Developer Hello Games has made several updates to their biggest launch title yet, No Man’s Sky. While the game is technically still not out, they urged reviewers to wait for Patch 1.03.
Please be advised, there is potential story and gameplay spoilers going forward, so if you wish keep your slate clean, do not read further.
First on the list is the addition of three unique paths that are rooted in choices you make early on in the game. While no other details could be derived from the patch notes, we assume it there will be moral or practical decisions that affect factions, planets, and wildlife in the game’s galaxy.
Many terrain modifications were made in an effort to expand the experience and create truly unique experiences. Not just a outlandish metaphor, the universal algorithm was altered to include bigger biomes, adjusted galaxy shapes, and overall more variety. There is now a greater diversity in plant and animal life on the many planets that you can visit, as well as the night-day sky cycle.
Hello Games wants to ensure that the players witness memorable terrain that you will be excited to tell your friends about. Dead moons and hazardous planets have been increased to not be such a rare occurrence. More interestingly, Hello Games has added “geometric anomalies” to the game, which in practice means that occasionally you will stumble upon geography that goes outside the normal parameters of their procedurally generated world. Fans of games like Minecraft will fondly remember the first time they founded bizarre earthly formations that instill a feeling of wonder and history. This concept is incredibly important to a game like No Man’s Sky, so it will be particularly interesting to see how it plays out.
In addition to the world building, there have been additions to your interaction with things that are not rocks or fauna. Players will now be able to purchase a wider variety of ships. Star systems and planets now have individual needs that a player can capitalize on through interstellar trading. These changes are intended to deepen the depth of the trading system, and remove binary decision making.
However, combat still remains a plausible reaction in the game, and improvements have been made to space battles. Drifting was added to allow for more complex maneuvering, as well as critical hits for tactical aiming. Bounty missions will occur more often and with more magnified scope. Pirates will also appear more often depending on the quality treasure you haul.
There are more changes within the actual patch notes, so if you are interested in reading more, check those out with the link at the top of the article. Up next for No Man’s Sky: building home bases and owning space freighters. When those details release, be sure to check back to MXDWN for more details.
No Man’s Sky releases August 9th for the PS4, and for PC on the 12th.