Summary
The Sci-Fi genre has been a staple of fiction for around 200 years now. In that time, a number of beloved franchises have emerged from the genre, encompassing just about every sector of the entertainment world from comic books to novels to TV shows to movies, and, of course, video games. And whileStarfieldmay be the most recent addition to the canon, it certainly knows it isn’t the first, and instead chooses to wear itsSci-Fi inspirationsproudly on its sleeve.
With over 200 years' worth of media already laid before it,Starfield- much like any other modern-day Sci-Fi property - had an impossible job of trying to remain original with its universe and narrative. And whileStarfielddoes a surprisingly great job of fashioning its own unique universe, it’s clear that it borrows heavily from Sci-Fi franchises that came before it, but rather than pretend it’s all wholly original,Starfielddecides to pay homage wherever it can, and its primary ship, The Frontier, exemplifies this, being the perfect love letter to the Sci-Fi genre.
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Starfield’s Frontier Ship Hearkens Back to a Ton of Sci-Fi Franchises
Plastered all over the promotional art and trailers,Starfield’s Frontier shiphas an immediately iconic look about it, and its bulky but sleek design perfectly fitsStarfield’s world and art direction. But right from the get-go, it’s clear thatStarfield’s Frontier isn’t just the game’s impressive-looking starter ship, but also a love letter to iconic Sci-Fi ships that came before it, with references toStar Wars,Star Trek,Firefly, and more all baked into its visual design, and the ship’s place inStarfield’s universe.
When players first see The Frontier, the characters they’re with loudly point out the ship’s age, with Heller remarking that the ship looks like a “bucket of bolts,” to which Lin replies that she prefers to call it “classic.” In just this short exchange,Starfieldimmediately links The Frontier withStar Wars' Millennium Falcon, with Luke Skywalker exclaiming that the ship is a “piece of junk” upon first seeing the freighter for the first time in the original trilogy.
But The Frontier’s references to other Sci-Fi ships don’t stop there. From the outside, The Frontier looks very similar toFirefly’s own Serenity ship. The hulking engines at the back, the almost animal-like neck and cockpit, and the bulky hull of The Frontier all look as if they’d fit right in withFirefly’s Sci-Fi-Western universe. On top of this, it’s also briefly mentioned that The Frontier is an old Nova-Class ship that isn’t really used or seen anymore, which is extremely similar to the Serenity, which itself belongs to the extinct Firefly-Class of freighter. When stepping inside The Frontier,Starfield’s influences change quite dramatically. Faced with minimalist bunk beds, desks, and computer consoles, The Frontier’s interior design looks as though it takes after Ridley Scott’sAlienand its retrofuturistic art direction.
But one of the best aspects ofStarfield’s Frontier is that players can customize and build onto it, letting players create their own homages to the Sci-Fi genre. Already, the community has produced a plethora of incredibly impressiveStarfieldship designs, most of which are modeled after other iconic Sci-Fi ships. So far, fans have created the Millennium Falcon,Knights of the Old Republic’s Ebon Hawk,Mass Effect’s Normandy,Halo’s Pelican, and evenStar Trek’s Enterprise and Borg Cube, and that’s just within the first week ofStarfield’s release. With an accessible and exciting ship-builder packaged in, Bethesda has given fans the tools they need to makeStarfieldthe ultimate Sci-Fi love letter.
Starfieldis available now on PC and Xbox Series X/S.
