No Mans Sky. A return to this game.

[Harrison]

Although this game is cross platform, and also on PC, I play it the most on Playstation so have posted it in here.

I started off owning it at launch on PC via Steam. As we all know it received a lot of bad reviews and disgruntled games. Personally I enjoyed it and played it a lot. It didn't deliver everything the developers had promised, but was still enjoyable.

Some time later the PS4 came up on offer at a really good price so I thought I would try it out in Playatation. And it ran really nicely and the controls utilised the PS4 controller well. Thy game had also seen a lot of development since its release and they have added so much new content and addition free expansions is unbelievable the level of support they havev given to this game. And all free to existing owners.

I finally got around to trying it out in the PS5 as I freed up enough space to install it. The PS5 version is again given away free to existing PS4 owners. It obviously pays very much the same as the PS4 version, but with gorgeous 4K graphics that do look stunning. It also b takes advantage of the Dual Sense controller. When you lift off f ex you get resistance on the R2 trigger, so you have to squeeze harder to perform the launch. Makes it feel like you are releasing the ship more and prevents you accidentally launching too.

The many expansions are now at the point where it feels like it's gained nearly as many possibilities as the X series, but not as complicated or complex. There are now finally multiplayer options, but I've not explored those as I'm more interested in the single player mission to try and compete the main game story.

Last October they also expanded thy game's difficulty settings. You have normal mode, which is the same difficulty as originally. You also have a new casual mode. This reduces the need to constantly item gather to stay alive, but you still have every other ability and the game still plays the same. I've restarted in this mode as I just don't have the time to grind resources. There is also survival mode, which makes it harder. You can also a permadeath mode, that's even harder, and when you die is game over. You also have creative where you have access to everything and can just build stuff. Much like Minecraft. Dunant got have an explorer mode where you are given specific tasks to travel and explore.

Has anyone else given the game another try? If you haven't in some time I highly recommend you do. The game is still very active. You see a lot of other plays ships travelling around. You can also dunt across full NPC settlements right up to cities and space stations. Its a very different game to the one that was first released.

[Demon Cleaner]

Like I mentioned in another thread I started it from beginning on PC, I like it but for some reason I have constant game crashes about every 30 minutes, so I have to manually save somehow all the time. But it's not a nice experience. I'm using the Steam version, so the game is always up to date.

[J T]

I bought a pre-owned copy from a game shop but don't think I ever got round to trying it. The idea of a Space explore-y kind of game does appeal to me but I'm also put off by the faact that I'm time poor and also less likely to stick with things if they aren't instantly gratifying.

No Mans Sky does sound really cool though

[Harrison]

@JT. The recent updates to the game's difficulty settings should help. As I mentioned above the new casual mode removes the constant need to micromanage the health of your character. You can now just explore, collect, craft, discover new worlds etc.

It's even out on the Switch now, although I'm not sure how well it would run on that compared to more powerful systems.

[Harrison]

I forgot to mention before that in the last big update they also overhauled the game’s UI, making it far more accessible. This was one of the first things I noticed when I installed the PS5 version and started a new game from the beginning. It's far easier to navigate the menus now and far less confusing to work out what you need to do.

There are also new lifeforms added, including giant insects, massive sandworms, and planets full of robotic lifeforms roaming the wilds. This really adds to a planet's feel as it brings it to life.

There are also new environmental hazards like lightning, tornados, and even volcanos that can erupt. This hostile weather can also set the landscape on fire, making travel more harrowing and challenging. I noticed the weather instantly when I restarted the game on PS5 this week and had to think of I just hadn't remembered it. I didn't know about the weather being a new additions. But then I suddenly got a warning about a storm appoaching and needing to find shelter such as a building or cave. Thinking this seems a little dramatic I was near my ship so got in and watched from thy cockpit. Suddenly the sky got darker and the planets and stars faded as the clouds grew. Then massive lightning storms appeared and started to strike the ground. The toxicity level shot up from 65% to 150%. After watching for a few minutes I got the alert that it was clearing and the sky started to clear and everything calmed down again. Not yet sure on the benefit of this being added to thy game, but if nothing else it adds a bit for realism and looks cool.

Can't wait to start exploring some of the other stuff since I really had time to play it last. Especially want to find some of the larger cities and spacestations.

Over the years they have added so much such as base building, vehicles, stargate like portals, an overhauled main story, procedural missions, expanded trade system and economics, Freighters, Multiplayer, underwater bases and submarines, Community missions, big update to NPCs, your own Mech, abandoned space wrecks you can explore, pets and creature breading, pirates, NPC recruitable wingmen and Squadrons,

[Harrison]

My next plan is to finally install it on the Steam Deck and test it out. It's shown as fully compatible in Steam and I'm looking forward to seeing how well it runs.

With all the additions and updates there is so much to do now that I think it easily surpasses Elite Dangerous. That has a big edge in terms of ship variety and customisation, plus realistic physics and exploration. But No Mans Sky has a far more fun feel to it and finally feels like a living universe. Elite does take things very seriously, although I do like that too.

[J T]

E was too serious and dry for me, and it did feel a bit cold and lifeless (which I suppose is how space is) and didn't hook me in.

Readings your descriptions makes NMS sound like a pretty cool experience. I'd quite like to explore some things