After stepping into the shoes of a junior operative of Ryujin Industries in the expansive universe of Starfield, the player becomes entangled within a web of lies. Somewhere within Ryujin is a mole who shared information about Ryujin’s Neuroamp to their competitor at Infinity LTD.
Ryujin Industries is an industry giant full of cutthroat employees, so it is only natural to decide between Ularu or Masako to lead the future of the company. Either way, the player will embark on a stealth-heavy set of quests.
Updated by Evan Schwab on October 16th, 2023: An internal link to the Top Secrets quest has been added, which is where the initial discovery of stolen and disseminated Ryujin research information is confirmed.
Should You Side With Masako Or Ularu?
After the events of the Top Secrets quest, in which the player learns that Ryujin corporate research has been shared with competitors, the initial decision to support Ularu or Masako begins to take shape. During the Guilty Parties quest of the Ryujin Industries string of missions, the player learns about the existence of a mole within the company. Initially framing Imogene, the mole within Ryujin Industries is actually Ularu Chen. With this information, the player will have their first opportunity to expose Ularu as the mole. Initially, it comes down to whether the player wants to inform Dalton, head of security, and Masako, the CEO, of Ularu’s betrayal. This decision could lead to some tough times — and, possibly death — for Imogene.
If an alliance with Ularu is desired, meet with her first instead of Dalton during the Guilty Parties quest after discerning that she is the mole. Agreeing to work with her will change the dialogue options for Dalton, meaning all fingers will point toward Imogene. Additionally, blaming Imogene is the first step in betraying Masako, too. Should keeping Masako in charge of Ryujin Industries seem appealing, speaking with Dalton first and exposing Ularu as the mole will set things in motion. This, in turn, sets in motion a large counter-scheme to catch Ularu with irrefutable evidence of corruption and betrayal.
Depending on whom the player initially chooses in Guilty Parties to blame, decisions will be different in later quests. For example, Dalton will replace the slate Ularu gives to the player to frame Drexler (and subsequently Masako) if she is exposed as the mole, removing information Ularu added to destroy Masako’s reputation. Otherwise, as the player installs the damning evidence on Drexler’s computer about his work with inhumane testing and murder, fabricated information about Masako will also be uploaded. When SSNN breaks the story, Masako will be framed as in cahoots with Drexler.
Ultimately, there is not a huge difference in rewards regardless of if Masako or Ularu is the CEO at the end of this quest line. During initial conversations with Ularu in regard to exposing her or Imogene as the mole, the player can barter with Ularu for more credits, but ultimately, Ularu just wants to run Ryujin, as she claims that Masako has lost her touch. Masako, on the flip side, has run a pretty steady ship and seems, at least in part, to care about the livelihoods of her employees. If completely torn on who to side with, consider the lengths at which Ularu is currently going to depose Masako. During Executive Level, the final quest in the Ryujin Industries storyline, the more important questions come down to whether Ryujin should purchase Infinity LTD or shelve the work on the Neuroamp — not with whom to side (though the final decisions are made here, too).
What Happens If You Side With Masako?
Should the decision to remain loyal to the current Ryujin Industries CEO appeal to the player, know that their loyalty will be respected. Companions like Sarah will also like a majority of the decisions following this path, as she tends to support the moral high ground. Siding with Masako begins during the Guilty Parties quest line when the player chooses to expose Ularu as the mole to Masako and Dalton. This decision will ensure that the proper actions are taken to keep Masako’s name out of the public sphere of corruption (Dalton will remove all the false information from Ularu’s slate that is intended to sabotage Drexler and Infinity LTD).
During the Executive Level finale, Masako will rely on the player to influence the board in their decisions on whether to purchase Infinity LTD and whether to keep or shelve production of the Neuroamp. Make sure to remember the fate of Camden Cho, who may have been fired during the Background Checks quest if the player decided to complete Nyx’s side objective rather than pay him the credits. This may throw a wrench in convincing the members of the board to agree with the player’s choices, so keep track of who remains. During the final meeting with board, Ularu will be fired and held in her office for a not-so-pleasant exit interview. In the end, Masako is pleased with and grateful for the player’s loyalty (as well as Imogene if she is still alive, which is most likely the reality if the player has sided with Masako) and rewards them with an office in Ryujin Industries as well as access to a randomly generated quest board.
What Happens If You Side With Ularu?
Siding with Ularu has some appeal if searching for a few extra credits, which can be negotiated when choosing whether to expose Ularu during the Guilty Parties quest. The most likely outcome if choosing to side with Ularu is that Imogene will be sacrificed to push Ularu’s plot forward (though the player does not need to kill Imogene, they may be doing her a favor by doing so and will also collect her unique outfit). When bringing the slate Nyx put together back to Dalton, visit Ularu first, so the blame can be shifted directly to Imogene.
She will either be ‘fired’ or killed, and Dalton and Masako will be none the wiser when Ularu double crosses them during the Sabotage mission. Ultimately, Masako is forced to step down as CEO, and Ularu replaces her. The player is still rewarded with the quest board and such, but they certainly will not hold the moral high ground.