Todd Howard recently spoke with GamesRadar. He discussed the Free Lanes update for Starfield, which made changes to the "New Game+" mode.
Previously, in the finale, the player had the opportunity to enter a new universe, but in doing so, they lost progress on quests, relationships with characters, and acquired property:
Unity was our version of 'New Game+'. It was a way to ask the player a strange but profound question that I don't think many understood. We were asking, 'Are you just a player trying to get everything you can, or are you willing to leave this world behind? How do you feel about your own choices – could you give it all up and start over?' Some of the pain associated with it, having to give up all your possessions, lose [relationships with NPCs], etc. – is supposed to make you feel all of that.
Todd Howard was inspired by the film "Edge of Tomorrow":
It's one of my favorite movies [...with Unity] we were trying to evoke the feeling of 'you're going to have to leave everything you've done behind,' but gamers seemed to perceive it as: 'I just want to go through the magic gate and get more power.'
As a result, the developers of Starfield decided to make changes to the Unity system. Now players will be able to keep some items thanks to a new device.