I’ve coated No Man’s Sky a number of occasions lately on TouchArcade by means of the PC model on Steam Deck, Nintendo Change port, updates, and extra. Even in these latest years, it has been unbelievable seeing how a lot Hiya Video games has added to it, and forward of its eight yr anniversary, I made a decision to write down about No Man’s Sky as soon as once more masking what I like about it, the way it feels to play in 2024 in comparison with its launch, and extra.
This isn’t going to be an up to date evaluate of the sport proper now or something, however extra of a mix of why I like No Man’s Sky proper now, a visit down reminiscence lane, and the way it has felt having been there from the beginning, or nicely earlier than the beginning, as I’d already pre-ordered the vinyl soundtrack earlier than No Man’s Sky launched. At launch, I assumed No Man’s Sky was an excellent sport with nice music and a ton of potential. I might see the imaginative and prescient of with the ability to discover a world that felt like stepping right into a sci-fi ebook cowl, however it wasn’t there simply but as a full launch.
Again in 2016 when No Man’s Sky debuted on PS4 and PC, I ended up getting it from my import retailer on PS4 as a result of the Restricted Version I ordered was being shipped to a pal overseas and I couldn’t change that pre-order. Having already dedicated to purchasing it twice, you possibly can inform I used to be greater than excited to play it, and I did from day one. On PS4, I ended up taking part in it for about 15 or 20 hours and favored many points together with the exploration and music, however it wasn’t nice technically, and plenty of areas felt like they had been underdeveloped. I had my fill from it after a number of weeks extra of taking part in on and off. I nonetheless have the day one PS4 bodily launch, and I truly put in it with none patches on my PS4 Professional to see the way it feels right this moment in comparison with the massively completely different and upgraded model of the sport obtainable on trendy platforms.
Earlier than how No Man’s Sky has advanced over time, what drew me to it within the first place? Having an area exploration sport the place you probably might fly throughout planets seamlessly and discover at your individual tempo was very interesting. The procedural nature might’ve gone both manner, however that facet all the time had me extra curious to try to push issues and see if I might run into repetition or boredom. Making an attempt to hurry by means of the “story” early on would’ve been a foul concept. I nonetheless suppose taking part in No Man’s Sky to optimize or shortly earn some huge cash isn’t the best way to go. No Man’s Sky is a sport about exploring and soaking within the unknown.
The survival points have all the time been my least favourite aspect of No Man’s Sky, and Hiya Video games slowly allowed gamers to tweak the expertise as a lot as they wished. This made me begin taking part in No Man’s Sky extra throughout completely different platforms. With customized mode and even the inventive modes obtainable, I handled No Man’s Sky like a soothing expertise outdoors my principal saves. I used in addition it up each time I felt prefer it and simply probe for an hour whereas seeing all the things on supply on planets or simply flying round. I by no means acquired bored of it. Who knew how enjoyable it will be having 65daysofstatic music taking part in whereas exploring area.
One factor I used to see folks marvel is what you truly do in No Man’s Sky. At the moment, that may be nearly no matter you need. If you wish to comply with a guided path, go for the quests in regular mode whereas slowly increase your ship and character. Not a fan of fight, survival, crafting, and gathering? Play in inventive or customized mode with your individual problem tweaks. The draw of No Man’s Sky is all the time going to be exploring and discovering new issues, planets, creatures, and extra. It helps that the aesthetic and audio design are unbelievable throughout the board. Even with the procedurally generated points, I believe No Man’s Sky stays one of the visually placing and wonderful video games on the market.
Since launch, No Man’s Sky has obtained numerous updates bringing new sport modes, new content material, high quality of life enhancements, large visible enhancements, fight enhancements, added options, and in addition mainly reworked the sport right into a superlative expertise proper now. Having performed No Man’s Sky by means of nearly each replace, I assumed it will be enjoyable to revisit the launch 1.00 launch on PS4 and see the way it felt right this moment. Whereas the visible modifications and enhancements are instantly missed going again to 1.00, I forgot simply how significantly better the sport performs proper now in comparison with the launch model. I additionally forgot how there was no third-person mode again in 1.00. No fast entry menu was one other large loss, however I nonetheless discovered myself seeing what made me fall in love with No Man’s Sky again in 1.00.
No Man’s Sky’s PS4 launch day disc installs with a file measurement of underneath 4GB. I performed it offline so it wouldn’t strive patching whereas I used to be taking part in. Having then taken my console on-line resulted in a 19GB (or so) replace that introduced 1.00 to five.02 on PS4. You possibly can’t actually quantify the quantity that Hiya Video games has delivered to No Man’s Sky since launch, however it was humorous seeing that replace file measurement given what the bottom sport was. It already felt like a brand-new sport by 2017, however 2024 No Man’s Sky looks like a number of sequels and enhancements mixed along with delivering all the things I wished and rather more. The picture under is from the 1.00 launch on PS4 unpatched:
Other than the PS4 launch again in 2016 and thru the years, I additionally performed No Man’s Sky on Xbox One, Xbox One X, PS4 Professional, Steam Deck, PS5, Xbox Sequence X, Nintendo Change, macOS, Nintendo Change Lite, and Steam Deck OLED as the latest system. The workforce has in some way managed to convey the whole expertise to all these platforms except for a number of cutbacks on Nintendo Change for technical causes like multiplayer. I can’t recover from how good the Nintendo Change port is and the way superb No Man’s Sky seems to be on my PS5 and Xbox Sequence X, however the Steam Deck OLED is definitely my favourite platform to play it on due to the attractive show with HDR and skill to make use of the trackpad to intention exactly. Having all that on a conveyable is unquestionably superb.
Again in 2019, I purchased a Thrustmaster T.Flight Hotas 4 again when Ace Fight 7 was releasing, and I made a decision to strive that out with No Man’s Sky on Steam Deck. It truly works and makes for a humorous {photograph} as you possibly can see. I ended up utilizing it when taking part in on my Steam Deck dock on my monitor, and all of it works nicely. No Man’s Sky is clearly a really versatile and scalable sport that performs nicely on all the things I personal together with my MacBook Air. I don’t know whether it is possible, however cross development might be my solely actual need that hasn’t been addressed but.
After this month’s No Man’s Sky Worlds Half I Replace, there’s much more deliberate going by the video showcasing the patch. Sean even joked in regards to the variety of updates. Hopefully that turns into a actuality, however with a manner for us to present again to Hiya Video games as a result of No Man’s Sky is nicely past the present that retains on giving. Visually, No Man’s Sky is much more unbelievable now than it was a number of years in the past, and I can’t consider nearly all of that is even obtainable on older techniques the place the sport debuted. Seeing the Nintendo Change model dramatically enhance since its already spectacular launch can also be a reminder of how No Man’s Sky is a technical marvel on Nintendo’s hybrid.
Yet one more facet about No Man’s Sky value mentioning is the group on Reddit and Twitter sharing screenshots, anecdotes about expeditions, participant journeys, and extra. I like studying about different folks’s experiences taking part in No Man’s Sky for the primary time, or seeing how folks discover the sport now after taking part in it at launch. The workforce has in some way introduced collectively a really welcoming group that sticks with the sport all the best way, and it feels prefer it grows with every replace. One last item I’d like to focus on is TouchArcade co-founder Blake Patterson’s personal No Man’s Sky weblog.
In case you made it this far questioning what the purpose is of this text that isn’t a evaluate, I simply wished an excuse to gush about why I like No Man’s Sky right this moment, and what drew me to it again within the day to hopefully make you give one among my favourite video games an opportunity. With numerous hours put into it throughout platforms, variations, updates, and extra, No Man’s Sky went from an excellent sport with potential to one among my favourite video games ever by means of the years. No Man’s Sky’s redemption arc started in 2016 and ended a number of years after. It’s now nicely past that, and among the best examples of over delivering. The No Man’s Sky of 2024 is much past what I had ever imagined we’d see even in a sequel, and I nonetheless can’t consider all of this was added without cost.
Each time there’s a Steam sale or I see the sport discounted bodily on console, I ensure that to nudge some buddies to present it a shot. In its present state, No Man’s Sky has one thing for all types of gamers, and the varied sport modes make it so I maintain coming again to it throughout platforms frequently. I haven’t performed a sport that nailed area exploration this nicely, and I stay up for taking part in No Man’s Sky for a few years. Hopefully the following time I write about No Man’s Sky on TouchArcade includes the potential iOS launch that we’re all ready for. Till then, No Man’s Sky is one among my favourite video games ever, and it retains getting higher with every replace. Now give us a brand new vinyl soundtrack launch with extra music, Sean.
