Starfield: How to Recruit Barrett

One of the most likable and fun characters in Starfield is Barrett, a main member of Constellation and one of the four fleshed-out companions. Barrett is kind, funny, and always ready to help out. 

Even though you meet him pretty early in the game, the game doesn’t let you recruit him right away. Since he’s not available as a companion right off the bat, players need to be patient if they want to add him to their crew. However, getting him on your team is worth it, as he brings a lot of personality, fun conversations, and useful skills.

To recruit Barrett, players need to go through several key quests. While he’s one of the first members of Constellation you meet, you can’t actually recruit him until after you’ve completed both the prologue and the “The Old Neighborhood” quest in the main storyline. 

At that point, players will be given three more quests to choose from. The one that leads to Barrett joining your team is called “Return to Vectera”, so focus on that first.

Vectera is where players first started the game, and going back allows them to rescue Barrett from a tough situation. He’s captured by Matsura and the Crimson Fleet pirates, but players can rescue him, sometimes without even fighting, if they have high persuasion skills. Once you save Barrett, he becomes available as a permanent companion, pretty quickly.

From that point on, he can be assigned as your active companion, placed on your ship, or even sent to work at one of your outposts. His skills make him handy in all these roles.

Barrett is also a potential romantic partner in Starfield. After recruiting him, players can build up trust with him by making choices he approves of. He responds well to “good guy” actions, and he appreciates compassion and thoughtfulness. 

He also enjoys lighthearted, funny conversations, so throw in a few jokes during dialogue when talking to him and not be overly formal.

As players get closer to Barrett, they will eventually unlock his companion mission called “Breach of Contract.” This mission involves heading to the planet Gagarin with Barrett to look into the strange disappearance of his ex-partner, Ervin. It’s an interesting quest that’s worth doing.

Finishing this mission not only deepens your bond with Barrett but also gives players the option to start a romance with him.

Barrett’s personality is fun and easygoing, but he also hides a tragic backstory that players can uncover by raising his approval and going through the romance quest line. 

He may not be a close combat expert, but he shines in other areas. His skills, like Robotics and Gastronomy, make him useful for crafting and certain technical tasks.

He is also very skilled when working with your ship, as his Starship Engineering and Particle Beam Weapon Systems skills can make a big difference in ship combat.

Is Barrett one of your favorite companions in Starfield? Let us know in the comments!