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Starfield cities offer some welcome respite to the vast nothingness that links the Settled Systems together. Each of them is brimming with culture, people, and stories waiting for you to uncover. These are hand-made locations that differ from the many planets formed using procedural generation.
The game has settlements of all shapes and sizes, with the four detailed below being particularly significant in-game. They’re occupied by a range of factions and colonies, from the enterprising Ryujin Industries to the Freestar Collective. For more information about these colonies, make sure to check out our detailed Starfield Wiki.
Starfield cities and locations
Starfield has four major cities – New Atlantis, Cydonia, Akila City, and Neon City. The Key and Red Mile appear to be notable cities too. There are other locations that players can explore to discover new side quests. Each city has been designed from the ground up to please both Skyrim and Fallout fans as well as newcomers. Let’s take a look at these sprawling cities, rich with people and information.
New Atlantis
Game director Todd Howard proudly describes New Atlantis as “the biggest city we’ve ever built. It’s kind of the capital of the game.” It’s a “true melting pot with citizens from every race, creed, and ethnicity.”
Located on the planet Jemison, New Atlantis plays a major role in Starfield’s story as the capital of the United Colonies and the biggest of the Starfield cities. This massive, tech park-like city also houses the headquarters of Constellation, the last group of space explorers devoted to exploring the stars.
Cydonia
Largely underground on Mars, Starfield’s Cydonia is a mining settlement. Lead quest designer, Will Shen, calls it part of the ‘old neighbourhood.’ With Bethesda deliberately picking realism over a magical approach for Starfield’s tech, Cydonia offers players a glimpse of a past and humanity first leap into the stars.
Akila City
Next up in the list of Starfield cities, we have Akila CIty. Described as a city for individuals of freedom and reminiscent of the western frontier, Akila City is the capital of the Freestar Collective. This loose confederation spans three distinct star systems. These people witnessed grievous losses during the great Colony War of 2310 against the United Colonies. They value the sanctity of personal freedom and protect it with their lives.
The city has a variety of people with murky pasts and potential redemption arcs. You may spot people from multiple Starfield factions. Be wary of the Ashta predators that lie in wait outside Akila City’s walls, mix between a wolf and a velociraptor.
Neon City
Filled with vices and unique pleasures, Starfield’s Neon City is one of the game’s major tourist traps. Its claim to fame is Aurora, a drug derived from a fish that has psychotropic properties and one that’s banned everywhere else. Neon City offers pleasures for the mind, soul, and body in Starfield. It started as a fishing platform before doubling down on its tourist appeal.
It’s teeming with sleazy and manipulative folk and is akin to Starfield’s version of New Vegas. Situated in the Volii System, the aquatic world of Neon City was described as a ‘pleasure city’ by design director Emil Pagliarulo in a teaser video. It’s home to the Ryujin Industries faction.
The Key
The Key is an orbital space station and the HQ for the Crimson Fleet faction. Old United Colony posters can be spotted here but the place is teeming with pirates. Though you can initially reach The Key without being gunned down, you’ll soon become very familiar with the station as you explore the Crimson Fleet quest line.
Red Mile
Situated on the planet Porrima 3 in the Porrima star system, Red Mile is a lesser settlement in Starfield. It’s a mix between a gladiator pit and a casino, housing the eponymous Red Mile, a daring and dangerous sport whereby brave space-farers must traverse a dead man’s land teeming with dangers will gamblers place their bets on who will and won’t survive.
And that covers the major cities and settlements in Starfield. We might get more information about other Starfield cities so stay tuned for the latest information. For more help on your galaxy-spanning journey, check out our Starfield tips and tricks, where to get Digipicks, quest list, powers list, and how to get the Mark 1 Spacesuit early on.
What are the 4 major cities in Starfield?
The four major Starfield cities are New Atlantis, Cydonia, Akila City, and Neon City.
What is the biggest Bethesda game city?
New Atlantis is the biggest Bethesda game city to date.
