The top comment on the store, dated in Nov 2020 states the game has DRM on single player

"the associated quests leading to the void ship will only work, if you have registered the game online. That is DRM, on part of the single player game."

How is the DRM after 5 years? This instances still exist?

I never registered the game. The online feature of NMS only works when launched via GoG Galaxy (as stated on the store page below the system requirements section), though.
This is affecting "ventures", the quicksilver shop and the discovery services (where you can name the creatures, plants and planets you have discovered).

Beside this, NMS is working without GOG Galaxy by launching the executable directly. So no DRM, but you need to be online to use the online features *duh*

Well, parts of the game only work online.

I havent played the game in a while, but that was still the case the last time I played, and I have no reason to believe this has changed, because it has always been like that.

For example you cannot have a living ship unless you are online.

This is the kind of random blocks of content you may come across.

Personally I dont really care. You can play the game without the parts that are blocked by the online requirement, and frankly I think I'm done with this game anyway.

Hello Games only iterates the same things again and again now, adding more spaceship types and more multitool types and all that jazz, and are really out of ideas how to actually make gameplay more interesting anymore.

For example last time I played the game kept telling me I should start a city. A city means more tedious fighting with sentinels, which have become much more tedious to fight already anyway. Yeah no thank you.

I bought this game for its unlimited exploration, its unlimited improvement of your character and its gear, and for being able to build elaborate outposts with lots of functionality, including a freighter that can follow you everywhere.

Not for gross repetitive boring grinds like Frigattes and Cities or these "Explorations" that for some strange reason can only be played at specific times and if you're online.

I dont really need my games to be a job.

But it doesn't do that. You have hard limits on the number of ships and exos. Hard limits on frigates. Consequently, next to Hard limits on storage. The exception -- you can have tons of refiners, and each has its own storage. Up to three slots each, of course. Four if you plan ahead and only remove whatever output you need. Same is true for food processors -- 3(4) slots per. Hard limits on total base building components. Sure, 16k is a lot of parts, but it's surprising how fast that can add up.

I'm on my first settlement, and probably won't do another. Too much babysitting. Sure you can portal in and back to whatever you were doing, but I have a limited amount of play time, and that's not my idea of fun. Frigates I'll do again, just to see if I can do it right this time. Some of my initially "C"s are now quite a bit better than the vastly more expensive "S" I hired. Weird that the S class are the ones that now need an escort.

Most of the DRM,I don't care all that much about. Sure, it might be fun to take part in expeditions, but, again, time.

The biggest problem IMO is that time does not stand still for SP when you are not in game. It took me a couple months to get back to my settlement because of IRL, and lordy, lordy, what a debt it had accumulated. I'm now in positive cash flow, but it will take the better part of a month to clear the debt.

Thanks all, seems clear that it still have DRM

Err ... I said unlimited exploration and unlimited improvement of your character. I didnt say unlimited spaceships etc.

I typically had up to 3 spaceships - the startership with all necessary upgrades to jump galaxies, an explorer with maximized range, and a first wave exotic with high maneuerverability which was picked from douzens of drops once one has enough money to farm them.

I dont really see how one would need much else. Frankly the Explorer is a bit redundant now because Freighters are just so much better. In 3.x Explorers would have been much closer to Freighter jump distances.

About exocraft I really only use the levitating bike one. Its fast and can even travel over water.

Frigattes, I once did this annoying grind, and I grew tired of it quite quickly. Its especially annoying because you have to wait a day each time.

But yes you can basically optimize and optimize and there is hardly a limit to that. The freighter alone can be a ton of work.

As I said, I'm probably done with this game now anyway and have just lost interest. Last time I think I lasted 30 hours total, down from 100 hours that I needed before for a run, and 300 hours for my very first game. Anyway after 30 hours I just wasnt up for the grind to get my Freighter maxed out or whatever again. Been there, done that. I also had all outposts I really needed, though this could have been optimized further, and had hit maximum money, which by the way is a very small amount anyway.

I was talking with a friend and somehow the tech stations came up, and that I never check them anymore because a couple of them cop an attitude, and no one offers anything different. So far, anyway.

He said that's not true, that they do offer new stuff. Rewards for scanner data, for example. I take it this requires Galaxy, though? Is there any downside to just having Galaxy, and only running NMS through it from time to time, most of the game being still in single player, because, among other causes, for some stupid reason, you cannot remove other player bases and markers from the compass. Which makes that almost completely useless.

Well I understand everything works the very moment you have activated multiplayer once, except for the multiplayer stuff (missions, expeditions) which actually require to meet other people.

Again, I myself dont use multiplayer.