A new design development update reveals developer Bethesda wants Starfield to be NASA-punk style, which is apparently more than a marketing ploy.

Bethesda are teasing their goal for the grandiose sci-fi RPG is to make it more “grounded in reality” and in a “future that’s believable.”

“Early on in this project when we were trying to establish the overall aesthetic of this game, we sort of coined the term ‘NASA-Punk’ to describe a sci-fi universe that’s a little more grounded and relatable,” says Starfield’s Lead Artist Istvan Pely.

He added, “We wanted a very realistic take,” he adds, “You can draw a line from current-day space technology and extrapolate from there into the future so it’s believable and relatable.”

Lead Animator Rick Vicens noted the entire team quicky embraced the term, as it was an easy way to quickly convey the look and feel they wanted.

“What’s really interesting is how much we all latched onto that concept,” Vicens said. “When you said NASA-Punk, the Art team could instantly take those two words and make them work.”

He added, “It was just the perfect term for our art direction and keeping everyone in same flow and working with a consistent style. For me, it just clicked. At the start of the project, I think that term was critical for us.”

In case you missed it, you can find previous trailers introducing the creative process behind the game here, the settled systems here and the first three world locations here.

As we covered in our previous report, Starfield will be exclusive to Windows PC and Xbox Series X|S, the first console exclusive game for Bethesda after the company was wholly acquired by Microsoft.

Starfield launches November 11, 2022 for Windows PC and Xbox Series X|S.