Rumor: Starfield May Be Adding Long-Awaited Ship Travel Feature

Bethesda might be working on a major upgrade to Starfield’s interplanetary travel—one that could finally remove the immersion-breaking loading screens between planets and star systems. While unconfirmed, newly discovered files suggest that a highly requested feature could be in development.

🧭 Players Have Long Asked for Seamless Space Travel

Since its launch in September 2023, Starfield has drawn praise for its expansive universe—but criticism has lingered over the reliance on loading screens when traveling between planets and systems. Many fans had hoped for real-time navigation, only to find that space travel was segmented by traditional transitions.

Now, fresh evidence suggests that change may be on the horizon.

🧪 Leak Hints at New “Cruise Mode” in Development

Modder Xtcrefugee recently discovered new references to a possible ship-travel overhaul in Starfield’sAugust 2025 update. Specifically, hidden within Papyrus Script Source (.psc) files, the code points to a new “cruise mode” feature—possibly designed to manage quest scripting and trigger in-game events during interplanetary travel.

This is a significant departure from Starfield’s current travel system, which renders long-distance navigation as loading screens rather than a continuous in-game process. While nothing has been officially announced, the presence of this functionality suggests Bethesda could be preparing real-time, seamless travel—possibly with an in-game time acceleration mechanic to offset the immense distances between celestial bodies.

Notably, one Starfield fan previously demonstrated that uninterrupted travel between planets is technically possible, though it took dozens of hours of in-game time due to vast space distances. With “cruise mode,” Bethesda might finally offer a more practical and immersive version of that concept.

🧩 Mods Already Offer a Glimpse of What’s Possible

Interestingly, the modding community has already taken steps in this direction. In May 2024, a popular mod called Astrogate introduced real-time, no-loading-screen travel between planets—gaining over 37,000 downloads on Nexus Mods. The mod continues to receive updates, with the latest patch going live in August 2025.

The existence of this functionality in the modding scene could have inspired Bethesda to experiment with a native version of the same idea, especially given the mod’s popularity and fan feedback.

🎮 Still No Official Word from Bethesda

As promising as this discovery is, it’s important to remember that Bethesda has yet to confirm any changes related to interplanetary travel. It’s likely that the feature is still in testing or early development, and could be altered—or scrapped—before ever reaching live servers.

Meanwhile, fans continue to await details on Starfield’ssecond major expansion, which has been rumored for over a year but remains officially unannounced.

If “cruise mode” becomes reality, it could significantly reshape how players explore the Starfield universe—finally making seamless spaceflight more than just a fantasy. For now, all eyes are on Bethesda to see if this long-requested upgrade will make the jump from code to cockpit.