No Man’s Sky - PlayStation 4

No Man's Sky is an extremely disappointing experience, full of busywork and half-hearted survival mechanics. After visiting just a few different planets, I stumbled upon similarity after similarity. Plants use the same skins over and over again, just changing their color to match the new planets randomized color scheme. Creatures combine random bits of heads, legs, and body shapes, but feel more comedic than unnatural. Every planet is the same thing -- land, harvest materials, manage your life support, tools, and fuel supply (this is extremely tedious in the early hours and tethers players to their ship, rather than feeling like a massive open-world game), and then find an outpost to sell materials because of the game's poor inventory management. You can buy storage upgrades, improve your ship, find blueprints, and trade with alien races who have absolutely no personality, but for a game about exploring a massive open-world galaxy, it actually feels confined, small, and extremely disappointing.

It really depends on what you're looking for in a game, but I don't feel like this game was worth $60 to me. I know there are people who absolutely love this game, and there are also people who absolutely hate this game. I fall somewhere in between. I explored the game relentlessly for about 2 - 3 weeks after it launched, and then the content began to feel very repetitive. Although no two planets are technically the same, I began to feel similarities between them. From system to system, I would happen upon dead looking planet after dead looking planet, with 1 or 2 lush, vibrant planets every so often. The story was mildly fascinating, but grew tired after a while. All of the haters claim that the creators of the game lied about what it was, but I don't agree 100%. Just know what you're buying before you pick it up. I knew what I was getting into, my interest just didn't hold off long enough. I think you would be better served picking up a copy of Uncharted 4 than No Man's Sky.

If you are into more laid back, sandbox experiences then No Man's Sky is your game. Your main objectives are to mine and craft items so that you can explore the vast amount of planets there are. It's definitely a unique experience but for me I'd rather play a game with fixed objectives and a narrative.

If you're into exploring, or "walking simulators," as some reviewers call them, this is pretty much the pinnacle of the genre for me. I like the isolation, the exploration, and the (at times) aimless wandering, with the occasional hyperspace jumps to land on different planets. Technically, the game looks nice. The sound and ambient soundtrack are very well done, while the graphics are pretty decent for a procedural game. Traveling through space, encountering traders and hostile ships, as well as some space/time anomalies is where this game shines. I never bought into the hype, but I could tell from early accounts, this was the game I wanted to play. If you're on the fence, watch some YouTube Let's Plays and see if this is for you.

there is no way that this game is finished. after abut 15 hours of gameplay, i felt that i have seen and done everything. the game is very boring and unfinished. i really hope that more content is added in the future. this would have been a good purchase for 20$...not 60$.

But after putting some time and patience into it I see the beauty of this game.

I've given myself some time after buying this game to give as much of an objective view on it as possible. After initially feeling the hype of travelling between planets and naming hundreds of discoveries, I've come to the conclusion that No Man's Sky is an excellent example of what an exploration game looks like at the most basic level. No Man's Sky will likely only impress players that are drawn in by large scale, open world games. There are TONS of places to explore, but there really isn't much to those places to recommend continuing on. It's with that realization that I began to fall out of love with the game. I eventually stopped playing it altogether. The only thing that has stopped me from selling it is its incredibly low value right now. That said, I can't recommend this game. It's a disappointment at the very best.

the vagueness of the game and interviews led people to believe things and become disappointed. Thanks to GC and coupons I only paid $25. To so some even that would be too much. It is a SINGLE PLAYER GAME!!!!!!! You explore, mine, kill bad animals, feed friendly animals to find minerals, kill ai ships and sentinels. You can name markers, planets and galaxies. That is where the :multiplayer" comes in. other ps4 players can see you discovered and named things, that is all. If you didn't read online, you can be fully upgraded in Suit(48 slots), Ship(48 slots) and Multi-toll(24 slots) on the starting planet with about 30hrs put in. I did that without even reading about it. Te POINT of the game is reaching the center of the galaxy. If you're a Trophy hunter this game is Platinum easy. I'm not and this is my only platinum game. Recommending to friends is rough. For those I know like a good SP game, I still told em find it used or even wait for a sale. With the release so close to Madden and Deus Ex, It's just not worth it unless you have nothing else to do. The game is so uninformative, you don't get jack inside either.