No Man’s Sky is almost a decade old, releasing 2016 initially and then for Xbox around 2018. Developed by Hello Games, it was initially marketed as being a game with procedurally generated worlds, meaning players are more than likely to always encounter a new planet with new flora and fauna, a near infinite amount of different planets to visit. The number of missions and storylines would also be something they touch upon, stating that they prepared a game deep in story and exploration. Additionally it also stated that there would be multiplayer capabilities on launch day as well.
Safe to say, none of what was advertised was available at launch and thus the game received major negative reviews with outlets making it clear the lack of the advertised features along with bland, repetitive gameplay. But this is one of those few games with continued developer support turned into what was initially promised by them. Everything from multiplayer, to a gameplay overhaul and updates that finally made it seem like the planets were truly different from each and not just at surface level.
What Is This Update Bringing?
Patch notes of Update 5.0 published on July 17th, 2024, start by stating the changes brought to rendering the sky and clouds improving their general definition and detail along with changes brought to rendering water surfaces across different planets. Players can now also set their resolution scaling from the settings menu, along with DLSS3 for the PC players with RTX cards.
But of course the main features being teased are these Bug Expeditions. In this new gameplay update players can band together to disinfect planets from their massive bug infestations in a custom balanced swarm combat akin to Hell divers 2 but in first person. Completing these missions will reward the player with rare materials which would help in crafting armor from the bodies of the insects themselves. Of course other than receiving rare materials players can now take trophies from the insects (their heads) to hang in their bases.
Along with this new mode players are going to get new planets to explore and this time there are going to be planets with their own unique environmental features such as some with gravitational distortions such as floating islands or sideways waterfalls. The patch notes also state that there are going to be sub-zero worlds, essentially worlds covered in complete ice and in stark contrast worlds that are complete deserts. No doubt fighting swarms of insects in anomaly ridden environments is an entirely new experience for all new players and old. They had added mechs in update 2.4 but they added a new combat focused mech this time for those wanting to make sure every bug is squashed.
Along with adding broods to eradicate, the developers are adding new species of flora and fauna and a combination of them both, as they showcased 4 legged, vine bodied animals to observe. The ability to customize your ships even further with the ability to combine different components to make your own unique solar ship.
There are a host of quality of life improvements and features such as:
- The docking tractor beam at stations now work more smoothly
- Reloading can be interrupted to switch to a different weapons
- Core technology can repaired from the main menu
- Refiners are able to be quick-filled with an entire stack of items.
Conclusion: A Redemption Arc That Never Ends
Hello studios did suffer at the start of No Man’s Sky due to what some would say is misleading marketing done on the game around 2016. Come 2018 the game received an overwhelming amount of updates on a routine to reach the state it was initially marketed as. Along with major updates that would almost always add new gameplay mechanics to play around with.
Update 5.0 is set to be their biggest update yet with so many features,gameplay and graphics overhauls that at this point it could be a fresh new game. Hello games did tease that they have been working on a new title for the last 5 years alongside giving regular updates to the games. It’s clear that the developers intended to deliver on their promises and then decided to keep continuing.
