Starfield Similarities Spark Theories Of A Shared Universe With Underrated 2000s Sci-Fi Show

Summary Starfield draws inspiration from classic sci-fi media, including the obscure 2000 TV series Andromeda, for its universe, characters, and lore.

Similarities can be seen between Andromeda and Starfield in their focus on human-dominated galaxies and themes of warring ideologies and restoring peace.

While it's fun to theorize about a shared universe between Starfield and Andromeda, it's likely just a fan theory due to different timelines and the cancelation of Andromeda.

Starfield may unofficially share a universe with - or at least be inspired by - an underrated science fiction show. When it was first announced, Starfield was described as the first original IP to come out of Bethesda in over 25 years. And it is - it's set in its own, original universe, featuring characters, settings, and lore all its own. It obviously draws a lot from Bethesda's previous games like Fallout 4, and its sources of inspiration clearly don't end there.

Many of those inspirations come from classic sci-fi media. There are shades of Star Trek, and even Star Wars in Starfield. But the game also draws from more esoteric sources, like, for some odd reason, the novels of Charles Dickens. Some details suggest an even more unexpected potential inspiration for some of the characters, concepts, and settings in Starfield - and they tie back to a 20-plus-year-old TV show so obscure that players are only just beginning to notice them.

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Starfield May Be Inspired By The 2000 Sci-Fi TV Series Andromeda

Players Notice Similarities Between Sarah Morgan's Outfit & Andromeda Uniforms

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A Reddit thread by user YouHaveAccountName points out that Starfield's Sarah Morgan and the ship's crew in the TV series Andromeda wear similar outfits. Both are taken to wearing red leather jackets, although Sarah's is a textured zip, while the Andromeda Ascendant crew's are asymmetrical tunics. They also both wear blue accents - Sarah's in her T-shirt under the jacket, and the Andromeda crew's as trim on their jackets. Both also sport khaki pants with leather straps.

Andromeda premiered in 2000 on Canada's Global Television Network. Starring Kevin Sorbo and Lisa Ryder, it featured the crew of the starship Andromeda Ascendant, which exists in a time of peaceful near-utopia. However, the ship is caught in an event horizon, and suspended in time for 300 years. When it emerges, the crew finds the universe recovering from a devastating civil war. The Commonwealth Andromeda once pledged loyalty to has been destroyed, and the universe has plunged into chaos. With help from the crew of the salvage ship Eureka Maru, they set out to restore peace through diplomacy.

Andromeda was based on concepts created by Gene Roddenberry, best known as the creator of Star Trek.

Andromeda aired for five seasons prior to its cancelation in 2005. Contemporary reviews critiqued its one-dimensional characters, confusing lore, and lackluster dialogue, while praising its entertainment value. It was unfavorably compared with Star Trek in all of the above regards, and in the general similarities between both shows' concepts. Still, Andromeda featured some unique concepts, such as the Slipstream system of interstellar travel, and the rebuilding of a fallen utopia. It may not have had the same staying power as Star Trek, but it may have had a significant impact on other works of science fiction.

Starfield & Andromeda Have Many Similarities

Mostly Human Galaxies, Warring Ideologies, Restoring Peace

Custom Image by Katarina Cimbaljevic.

While the similarities between Sarah Morgan's and the Andromeda crew's outfits are the easiest to notice, they're not the only connection between Andromeda and Starfield. For one thing, both works take place in galaxies populated mainly by humans. Starfield's lack of personable aliens in favor of a focus on humans has been criticized. Andromeda features a few more sapient alien races than Starfield, but humans make up the majority of the Commonwealth population. Compare that to a sci-fi series like Star Trek, in which humans are the late arrivals to a pre-existing Federation of diverse alien species.

As a result, the conflicts in both Starfield and Andromeda focus on warring ideologies, not warring species. Andromeda does feature a human subspecies, the Nietzscheans, but as their name implies, it's mainly their ideology that sets them apart, not their physical form.

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And both Starfield and Andromeda tell stories of a galaxy shattered by civil war, and attempting to rebuild alliances and reestablish peace in the aftermath. In Starfield, that's the Colony War, sparked between UC and the Freestar Collective when the latter tried to expand beyond the limits an earlier treaty allowed. The war may be over, but distrust follows in its wake, making things like interstellar trade and travel difficult for sworn members of either faction.

In a similar vein, Andromeda takes place after the Second Systems Commonwealth Civil War. During the war, the Spirit of the Abyss, a godlike figure to the Magog race, destroyed the Commonwealth during the Andromeda Ascendant's 300-year absence. Peace and unity are distant memories. At least in the early seasons of the show, most worlds are hesitant to rejoin the Commonwealth, if they agree to do so at all. Overcoming this wariness and unwillingness to cooperate is a large part of the series' conflict.

Could Starfield & Andromeda (Unofficially) Share A Universe?

How Their Timelines Work Together

Custom image by Diana Acuña.

It seems probable that Andromeda inspired at least some aspects of Starfield. However, take that theory a step further, and there's no apparent reason the two can't share a universe. Starfield is set in 2330; Andromeda is set during a nonspecific period, thousands of years into the future. Starfield is set in the Milky Way galaxy, while Andromeda takes place thousands of light years away, in the furthest reaches of the universe. There's nothing in either work of science fiction to conflict with the other, and it's possible to draw a straight line between the similarities.

Most of Starfield's endings suggest that the Starborn's activities helped usher in a new age of discovery. It's easy enough to imagine UC and the Freestar Collective joining a burgeoning Commonwealth if the events of Starfield unite their causes. The Starborn also becomes a source of inspiration for all aspiring explorers, so it's not too much of a stretch to assume their companions might gain some renown, too. In that case, one could even theorize the Andromeda Ascendant crew's uniforms are based on Sarah Morgan's signature leather jacket. As a hero of early space exploration, it wouldn't be too surprising to see visual references to Sarah, even thousands of years later.

But of course, with Andromeda well and truly canceled, and Starfield an original IP, this will probably only ever remain a fan theory - the two timelines will never meet. Still, it's an interesting theory, and it's always fun to peer behind the curtain and find details that point towards a game's inspirations from other media. It helps put Starfield in the wider context of the sci-fi genre, making it part of something larger than itself.

Source: YouHaveAccountName