The Starfield temple and spinning rings puzzle explained

Starfield Powers
(Image credit: Bethesda)

Completing the Starfield temple puzzle in the Into the Unknown quest is confusing at first as there's no real guidance, but these puzzle temples are a recurring mechanic throughout the game. That means you knowing how the puzzle works will save you a lot of time as you come across these temples in Starfield and, thankfully, the solution remains the same for every one. Getting to temples also requires you to follow the whole Starfield scanner distortions puzzle, though there's actually no overlap between those mechanics and temple puzzles, so I don't blame anybody for being a bit confused. However, having gone through it myself, many, many times, here's how to solve the Starfield Temple Eta puzzle below, and what you need to do with all those spinning rings.

What to do in the Temple in Starfield during Into the Unknown

Starfield Powers

(Image credit: Bethesda)

The Starfield temple puzzle you need to complete during Into the Unknown isn't explained, so here's the summary:

  1. As you enter, you'll start floating in anti-gravity and a spinning set of rings will appear in the middle of the room.
  2. You need to look around and find small flickering pockets of light that appear around the room. Only one will appear at a time, and they disappear after a few seconds and a new one appears somewhere else.
  3. When you see one, quickly boost towards it as fast as you can with the sprint button. If you hit it, a musical noise will sound and the central rings will spin faster.
  4. The time limit to hit these lights gets shorter each time you reach one, so you'll need to be fast. Still, you're not reset if you miss any of them.
  5. After catching five lights, the rings in the middle will spin and form into a single, unmoving ring.
  6. Fly into the ring itself to get your reward - one of the Starfield powers - and then spat out of the Temple.

This is a process that's worth remembering, as there are many temples across Starfield and you'll have to repeat this process each time. 

© GamesRadar+. Not to be reproduced without permission

Joel Franey
Guides Writer

Joel Franey is a writer, journalist, podcaster and raconteur with a Masters from Sussex University, none of which has actually equipped him for anything in real life. As a result he chooses to spend most of his time playing video games, reading old books and ingesting chemically-risky levels of caffeine. He is a firm believer that the vast majority of games would be improved by adding a grappling hook, and if they already have one, they should probably add another just to be safe. You can find old work of his at USgamer, Gfinity, Eurogamer and more besides.

Read more
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle Fountain of Confession
How to solve the Indiana Jones Fountain of Confession puzzle
Dragon Age Veilguard statue puzzle
The Dragon Age: The Veilguard Lighthouse statues puzzle explained
Dragon Age The Veilguard Warden Vault rook and companions standing in front of vault seal
How to open the Dragon Age: The Veilguard Warden Vault
Avowed Totem of Rightful Rulership in camp
How to find all Totem of Rightful Rulership pieces in Avowed
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
The full Star Wars Jedi Survivor walkthrough
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle A Game of Wits Mak-Yek board
How to get the Indiana Jones A Game of Wits Mak-Yek board game safe code
Latest in RPG
Cyberpunk: Edgerunners
Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk 2077 studio CD Projekt Red won't make survival games just because they're popular, but Netflix's Edgerunners anime is fueling dreams bigger than RPGs
Fallout 76 screenshot showing an irradiated mutant man-like creature screeching, its sharp canine teeth showing
After 14 years at Bethesda, Skyrim and Fallout veteran made his final settlement in just 2 days – but only because he'd made some rough ones before that
Asssassin's Creed Shadows kusarigama
My favorite weapon in Assassin's Creed Shadows is also the most misunderstood
Posing with a rifle in the Fallout 76 Ghoul update
Fallout 76's art director "had to fight really hard" so Bethesda would make the MMO's map bigger than Skyrim's
A Dragon Age character stares out against a blue background.
BioWare makes a return to Dragon Age: The Veilguard with a surprise PC update, months after layoffs and a seemingly final patch
Astarion from Baldur's Gate 3
"I believe in experiencing life and art through human expression, not software": Baldur's Gate 3 Astarion actor calls for proper AI regulation
Latest in Guides
Assassin's Creed Shadows Naoe wearing black kosode
How to acquire a kosode in Assassin's Creed Shadows and should you choose red or black?
A character's face in horror game REPO.
Best REPO mods to improve your matches with more players and new monsters
Assassin's Creed Shadows Mitsumune and Naoe
How to find Mitsumune in Assassin’s Creed Shadows
Assassin's Creed Shadows engravings
Best Assassin’s Creed Shadows Engravings for all weapons and armor
Assassin's Creed Shadows Naoe facing off against samurai warrior on red bridge
Does Assassin’s Creed Shadows have New Game Plus?
FC 25
FC 25 Dreamchasers tracker and full UEFA promo guide