On the evening of August 12, digital sales of the PC version of the most anticipated game of this summer – No Man’s Sky – started. Read about how the project was accepted by the press and players who have already managed to play it on PS4 in our material.
No Man’s Sky is a space exploration game. The main feature of the project, according to the developers of the game from Hello Games, previously noted by the Joe Danger series (a casual variation of Trials), is the procedurally generated game universe.
From the first trailer, the developers promised that “every atom, leaf, tree, bird, fish, mountain, ocean, cloud, ruin, star, sun, galaxy, planet is procedural.” They say, thanks to this, each player’s gaming experience will be unique.
The creators talked not only about an open world for exploration, but about a universe in which, according to the slogan, the player will explore, fight, trade and survive.
Judging by the announcement, the game could well be called a mix of first-person action with a sandbox, where the user will have the opportunity to walk independently on numerous planets, study and fight with their flora and fauna, as well as load into suitable space vessels and overcome the atmosphere of celestial bodies without any loading, in order to take part in space in one battle or another.
The first screenings of the game to journalists confirmed the reality of the promises. Therefore, the main question that worried everyone before the release was not whether it would work, but whether it would be enough, whether the project would be interesting to play?
What does the press respond to this after the release of the game?
Gmbox praises the game in its first impressions, but notes that this project is one of those that either love or hate. The publication also writes that there is a monotonous grind in the game.
“The main actions will be repeated to the very center of the universe: collecting specific minerals – upgrading the hyper-jump engine – upgrading the ship – pumping the multi-tool – anew.”
Shazoo also notes the routine part of the gameplay.
“At this point, the game turns into an endless monotonous chiseling of the surrounding space. It’s good that the backpack is limited. And the eternal need to charge equipment ceases to fascinate after an hour of playing, turning into the same routine.”
The journalist of the publication does not give any specific assessment, noting that “in this boundless space you will be interested only if you want to find something for yourself.”
The first sensations of “Gambling addiction” are also restrained. The author of the publication notes not only the repeatability of the process when collecting resources and creating improvements, but also the loss of the magical atmosphere inherent in the first hours of the game. The publication also highlights the following:
“The main achievement of No Man’s Sky is that it makes absolutely insane scales work in its favor. In it, you begin to think that you will never be able to know everything — because there is too much around everything. But then you realize that everything around you is very similar, and the feeling of complete loss in the depths of the universe disappears.”
Some Western media are slightly less critical. Destructoid writes about not the most successful design solutions, like extra menus, also mentions routine, but puts a relatively high score, talking about the high adictivity of the game.
“Every time I scan the surface of the planet and see another icon, I want to go there. Or I think that’s enough for today, and then I see another icon again and I think that maybe there I will find a word with which I will talk to the Geek race.”
But on the pages of Gurdian, No Man’s Sky is downright admired.
“This game is a way to experience those cool moments that you read about in old science fiction novels: shoot a hole in an asteroid and rush through it, hide in a cave, waiting out a deadly downpour raging over an unfamiliar planet, or make friends with (almost) a dinosaur.”
However, on average, there are more restrained assessments. Today, the average press score is 69 out of 100 points on Metacritic.
The first assessments of domestic developers on Facebook are also without enthusiasm. It’s funny that many people compare the game with the Out There mobile project, also released on Steam. Recall that in the project of the independent French studio Mi-Clos Studio, the player had to reach his home planet by flying from system to system, in each of which he could extract resources from the planets all the time running out. The main challenge was to dispose of the available resources in such a way that they would last until the next “extraction”.
Console players, judging by the already mentioned Metacritic resource, are still very unhappy with No Man’s Sky. According to three thousand reviews, the project has 4.9 points out of 10. How the project will be accepted on PC, we will find out very soon.
In Russia, the game costs 1999 rubles, as on GOG.com , and on Steam.