No Man’s Sky is a once-in-a-generation game. It went from being the most highly anticipated sci-fi title to the most talked about gaming fumble of all time due to its rocky launch, but then it transformed into one of the best games ever made thanks to its never-ending support and continuous polish. It’s one of the biggest redemption arcs in gaming, which is why I decided to play it again after taking a years-long break.
And that’s when I realized everything is just too overwhelming.
Don’t get me wrong, I love No Man’s Sky. I didn’t buy it at launch because I knew how much of a mess it was, but I did purchase it when the NEXT update arrived, since it was a complete overhaul of its systems, UI, content, and performance. I spent hours breezing through the Atlas campaign and building bases during the world’s darkest lockdown. It was the perfect game to chill and relax with while everything outside was filled with anxiety.
Unfortunately, once I felt like I had seen most of what its procedural generation could offer, I stopped playing. It was fun. I designed my own dreadnought, grabbed a few S-Class ships and weapons, and searched for a planet as habitable as Earth. I even tried building an underwater base, but I didn’t get much out of it due to a lack of resources.
Fast forward to 2025, and Hello Games just dropped another massive update for No Man’s Sky called Voyagers. It made exploration much better with the addition of a Corvette, your personal home away from home.
So I decided to play again, curious to see what makes this update great, only to be met with so many objectives that I couldn’t even remember what I was supposed to do next. I started a fresh save to see what had changed, and once I finished the tutorial, I was back in the final frontier, searching for a random planet to live on and mining resources.
What followed was a series of experiences that soured my return. What I remembered from years ago had changed dramatically. I even forgot most of the controls and how to effectively build my own settlement. At one point, I made the mistake of settling on a water planet and plunging into the abyss, only to be met with alien horrors. It’s not quite at Subnautica’s level, but the added underwater biomes really sell the atmosphere.
After that, I had to stop playing again. I always forget that No Man’s Sky is basically space Minecraft with sandbox elements. You’re left with so many things to do, yet no clear end in sight. Maybe the reason I don’t enjoy it as much anymore is that I don’t have a buddy to play with, or maybe I just don’t have the time to sink into sandbox games anymore.
Perhaps I should try out their Expeditions mode. Maybe that’s the true No Man’s Sky experience I’ve been craving.
For more like this, stick with us here at Gfinityesports.com, the best website for gaming features.