No Man's Sky

One year after it release( update 1.37 by the time of this review) and is still unplayable.

Bad communication - Hours lost

No Man's Sky is, as many people are likely aware by now, plagued with countless problems. These problems range from numerous performance issues on even the highest ends of hardware, frequent crashes, and probably the most offensive, completely missing features. Gamers frequently mention how Hello Games champion Sean Murray never definitely confirmed the existence of certain highly desired features, but there are very well documented interviews and articles where he does indeed confirm player interaction, meeting other players in game, and even player versus player. Beyond that, the trailers are highly misleading. Content and creatures shown in the trailers do not even exist in game. They will likely appear later, as part of paid DLC with Hello Games has confirmed they have changed their minds and decided to offer paid DLC instead of free DLC. With all that being said, I had still kept my expectations fairly low in comparison to many members of the gaming community. I would have accepted the ability to fly around in space, then drop down on a planet to interact with the wildlife, shoot things, etc. But the performance issues, lack of interesting content on the planets, non-interactive wildlife, and overall lack of anything dangerous or interesting in this game combined with the dreadful inventory management confirms for me that this should have been a pass. This game firmly deserves one star, I would personally not play this game at $30, or even $10. If it was even the least bit optimized, I would consider buying it at $10. If the developer was anything more than the shady salesman selling snake oil I would consider buying it at $20. If the game had at least the player interaction as explicitly stated by the developer, $30 would be acceptable. If it achieved what we were lead to believe it would be and didn't run like absolute garbage, then perhaps it could've been a $60 title. But for now, it will be a testament to Hello Game's true personality. Pure trash.

The Good, it replaces Elite Dangerous (ED) which got on my nerves after I got my 'Python Ship'. It is easier to play, less draconian than ED and has planets right from the start and not as paid DLC. This is also the first game in a while that has kept me up 'till 1.30am two night in a row because I just want to explore 'that bit over there' and I am still on the the planet I started on. I have started the game 3 times and this particular start I now have 12 hours in game with 3 or 4 on the previous two, just learning basics. Little to no hand holding, just one man and his ship, which is quite capable for a starter ship and that is good too. There is also plenty micro rewarding to scratch the itch. You do not get killed and think why did that just happen and pirates don't attack you just because you are in space and 'a noob'. You can get killed and I did once but I did not lose everything I had just worked for as I was able to retrieve my corpse in the style of Diablo by finding my grave and robbing it! The Bad, I have no idea what technology I have learned. There is no repository for me to check. If i fill up all the slots on my 'mining tool' with tech, I may have discovered five new tech upgrades but I need to destroy one of the upgrades on my current tool just to be able to remember what new techs I do have. You can get lost in a cave, I did, literally for 3 hours and I abandoned that game as I did not have the 'terrain modifier' for the mining tool. The Ugly, The graphics are not immersive, I have no issues with frame rates on max settings it is just a colour thing and is of course subjective and I also think the point of view is too low, I get the feeling sometimes that I am a Dwarf... Notwithstanding all those comments, I am very happy with the game and I am sure that it is value for money for me, I have enjoyed wandering round just this one planet and will stop there until I get 100% completion on there. After that, I will just explore for the fun.

I see a lot of vitriol for this game in the reviews that I think is unwarranted. These are probably the same people who went over the moon about the game when they first saw footage, but didn't bother to read a single interview or article on it, and drew their own conclusions as to what to expect. The creators themselves said it would be divisive, and wasn't for everyone. That many would find it slow, and perhaps just not get it. However for me, as a fan of deep, science fiction mysteries like 2001, etc., I think it's just right. I'm not interested in death matches with my friends (there are other games for that), and I'm not interested in constant non-stop action (there are other games for that as well). What I did want was a huge universe to explore, a mystery to unravel, and an adventure of epic proportions. In that, the game succeeds. This game is exactly what the developers said it would be: A slightly quirky, old school science fiction adventure in a limitless universe. They said this many times. If some people thought it was going to be something else, that's on them. I guess if I had trouble running it I might be inclined to be less charitable, but for whatever reason it runs great for me. I spent five seconds adjusting the frame rate to 60 in the game settings, and viola, it runs smooth as butter. I have a GTX 970, I5 6600k, and an ssD for reference. If you have newer hardware, or some other configuration, then issues may occur. Pros: Massive universe to explore Well rendered graphics An interesting mystery to uncover An epic adventure across the galaxy and beyond Cons Could stand to be better optimized Somewhat tedious inventory management, and not enough inventory space Too many elements to keep up with in crafting Crafting items are somewhat generic Could use more story elements While far from perfect, this game is a unique gem, and truly next generation. Any game I find myself wanting to play all day at work is a winner in my book.