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Contents hide What is the Starfield research laboratory? What Starfield research projects are there? Pharmacology Food and Drink Outpost Development Equipment Weaponry How to unlock blocked research projects

The Starfield research laboratory is somewhere you’ll be coming back to again and again during your playthrough. It’s the place to go to get yourself the newest tech, so as you progress through the game, you’ll want to make sure you’re paying the odd visit to stay ahead of the curve and rocking the latest gear.

Before heading off to explore any nearby Starfield planets, you should grab a few of your best Starfield weapons to put your laboratory research to good use. We also have plenty of useful advice for the early hours of the game in our Starfield tips and tricks beginner’s guide.

What is the Starfield research laboratory?

The Starfield research laboratory is a station where you can research new recipes, technology, and mods for weapons, spacesuits/helmets/packs, aid items, food and drink, and outposts. At a research laboratory, you’ll find research projects that you can begin and complete over time by providing the required resources and items.

Once a research project is complete, you’ll be able to install the researched mods at a weapon, spacesuit, or industrial workbench, cook the researched recipe at a cooking station, or craft the researched aid items at a pharmaceutical lab, depending, of course, on the type of research.

You can have a research laboratory on your ship or at your outposts, giving you easy access whenever you need to start or complete a project. Additionally, there’s a research laboratory in the basement of The Lodge in New Atlantis and you’ll find more scattered across the Settled Systems in cities, inside buildings on planets, in space stations, and so on.

What Starfield research projects are there?

There are five categories of research projects that you can undertake at a research laboratory:

  • Pharmacology
  • Food and Drink
  • Outpost Development
  • Equipment
  • Weaponry

Pharmacology

Pharmacology research projects let you develop new aid items to heal your character or provide temporary buffs to stamina, oxygen, defence, persuasion, XP, and so on. Here’s what you can research under pharmacology at a research station:

  • Performance Enhancement 1
  • Performance Enhancement 2
  • Medical Treatment 1
  • Medical Treatment 2

Food and Drink

Food and Drink research projects unlock new food and drink recipes that grant various temporary and health effects. Here’s what you can research under food and drink at a research station:

  • Old Earth Cuisine 1
  • Old Earth Cuisine 2
  • Old Earth Cuisine 3
  • Beverage Development 1
  • Beverage Development 2
  • Beverage Development 3
  • Mixology 1
  • Mixology 2
  • Mixology 3

Outpost Development

Outpost Development research projects are used to unlock new items and equipment for your outposts, letting you expand and increase the number of things you can do there. Here’s what you can research under outpost development at a research station:

  • Manufacturing 1
  • Manufacturing 2
  • Resource Extraction 1
  • Resource Extraction 2
  • Decoration 1
  • Decoration 2
  • Horticulture 1
  • Domestication 1
  • Power Generation 1
  • Robots 1
  • Robots 2
  • Outpost Defense 1

Equipment

Equipment research projects unlock new mods for spacesuits, helmets, and boost packs. Here’s what you can research under equipment at a research station:

  • Helmet Mods 1
  • Helmet Mods 2
  • Helmet Mods 3
  • Spacesuit Mods 1
  • Spacesuit Mods 2
  • Spacesuit Mods 3
  • Pack Mods 1
  • Pack Mods 2
  • Pack Mods 3

Weaponry

Weaponry research projects involve developing new weapon mods and attachments. Here’s what you can research under weaponry at a research station:

  • Barrel Mods 1
  • Barrel Mods 2
  • Grip and Stock Mods 1
  • Grip and Stock Mods 2
  • Grip and Stock Mods 3
  • Optic and Laser Mods 1
  • Optic and Laser Mods 2
  • Optic and Laser Mods 3
  • Muzzle Mods 1
  • Muzzle Mods 2
  • Magazine and Battery Mods 1
  • Internal Mods 1
  • Receiver Mods 1

How to unlock blocked research projects

Fire up a research laboratory and you’ll likely see a few projects marked as blocked. To unlock a blocked project, you need to have unlocked the required skill or ranked up the skill sufficiently. Hovering over the project shows you what skill is needed under ‘Required Skills.’ For example, if you want to unlock the Old Earth Cuisine 3 research project, you need to have the Gastronomy 2 skill at Rank 2 or above.

If you want to know more about Starfield outposts, we have a guide for that. For more help on your interstellar travels, check out the Jemison Mercantile location, our Sabotage, Absolute Power, and Delivering Devils walkthroughs, a list of Starfield Akila shops and locations and Neon shops and locations, the best Starfield reactor, and the best choice for the First Contact side quest.

About the Author

Alex Raisbeck

Alex is a Guides Writer for VideoGamer. He is an indie gaming obsessive with a soft spot for Zelda, roguelikes, and Football Manager, as well as an unhealthy relationship with his backlog.

Starfield

  • Platform(s): PC, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series S/X, Xbox Series X
  • Genre(s): Adventure, RPG, Science Fiction, Space

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