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Day-one patches are the new normal
No Man's Sky will receive a massive day-one patch that adds a ton of content and gameplay elements to an already-humongous game. This would be just fine, except a few retailers across the nation started selling the game early -- it comes out Tuesday, but some people (including reviewers) were playing it late last week. The patch, which includes the actual finished game with all its bells and whistles, requires these early players to delete their saves and start over when No Man's Sky actually comes out. Developers at Hello Games wiped No Man's Sky's servers Sunday, and they're doing the same thing today. And there's nothing wrong with any of this.
'No Man's Sky' day one patch changes large parts of the game
Many gamers are all too familiar with day one patches that fix bugs or add features that didn't quite make it in time for certification or shipping. However, the first-day No Man's Sky patch will be... more substantial. Hello Games has revealed that the 1.03 update arriving on NMS' August 9th launch will make fundamental changes to how the game plays. Most notably, there are now three "paths" to follow in the game -- choices you make early on will determine what you see later. There's also a deeper trading system, new combat mechanics (such as a revamped on-the-ground aiming method and critical hit systems in space fights) and even new universe and planet generation criteria. If you're one of the few to have scored a copy pre-launch, you may be in for a shock.
Even Sony thinks that day one game patches are getting out of hand
Being forced to wait for several hours for a day one update to download takes the shine off buying a new game. What began as a way for developers to make some last-minute fixes has now enabled them to ship half-finished products and fix them long after purchase. It's become such a problem that even Sony's Jim Ryan agrees that the trend of massive, time-consuming patches has gotten out of hand, and is pledging that the company will "tighten up" its practices in the future.
'Halo: The Master Chief Collection' has a smaller day-one patch than expected
We have some good news and some bad news for your data cap, folks. The Halo: The Master Chief Collection title update that adds multiplayer and a few other things is now available for download. It's smaller than expected, too! But it's still pretty sizable; 15GB to be exact. It's 5GB slimmer than what was initially promised, sure, but depending on your internet speed it could be a time-consuming roadblock standing between you and your first killtrocity on "Sidewinder" -- if you're buying a physical copy, of course. In case you've made a digital pre-order, you can grab the patch right now should you have auto-downloads turned on, according to 343 Industries executive producer Dan Ayoub. You have to wait until November 11th to play it, naturally. You still have plenty of Sunset Overdrive on Xbox One to keep you busy until then, right?
'Halo: The Master Chief Collection' needs 20GB day-one patch
When the long-awaited Halo: The Master Chief Collection gets released next month, the first thing players will have to do is download what's estimated to be a 20GB update, according to developer 343 Industries. The day-one patch, which is required to unlock multiplayer and add other features, isn't particularly shocking when you consider that this a 4-in-1 title -- still, that's asking for a lot of hard drive space from users. "Our philosophy has been to give Halo fans the best possible experience and not compromise the quality or features of the collection," Dan Ayoub, Halo External Development's studio head, wrote in a blog post. "The result is that Halo: The Master Chief Collection will take up almost all of the usable space of a single Blu-ray (45 GB)." In addition, Ayoub let it be known that Spartan Ops, a co-op mode for Halo 4, won't be coming to The Master Chief Collection until December, which will likely disappoint a few fans of the franchise. But, most importantly, how do you feel? Let us know in the comments section.
How the internet ruined game consoles
The time it took for my brother to get our new Super Nintendo out of the box and connected to our television couldn't have been more than five minutes. I'm pretty sure we used the same coaxial cable connector that the NES before it used, though it's possible he was bold enough to forge a new connection dedicated to the SNES. The time between when he arrived home with the console box and a copy of Super Mario World, and when we saw Mario's astonishing level of detail, was extremely short. Open game console box, plug in game console, insert game, play game -- pretty simple. I'll never forget the yellow on Mario's cape! Today's kids don't have it so easy. The anticipation while waiting for holidays or birthdays or while saving enough allowance has turned into anticipation during firmware updates or software patches or mandatory installs, and all manner of nonsense. Even for those of us who grew up with PCs, the state of modern game consoles is a sad one when it comes to what's inside the packaging representing what the outside says. This is all the internet's fault, as most things are. I'm joking! Partially, anyway. It's really internet ubiquity that's to blame for game publishers and console makers leaning on day one updates. With most buyers living in places with relatively strong connectivity, games can launch without, say, multiplayer, and consoles can launch without the ability to even play games. It might sound nuts, but it's the story of the now-current generation of game consoles.
This is Sony's PlayStation 4 before the Day One patch
There's a funny thing about the next generation of consoles: They're all pretty much just dedicated game boxes at launch waiting for a Day One system patch. Sony's PlayStation 4 is no exception to this unspoken rule, which makes reviewing the console tricky business. If you're looking for first impressions on gaming, we have a post about that right here, and we'll have a full judgment of the angular console in our full, post-patch review later this week. For now though, wouldn't you like to know what lurks within the offline PS4's Dynamic Menu -- you know, that thing that replaced the XMB? It's admittedly minutiae, but it's all stuff you'll want to know when you first unbox and boot up the patchless PS4.
Your new Xbox One won't do much without the day one patch
Imagine it's November 22nd: You've got your shiny new Xbox One from the local games merchant, you've got it home, and it's time to video game. Aw shucks, the internet is out! But that's okay, as you've got yourself a physical game disc ready to go. Sadly, it looks like you've got yourself a $500 paperweight until your ISP comes back online. "Functionally, you will be able to do very little without taking the day one update," Microsoft senior director of product management Albert Penello told Engadget in a recent interview. We posed just such a scenario to him, and asked what we could do with an Xbox One out of the box. "Nothing. You need the Day One update," he said. We've known since June that the Xbox One would require such an update, but not how comprehensive it will be. "A lot of the apps come with the day one update because they wouldn't have even been done," Penello added. "You're gonna need to take this update. It's not gonna be really an optional thing'." Essentially, the Xbox One currently being manufactured contains a relatively old version of the console's operating system, and thus the need for such an update. That even games are unplayable may seem a bit extreme, but it's a measure of the system's software being updated until the very last minute. Fingers crossed your internet service is strong as we head toward launch later this month!
PSA: Nintendo Wii U day-one patch now live, includes entire online infrastructure
It's well past midnight, you're home with your brand new Nintendo Wii U -- now what? Well, you've got yourself a hefty firmware update to download should you wish to do anything other than play disc-based Wii U games. Say, for instance, you wanna check out Nintendo's Mii-based social network, Miiverse? You're gonna need that update. Or you want to check out the digital storefront, the eShop? Update. Browse the internet? Up ... you get the picture. The file download clocks in at just over an hour (at least on our retail units ahead of launch), and the install takes another five minutes, so we'd suggest you grab it ASAP before the rest of the world is trying to hungrily snap it up as well. Remember: your brand new Wii U can do literally nothing outside of build Miis and play disc-based games before the update, so don't go freaking out when your console seems to be missing a few key functions out of the box. And no, this doesn't include Nintendo TVii, which Nintendo says won't arrive until some time in December. We'll update this post with more specifics as we explore the update further, so keep an eye out! Update: The update includes, from what we've seen thus far, the entire eShop, Miiverse, an internet browser, and access to Netflix. Hulu Plus, Amazon Instant Video, and YouTube remain conspicuously absent, but should be available "in the coming weeks" (per Nintendo's update earlier this week). Backwards compatibility is also packed in the update, in form of the entire original Wii menu (which makes us feel like we just downloaded the entire Wii console to our Wii U -- the future!). The Wii U actually fully resets to launch the Wii menu, and can only be navigated using a classic Wii remote control. Kinda bogus, but it sure is nice having a full Wii built in to the Wii U. Update 2: Netflix is a separate download required (an update) for use.
