one of the main characters in the game, Sam Coe, had been killed. I was feeling a bit disoriented and ready to move to the Next Game.

Even then, I wondered if I really wanted to take that next step. I did and gained a lot of experience, skills, and leveled up a lot, but once there I disliked virtually everyone of my  allies at Constellation. So I went through NG1 rather quickly and without going full SPOILER… let’s leave this here.

As I said, I’m considering the step to NG4. However, this time I spent serious time discussing entering The Unity with each member of Constellation. I like the people I’ve met in NG3, they are much like the people before The Unity. I’ve been here for 14 levels and I’ve make great progress. I can imagine making this the place to begin building elaborate outposts, and grind out quests while I wait for Bethesda’s first of the Direct Linked Content.

Nonetheless, this past weekend I started to make moves toward entering The Unity.

The Lessons of NASA and Beyond

I encountered The Hunter and The Emissary once again. I don’t like either of these characters and what either of them are peddling. So, once again, I told them I would go to The Unity without either of them as I’ve done on every occasion so far. I’m stubborn in this regard. *heh* The next step for me was to return to NASA on Earth and learn what I could about why I should not got to The Unity again.

This is the site of NASA on Earth. Questions you may have about this location must be limited because this is an important discovery that you must make in the game itself.

The photo of NASA is packed with implications, and I’ll let everyone who plays this game make their own discoveries. However, there are some things I want to say that step outside the game a bit, quite a bit beyond what others might experience.

Once you begin the journey to NASA you start to realize how important that organization was in shaping this game. And as you descend into the NASA complex you may discover that you’re experiencing Bethesda Game Studios appreciation for NASA’s help. Below are some–NON-SPOILER–photos of the visitor area within NASA.

This is the visitor entrance at NASA. You begin to see one of the more elaborate and intriguing locations within Starfield.

There are many exhibits within the visitor center. This is just one view. I spent over two hours exploring every exhibit and I began to feel the awesomeness of the Starfield project itself.

This is one of the rocket engines from NASA’s Apollo program. I’m standing there in my Starborn outfit for comparison. Note: if you have ever seen one of the SpaceX Raptor engine used on Starship, you may have a greater sense of the power of these engines.

Some readers may feel that I’ve already revealed too much about this questline, but in fact nothing of great consequence has happened yet. Besides, I want the writers of Starfield to feel an acknowledgment for their storytelling brilliance. What follows as this quest unfolds is really intense, suspenseful, and an epic tale. BTW, I’ve heard other players acknowledge how special the NASA quest it.

If you are a gamer driven to complete quests, this kind of focus on the storyline may not be of interest. But if you are interested in the story and characters and game lore, I hope you’ll feel the power of those who worked to give everyone profound considerations and a decision process that may be different for every player.

Starfield Has a Profound Message

There’s a message in this game (a message in the classical sense of storytelling), and it looks at the progress NASA has made and the process of discovery. It is a message about the story, but also a statement of mankind’s quest to invent, explore, and move onward.

I think everyone at NASA should feel proud at what they’ve contributed. Bethesda owes you guys and gals a lot! I hope all NASA people have taken the time to explore Mars and Alpha Centauri and all the other systems in the Starfield. So, this brings me back to my earlier point. Starfield has provided a platform to explore worlds that have been imagined from what science has inferred!

Just sayin’