Todd Howard said Starfield was a much harder RPG pre-release, and this early Starmap reportedly found in the game files makes that even clearer

Bethesda Softworks.

On the heels of Starfield's launch, Bethesda boss Todd Howard explained that exploring space and dealing with planetary hazards used to be a lot more dangerous before the team "nerfed the hell out of it." A Starfield sleuth now claims to have uncovered an old version of the RPG's Starmap, and it seems to have shed some light on the more punishing game that might've been. 

First shared by Reddit user Redsaltyborger, this dated version of the Starmap – which is technically unofficial and could be an elaborate hoax, though that looks unlikely right now – closely resembles the final map at first blush, but it also contains a few significant features apparently left on the cutting room floor at some point.