Starfield's Settler Program Is A Lot Darker Than You Think

Under the exciting idea of exploring new worlds and enjoying total freedom, Starfield's League of Independent Settlers (LIST) seems like a great chance for settlers wanting a fresh start in space. At first, it looks like a helpful program that connects adventurous people with habitable planets, but things quickly take a darker turn. The initial excitement of escaping the usual life fades as the game reveals LIST to be more of an exploitative scheme aimed at taking advantage of people’s dreams of independence.

Players end up feeling like they are just part of a recruitment system, motivated to sign others up without considering their long-term safety. The story shifts from a heroic space adventure to a harsh reality, showing the risks and difficulties that await those who venture out with minimal LIST help. The game highlights that LIST’s neglect and lack of care turn what should be a liberating experience into a risky gamble.

LIST Is Introduced To Players The Same Way A Pyramid Scheme Would Be

It Sounds Like A Multi-Level Marketing Scheme

When players first encounter LIST in Starfield, it feels a lot like how pyramid schemes operate. They meet Phil Hill, a recruiter at the shady Broken Spear bar in Cydonia, who doesn't seem very trustworthy. This first meeting is more about selling an idea than presenting a real opportunity, highlighting the excitement of exploring new planets and becoming self-sufficient.

Right away, players are asked to recruit others, looking for people who are just a bit curious about making a change in their lives. They earn credits for each person they successfully bring into LIST and for surveying new worlds, which reinforces the pyramid scheme comparison. This approach makes it seem like the focus is on hitting numbers rather than building a genuine community, with little care for the newcomers' well-being compared to the organization's growth and profits.

Most players generally consider doing the LIST missions to be must-play quests in Starfield, but there's likely a reason it pays so much. Overall, the experience feels less like starting a new society and more like convincing new recruits to sell the dream to others. If the dreams are reliable and can be made from a solid foundation, that's one thing, but they're not. LIST is not the kind of operation that cares about its settlers, and that's alarming.

LIST Leaves Settlers Stranded And Does Not Care About Their Well-being

It's Bad Out There For A Settler

The League of Independent Settlers in Starfield presents itself as a chance for new opportunities, but it quickly becomes clear that they don’t care about the settlers they claim to help. While they market themselves as a way to achieve independence, they abandon any responsibility once people are on new planets. Their focus seems to be more on expanding rapidly than on making sure settlers succeed, which shows in the lack of support after colonization begins.

This disconnect means that settlers are often thrown into dangerous situations with little help or resources from the very organization that promised them a fresh start. The impact of this neglect is felt not just by those taking the plunge but also by others who might consider joining. As players explore the story further, it becomes obvious that LIST operates in a detached way, treating recruits and settlers as mere numbers, and the player is there to make sure that style of work continues.

A Typo Is All It Took To Hurt Settlers According To A News Report

They've Already Done Wrong

In the in-game news reports of Starfield, there’s a troubling story about LIST's operations that had serious consequences for new settlers. A simple typo in LIST's database led a group of colonists to a planet that couldn't support human life at all. It's one of those narrative backstories that is easy to miss but is well done overall.

This wasn't due to unexpected dangers or changes in the environment; it was just a careless mistake. This shows a shocking level of negligence from LIST. This incident highlights how little the organization cares about the settlers, revealing a significant lack of quality control and thorough checks in their processes. The fact that a small error could put hopeful individuals in danger shows that they prioritize profits over people’s safety.

This situation raises important questions about LIST's competence and casts doubt on their true mission, which should make players wonder if this kind of carelessness is part of a bigger problem. However, players tend not to put any doubt on this and are actively helping this organization find more planets to possibly hurt more people.

Starfield May Seem Advanced, But It's Clearly The Wild West In Space

The More Things Change, The More They Stay The Same

Despite having advanced technology and the ability to travel between stars in Starfield, the settled areas often feel more like the Wild West than a futuristic society. The League of Independent Settlers promises to help create organized communities, but things quickly turn chaotic. Settlers find themselves mostly on their own, thrown onto a planet with maybe a satellite for communication but little else. They must build their lives from scratch without much support.

There's plenty of big problems with Starfield, but this kind of storytelling is what players would see in Elden Ring. The player isn't told any of this, they're shown in bits and clues. However, it's gone overlooked, and one of the biggest differences between Starfield and Fallout is the lack of a karma meter. Helping LIST would make that meter go down because the player is complacent with the company they're actively helping.

There's little oversight from any governing authority, which creates a vast and wild space where the law often disappears, leading to opportunism and exploitation. Similar to the gold rush days, settlers face dangers from bandits and wild animals, leaving them to defend themselves. This harsh environment highlights how fragile society can be, showing that even in the future of Starfield, things can be difficult for those who are not in charge.