Bethesda has shared new information about Starfield with the public, discussing the companions that you can recruit for your crew.
Where does the information come from? Bethesda held a Q&A session on August 16 on the official Discord server of the development studio, during which developers Will Shen and Emil Pagliarulo answered 16 questions about Starfield. Shortly before, Bethesda also announced that Starfield had reached gold status and revealed the start for the preload.
What did the devs say about the companions? Bethesda revealed in the Q&A that there are over 20 named companions in Starfield who can join your crew. Each of these named characters has their own backstory, which you will learn more about as you progress on your journey.
The members of your crew accompany you in exploring space, follow you when you explore planets, and can even carry your items.
There are over 20 named characters who can join your crew. Four of them are from Constellation and have the most story and interaction with the player, but all named characters have their own background and can follow you (and carry your items).
Will Shen, developer at Bethesda via Discord
In general, companions have enjoyed a high priority at Bethesda, as stated in the Q&A. Some of them are directly linked to the story of the game and have “really big moments,” Emil Pagliarulo added.
Moreover, it is possible to form relationships with some of these characters, such as the space cowboy Sam Coe.
What else did the developers say about the companions? Your companions can not only carry your items, but you can also assign your crew members to an outpost and have them perform specific tasks there.
Additionally, the developers announced that you only need to pay a crew member once when you have them work at an outpost.
Furthermore, your companions come with predefined perk ranks that you cannot level up, the developers revealed. What rank a character has in a particular perk depends on the individual. One is better with weapons and provides good support in combat, while another is an asset for upgrading your ship.
In the Q&A session on August 16, Bethesda also spoke about housing in cities as well as possible stays in a prison:
Starfield offers more than expected: You should be able to buy houses and land in prison
