Barrett is the funny, kind, and lovable guy in Starfield who wears his heart on his sleeve. As one of the first characters you meet in the story, there is a chance you might fall for him pretty early on. But if you want to romance Barrett, you’ll have to fulfill some specific requirements first.
How to Romance Barrett in Starfield
Barrett is a prime option for players to romance in Starfield, not just due to his main character status as a member of Constellation, but also his unique connection to the player character. He is the first member of Constellation you meet and a major focus in the main story.
But to romance Barrett, you’ll have to wait a bit. You have to recruit him for your crew first, which requires you to beat the prologue, go to New Atlantis, meet the Constellation members, do the first main story quest, and then do the “Return to Vectera” quest.
After the completion of this one, Barrett will finally join your party permanently. To romance him, I suggest making him your active companion at all times. You have to also make choices he’ll agree with. Despite his laidback nature, he is surprisingly strict in his “good guy” preferences.
If you steal, lie, pickpocket, pick locks, murder, commit piracy, and do other illegal acts, he will constantly dislike them. If you plan to join the Crimson Fleet or do anything bad, I suggest sending him to the ship or Lodge beforehand, as he gets mad easily. But if you make good choices, such as giving money to those in need, helping people out, refusing rewards, and being a honest person, he will constantly approve. Over time, he will start to notify you that he wants to talk to you.
When this happens, always speak with him immediately. He will open up about his tragic backstory, which I won’t spoil here. The story itself somewhat makes romancing him difficult if you think about it, but the goal is to support and comfort him through his growth process.
As you learn more about his backstory, you’ll get the occasional flirt option, which sometimes comes at awkward times. That said, always pick these and you’ll start a proper romance with Barrett.
Starfield is available for the Xbox Series X and PC.