This Changes Everything

No Man's Sky has received a massive update that largely refines the core game, but it also adds significant mechanics that, had they been available at launch, probably would have significantly changed what people think of the game.

While I disagree completely with the criticism that has been launched against this game in the past, I admit that the game didn't have enough to it to keep me engaged for a long period of time. Though I still probably spent nearly 20 hours with it's release version.

This update positions the game not as the grand Star Trek-esque open ended exploration simulator for the universe, and instead encourages players to take time to develop themselves, their resources, and their environment. Now No Man's sky is more Mine Craft than Mass Effect, which is what I had expected from this game all along.

If anything, gamer's who have been enraged over $60, false expectations, and a distinct feeling that they were lied to should remember that the point of marketing is to get you to buy something. It lies, creates demand, sets false expectation, and shows products in completely ideal circumstances. The only thing that counterbalances is voting with dollars. Let's not forget that as little as a couple of months ago, people were saying this to the tweet Sean Murray—the head of Hello Game's studio—put out at the launch of the game.

Here's a few of the real tweets that were sent in reply to @NoMansSky on Twitter.

@offshore1997 @NoMansSky glad to see people happy with mediocrity and with untalented con artists.

— (／・ω・)／goofyloner (@azulcaboose) August 24, 2016

@NoMansSky totally focused huh?why does it take more than three weeks to fix a port? I want a refund

— jacob taylor (@rpgiedlsd) August 25, 2016

@NoMansSky Hey Sean, I got my NMS refund because your game is fetid trash. Also, you lied. pic.twitter.com/fM3B37QMFO

— Fat Fox Crimson (@Fox_Crimson) August 31, 2016

@NoMansSky you lost almost 100% of your players base. probably not just the biggest gaming dissapontment of 2015, but in gaming history.

— Estefano Semanate (@EstefanoSemanat) October 6, 2016

@NoMansSky its like u sold a car with just the tires. I can't use it whats the point? If I paid for a full game I wanted a full game!!!!

— Giulio Assante (@AssanteGiulio) August 25, 2016

@NoMansSky I hope someone will sue you and your studio to teach every lying developer a lesson about misleading audience.

— Alex Dobrolezhenko (@Gibson1993) August 24, 2016

So let's recap. The people angry at this game think it's trash, they don't think it's a full game, they want refunds, want them to be sued, and consider it the biggest disappointment in gaming history. We know no one in this list is kidding around, and that they think all of their feelings are legitimate. Though, I strongly suspect they won't give the game a second look, and if they do, nor will they take to twitter to heap praise on @NoMansSky for addressing things they consider to be issues. It's also entirely likely that the foundation update does nothing to make the audience who didn't like this game any happier. 

This all plays into what I consider to be one of the biggest problems around the marketing and launch of No Mans Sky. It became a dream of sorts. A magical product that people could dump their hopes and desires into. I'm sure if you asked ten people who were excited for this game the day before it came out what they thought this game would be you'd get ten different answers. 

The No Man Sky foundation update give me more of what I want and expected from this game. So if the patch intrigues you, I'd say it's worth it to keep an open mind and give the game a second look.