Starfield's New Atlantis is "the biggest city" Bethesda's ever built

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"Not just in size, but also in the amount of custom art, crowds, and quests."

Starfield
(Image credit: Bethesda)

Bethesda says one of Starfield's cities is the biggest city it's ever built.

In the most comprehensive Starfield Direct we've yet to see, today's presentation from Bethesda included details and footage from ship customization to ship combat and a ton more, but one detail that piqued my curiosity was a bit about the city of New Atlantis, which apparently is bigger than any city Bethesda has ever built.

"As soon as you land in a city like New Atlantis your eyes are guided upwards to these boundless, vast buildings," said producer Maja Jevremovic. 

"It's the biggest city we've ever made, not just in size but also in the amount of custom art, crowds, and quests," said production director Angela Browder.

Bethesda is known for creating massive interactive cities to explore, from The Elder Scrolls 3: Morrowind's Vivec to The Imperial City from The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion, so it definitely raises eyebrows when the studio says it's gone and built its biggest one yet.

Some other impressive details revealed today include Starfield's flashy new lighting system that adapts to whatever planet you're on, and the decidedly Star Trek-like "space-folding" warp drive you can use to warp from one point in space to the next. Oh, and then there's this cool Starfield hoodie that leaked ahead of the showcase. Hey, you gotta keep warm somehow when you're traveling through space.

Starfield is due to launch on September 6, and there are a bunch of other upcoming Xbox Series X games we can't wait to get our grubby hands on.

Jordan Gerblick
Jordan Gerblick

After earning an English degree from ASU, I worked as a corporate copy editor while freelancing for places like SFX Magazine, Screen Rant, Game Revolution, and MMORPG on the side. I got my big break here in 2019 with a freelance news gig, and I was hired on as GamesRadar's west coast Staff Writer in 2021. That means I'm responsible for managing the site's western regional executive branch, AKA my home office, and writing about whatever horror game I'm too afraid to finish.