All Starfield difficulty levels, explained

Before you can get started with your space journey in Starfield, you need to adjust some key settings. One of those settings is difficulty level, which plays a major role in your experience.

Like all Bethesda RPGs, Starfield features different options when it comes to difficulty. These levels range from a hardcore combat experience that will test even the most seasoned gamers to a story mode that focuses on exploration and narrative gameplay. Of course, the story mode still features combat, but enemies will be much easier. And, we can’t forget the balanced difficulty modes that offer a mix between the two spectrums.

All difficulty levels in Starfield

There are five different difficulty levels in Starfield. Each level affects the damage you take and deal out, as well as the chance you’ll encounter Legendary enemies (which are considerably tougher than normal enemies). So, for example, on Very Easy mode you will do more damage, but take less, and it’s rare you will come across Legendary enemies. On Very Hard mode, you will do less damage, take more, and will come across Legendary enemies more often.

Below, you’ll find all the difficulty levels, from least to most challenging:

• Very Easy (Story mode)
• Easy
• Normal (Most balanced)
• Hard
• Very Hard (Presents the biggest challenge in combat)

Which difficulty level should you choose in Starfield?

By default, the game starts you out on Normal difficulty, which is a great starting point for most players. I found that Normal difficulty presents a decent combat challenge, but the enemies who attack you still won’t deal a ton of damage unless they are a significantly higher level than you.

For most players, I think starting out on Normal is the best move. If you know you’re less apt at combat, though, go down one to Easy. From there, you can decide if you want to go a further step down or move back up to Normal if that level isn’t challenging enough.

Conversely, if you’re an RPG veteran, I suggest moving to Hard right away. This level will give you more of a challenge, but the early combat sequences still won’t require any kind of strategy. Moving to Very Hard will require you to plan every move and you have to pay attention to your surroundings at all times.

How to change the difficulty level in Starfield

If you want to move off the default Normal difficulty, you can do so at any time by visiting the Settings and then going to the Gameplay tab. Here, the first option is to swap your difficulty level.

This setting can be changed at any time, so if you’re struggling with a boss or encounter, consider moving your difficulty level down a notch. There is no penalty for changing your difficulty, so feel free to continue experimenting in Starfield.