Starfield Terran Armada and Free Lanes Review

Starfield, Terran Armada

Is the new Starfield DLC, Terran Armada and the Free Lanes update worth jumping back in for? It has been a while since I have cruised through space in Starfield. I was one of the many that enjoyed Starfield when it initially released on September 6, 2023, and I spent over a hundred hours in game. Even though it wasn’t a perfect game I found so much to love and enjoy and I’m hoping that Terran Armada DLC and Free Lanes update does the same thing for me.

Free Lanes Update

First lets talk about the newest update which is Free Lanes. The Free Lanes update allows players to have interplanetary travel between planets in a star system. Along with this update Bethesda also added new locations, new encounters and new bases to explore. They also increased the variety players would have with encounters and interactions.

I was excited to experience the ability to travel between planets when I jumped back in. When I first started Starfield in September 2023, this is what I wanted. Your ship essentially has cruise control and along with autopilot this is a much needed and amazing new feature. You truly have the ability to cruise through space, and it may seem small to some but as a returning player I love it.

Another new feature that the Free Lanes update gives us is X-Tech. X-Tech is a new item that you can use to upgrade your weapons and suits. You can add legendary status and more to your weapons and other types of damage enhancements. Along with new weapon upgrades, you have new ship upgrades. One upgrade I was happy to see is that you can now add stealth to other ships besides the Starborn ship.

Free Lanes gives some fun quality of life updates to the game. This alone was enough to make me feel like jumping back in Starfield was worth my time. I loved shipbuilding and now that I can add stealth to my own ship, I might have the most unstoppable ship in the galaxy.

The Terran Armada

The Terrans are army, better yet and an armada! Yes, let’s get to the Terran Armada DLC. My review will be as spoiler free as possible. I really liked how the DLC kicks off with broadcast seemingly announcing the Terrans to everyone within earshot. Once the broadcast has completed, your quest has begun.

I really enjoyed the first mission where you boarded a luxury starship, called the Trident; where the Terran’s have completely taken over. As you enter the ship you will see that the Terrans have purged everyone onboard. Here is where you get your first taste of how powerful and strong the Terrans are.

During this mission, you pick up your newest companion, Delta. True to robot form, he’s an emotionless killing machine that has your back, or at least you think he has your back. Delta quickly become one my favorite companions. His calculating the outcome or telling me I’m wasting ammo when I miss shoots, was very funny to me.

As you unlock more of the story, you find about what the Terrans want and where they come from. I have to admit I liked the new Terran weapons and how amazing they looked. For me, this is where that new X-Tech came in handy. First chance I got, I upgraded both versions of their rifles and used them throughout my playthrough of the DLC.

You find out the Terrans are using their technology to cause incursions. This prevents ships in that area from using their grav drives. Part of your mission becomes gaining information and destroying the ship causing the incursion. Players get tasked with destroying the first 3 ships, which help with locating a vital person to the story.

A major portion of the DLC does revolve around you going to certain incursion spots and destroying ships. After the 4^th time it did get a little repetitive to me. Near the end of the DLC you participate in a huge dog fight and I absolutely loved that. You want to show me a good time, more dog fights in space and I’m there. However, the DLC did end on somewhat of a disappointment for me.

My Final Thoughts

The Terran Armada could have been a bigger threat, or at least I wanted them to be. While I highly enjoyed the story, the new weapons, new companion and other features, I wanted just a little more from the Terrans. During the last mission, it comes to point where I wish the story would have given you a different opportunity, maybe even the ability to join the Terrans as a new faction. I would have loved to see the Terrans utilized a little more because they felt like a big threat.

While I would have liked to have seen more from story of the DLC, I had a lot of fun jumping back into the world of Starfield. The new features that Free Lanes added plus the Terran Armada DLC, to me puts Starfield in one of the best states it has been in. With the mod community adding to it as well, you can get lost in this galaxy.