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90 people found this review helpful
3 people found this review funny
Recommended
0.2 hrs last two weeks / 289.9 hrs on record (33.0 hrs at review time)
Posted: 13 Aug, 2016 @ 1:52pm
Updated: 22 Mar, 2020 @ 1:22pm

Update, years later!

This game exceeds expectations even from my positive viewpoint from when it released, and my consensus now is that you need this game.

/////

It's finally here! And I wanted to give my review, even though I'm really only 16 hours in and there's lots more to discover and do, I also think this game deserves way more than a "mixed" reaction.

The good:

  • The game runs pretty well, even though I'm on like a mid-range system with 8 gigs of ram, 2 gigs of gpu ram and a quadcore processor. I'd say I get anywhere from 30-50 FPS, which I don't think is terrible at all. I think that nowadays people are kind of spoiled when it comes to this aspect of gaming, considering 30 is absolutely fine and playable about 99.9% of the time.
  • The atmosphere beats other space themed games by far. The music is pretty awesome and the planets are really varied. There are some saying that all they've seen are the same iterations over and over, but remember, there are 18 quintillion planets and what you see is based on luck. You could start in a chain of systems with tons of dead planets, or a chain of system exploding with life. But here's a hint: If all you're getting is dead planets in your starter system, don't bother jumping to other systems, just start a new game and you'll end up somewhere new.
  • The survival aspects are at a perfect balance, in my opinion. I see some people saying it's really aggravating to have to manage all your systems but right from the get-go I never really had an issue with it? I just stay stocked on carbon, zinc, plutonium and thamium9 and I never have any issues. What would be cool to see is possibly the need to eat and drink periodically.
  • While kind of difficult to get used to at first, the flight mechanics become nearly second nature and are more intuitive, easier to control than Elite: Dangerous.
  • Trading, while not extremely deep, is exactly what I would expect from a space sim survival game, and amassing a fortune is pretty dang fun, although I'm still waiting for someone to sell their ship to me at a reasonable price lol
  • Combat, while obviously not the main focus of the game, isn't too terrible and if you find yourself in a position where you need to defend yourself, it's pretty simple. This will happen a lot if you're like me and you're always hauling highly valuable goods.
  • Space! After watching a bunch of PS4 streams, I was afraid that space would be super condensed in color with no opportunity for star gazing, but in the very second or third system I entered, I found a system that was very traditionally space looking. See my screenshots for an example. Overall I think it's well-done.

The bad:

  • One of the only things I really have any issue with is the fact that the menus feel like they were copy/pasted directly from the console version. I don't mind having to hold down a button to toggle things but I think it needs some optimization before it feels right on the PC version.
  • There are NPCs to talk to through this neat text-adventure/Mass Effect-esque system in almost every system, but I feel like there could be more in certain places, like in the bars on space stations. It would only add to the atmosphere.

Overall No Man's Sky is fudging great and, for me, exactly what I was waiting for.

No Man's Sky is terrific, maybe not a game for everyone, but I think after some tweaking this should definitely be game of the year. If you like space sims with survival aspects, you have no reason not to own this game.
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5 Comments
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WarCat 14 Aug, 2016 @ 12:34am 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTuB6LqE-KI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HefCxo9UVtA Game dont have 60 euro content. No thank you .. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2vgHOXeps0
upsetkiller 13 Aug, 2016 @ 2:52pm 
*why its not in my library? I pirated it and i come to the conclusion its a good Buy at a sale of 20-30$
upsetkiller 13 Aug, 2016 @ 2:52pm 
I thinik you need to compare 30 vs 60 fps, its a huge and major difference , and in a first person shooter it gets borderline irritating, so no they are not spoiled. The games optimization is far from perfect

I dont see how you overlooked the last gen visuals , mudane copy pastes of procedural generation and the unfinished feel to the over all worlds.

Mass effect npc choices and the diolouge tree was unprecedented, this is the same copy paste over amd over again. So its not even a comparison.

@leader of the shits given, if you like endless jumping around jts your cup of tea, but if you are expecting visual spectacles while doing relaxing exploration you will be sorely disappointed and forced to do mudane tasks just to jump one system.

All in all the game isnt worth the full AAA 60$ , its an indie that behaves like an indie and should he priced similarly.

Why its not in my library?
CMDR Nova 13 Aug, 2016 @ 2:19pm 
Glad to have helped :3
Leader of the Shits Given 13 Aug, 2016 @ 2:15pm 
Thank you for this review, I think you just reassured me right back into my purchase of this game that I've been wanting for so long.