Starfield expansion Terran Armada coming this April alongside Free Lanes update with new planetary travel, Todd Howard says Bethesda knew "we needed to do something that affects the game flow on a meta level"

Bethesda has announced some big changes coming to Starfield this April, following confirmation that the RPG is finally making its way to PS5. Players across all supported platforms will be able to access two new batches of Starfield content that make some fairly significant changes to the way the original game plays – it's not quite the fabled 'Starfield 2.0' but it's the closest thing Bethesda is willing to develop.

First up is the Free Lanes update, which lands on April 7, 2026. This is a free patch that will fundamentally alter the core play experience. It introduces interplanetary travel within systems, unlocking a cruise mode for your starship so you can move from planet to planet. There are new resources and additions to the underlying economy of the game, an increase in weapon and ship customization, and a wider focus on POI and dungeon variety while you're out exploring. There's a lot to cover in Free Lanes, so you may want to read this article where we explore the biggest incoming changes with Starfield's lead creative producer Tim Lamb.

There's more coming on April 7 besides the Free Lanes update. Bethesda has also revealed the Terran Armada expansion, a premium story-focused DLC that introduces a suite of new locations, enemies, quests, systems, and rewards. Unlike 2024's Starfield: Shattered Space expansion, which focused on a single location, Terran Armada unfolds all across the Settled Systems – where you'll need to battle robotic forces and battle through deadly deep-space incursions.

Speaking to why the Terran Armada expansion is set on such a galactic level, Bethesda's executive producer, Todd Howard, tells me that it was the perfect compliment to the system changes introduced through the Free Lanes update. "Coming into Terran Armada, we knew we needed to do something that affects the game flow on a meta level."

While the Free Lanes update is free for players across PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X come April 7, the Terran Armada DLC is a premium purchase. Bethesda has confirmed that all existing Premium Edition owners on Xbox and Steam will receive the expansion at no additional cost.

And if all this Bethesda news has gotten you excited to return to Starfield right now, well the good news is that there's some new content waiting for you. If you joined the Trackers Alliance back in 2024, letting you role-play the fantasy of becoming an interstellar bounty hunter, then you'll find that there are five new Trackers Alliance adventures to play right now. Bethesda tells me that this expands the Trackers Alliance with new targets, contracts, and rewards – and the content is available to play for free should you have purchased the original pack. If you didn't, you can access the complete Trackers Alliance content set for 700 Creations Credits.

"There's more to come for Starfield": Bethesda says the Terran Armada DLC and Free Lanes update aren't the end of the line for RPG.