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'Beyond’ delivers the ‘No Man’s Sky’ experience I was waiting for
If there was ever a game that rode its hype train off a cliff, it's No Man's Sky, which burned bright right up until the moment people got to play it. From a jaw-dropping announcement at E3 2014, it was clear that the infinite, procedurally generated game promised a lot.
‘No Man’s Sky Beyond’ trailer reveals expanded multiplayer and VR
Players can get their first look at the world of No Man's Sky: Beyond, the long-awaited update to the popular space exploration franchise. Hello Games just released the first trailer for Beyond, which will include even more MMO-style gameplay and support for VR. After last summer's Next set the stage for what multiplayer mode and shifting perspectives could bring to the game, expectations have been high.
'No Man's Sky VR' arrives August 14th with 'Beyond' update
No Man's Sky has won over many players after its rough launch, thanks in large part to a string of major updates that brought long-awaited features to the game. The next big release, No Man's Sky: Beyond, was revealed several months ago, and now Hello Games says it'll be available August 14th.
'No Man's Sky VR' is the purest way to explore the universe
There's been at least one moment in the past year when Sean Murray, the creator of No Man's Sky, has been seated around an awards-ceremony table with the people behind Fortnite, Rainbow Six Siege or Warframe, and they've all shared a moment of incredulity. "We're like, 'Yeah, so, two years ago was pretty rough, right?'" Murray said, laughing. "And everyone's in the same boat."
'No Man's Sky VR' puts the universe on your headset for free
No Man's Sky studio Hello Games has rolled out a steady stream of updates to take its stargazing simulator from "cautionary indie tale" to "Best Ongoing Game award nominee" in just two years. No Man's Sky is a sprawling exploration of the universe and a near-infinite number of its planets, filled with crafting, digging, flying, building and hodgepodge creatures of all kinds. And, soon, it'll all be in VR.
'No Man's Sky' is getting a massive multiplayer mode
After failing to live up to the hype, No Man's Sky was in danger of becoming a cautionary tale for game developers. But a series of improvements, each more impressive than the last, culminating in the massive Next update released last August, have gone some way in assuaging players' regrets. Now Hello Games is readying its next chapter, Beyond, available as a free download this summer. It essentially bundles three planned updates into one larger release, according to the studio, including the first part announced today, No Man's Sky Online.
'No Man's Sky' soundtrack is going on tour around the world
It's not often a soundtrack associated with a video game, let alone one that's not been released yet, is taken on tour and played to audiences all over the world. That's exactly what's happening with British band 65daysofstatic's No Man's Sky soundtrack, with a world tour beginning in October in the Netherlands.
Sony at E3: from 'Horizon: Zero Dawn' to 'No Man's Sky'
Sony has surprised audiences at its E3 event by revealing a full-blown Final Fantasy VII remake, the new Call of Duty and The Last Guardian gameplay. It has also announced a seriously lengthy list of games other than those three, including a title for it upcoming VR headset and ones that feature PS4-exclusive content. Check 'em all out below the fold!
Here's a new No Man's Sky trailer
Here's a new trailer for No Man's Sky, featuring a portal mechanic. Please enjoy. Hello Games writes on its blog, "Portal is just one story that you can find yourself writing as you play No Man's Sky. It also reveals five ways you'll travel the galaxy: walking across the surface of planets, flying in their atmosphere, jetting into space, warping between systems and finding mysterious portals, which take you ... somewhere..." The band 65daysofstatic is composing the soundtrack for No Man's Sky. "We've been huge fans of them for the longest time, and in fact, we've forever imagined No Man's Sky against their music," Hello Games says. "To have them write music especially for No Man's Sky is just amazing." [Image: Hello Games]
PlayStation Experience's first batch of attendees revealed
The PlayStation Blog has revealed a portion of playable titles that will appear at PlayStation Experience, a fan event in Las Vegas that will feature panels and "hundreds of titles to play" from the PlayStation family of consoles. We've slipped a full list of known appearances from studios and demos after the break, but there a few things worth noting explicitly. For one, PlayStation Experience's list of playable games includes Game of Thrones: A Telltale Games Series, a multi-year project backed by significant names that we've yet to catch a glimpse of. While No Man's Sky is not listed as a playable title, the PS Blog notes that "something super special" is planned for Hello Games' vibrant, procedurally-generated space adventure during the show. Santa Monica Studio, Naughty Dog and Guerilla Games will be in attendance, and while they could just be showing previously-released games, there's always Uncharted 4: A Thief's End, or the chance of something new happening during a panel or presentation. We wouldn't mind hearing more about God of War 2 Director Cory Barlog's reunion-esque project with Sony Santa Monica, for instance ... If you're able to attend and are 18 or older, PlayStation Experience will run from December 6 - 7 at The Sands Expo and Convention Center. As previously announced, single-day passes will cost you $50, with weekend-long access priced at $90.
It takes billions of years to see all of No Man's Sky
The universe is a pretty big place, and No Man's Sky's development team wants to replicate its span as best as it can. It's ambitions were grand enough for Hello Games' Sean Murray to say that the universe in No Man's Sky is "infinite" when it was revealed for PS4 at E3 in June. Of course, the game isn't really "infinite," and Hello Games is fully aware of that, and ultimately wants the game to "surprise" players. The developer addressed that late last week with IGN, discussing its previous use of a 32-bit number to automatically generate the planets in the game. "With that 32-bit number it would take you four or five thousand years to see every planet if you spent only a second on each one," it said. See? Not infinite. However, the developer noted that it is now using a 64-bit number to procedurally produce No Man's Sky's universe, which means it will take roughly five billion years to see each planet in the game. The still-not-infinite-but-rather-huge universe of No Man's Sky will arrive on PC after it launches on PS4, though it's unknown just when that will be. [Image: Hello Games]
No Man's Sky coming to PC after PS4 launch
Hello Games' procedurally generated planetary exploration game No Man's Sky is coming to PC platforms after it launches on the PlayStation 4, Edge magazine reports in its September issue (via GameSpot). Sony announced during its E3 2014 press conference that No Man's Sky will premiere for the PlayStation 4 before it hits any other console, though its release plans for other platforms were not divulged. Speaking to Edge, creator Sean Murray revealed that the team "always had PC in mind" for the project. "I actually got in a bit of trouble for saying that we wanted the game to feel really 'console-y,'" Murray said. "We've always had PC in mind but in my head [console-y] means solid framerate and immediate controls. I think a PC game can be 'console-y' and it's intended as a compliment, but I get in trouble for saying it." A release date for No Man's Sky has not been announced. [Image: Hello Games]
How Hello Games went from dirt bikes to No Man's Sky
No Man's Sky comes from Hello Games – the same studio responsible for Joe Danger. Yes, that Joe Danger. Not that Joe Danger is a bad series, but the immense jump in graphics and scale for No Man's Sky still surprises us. We noted as much when Hello Games co-founder Sean Murray took the stage during the PlayStation E3 conference this year. In a PS4-specific video (below), Murray runs through the history of Hello Games, including the studio's roots in sci-fi, a flood that destroyed the office, and that recent E3 presentation. Murray notes that No Man's Sky was always the goal for Hello Games, though at first it was called "Project Skyscraper." "We always knew the type of game we wanted to make, and we'd known it before we even started at Hello Games, and we had talked about it at that point," Murray says. "And we knew that Joe Danger was going to be a stepping stone toward that."
Joystiq Weekly: Battlefield 4's launch, an Entwined review, E3 previews and more
Welcome to Joystiq Weekly, a "too long; didn't read" of each week's biggest stories, reviews and original content. Each category's top story is introduced with a reactionary gif, because moving pictures aren't just for The Daily Prophet. Joystiq celebrated its tenth anniversary of existence this week, which means ... we're teetering on that edge of middle school angst? No, no, we're thankfully immune to that. What it does mean is that we're still alive, and we think being alive is pretty okay! While the site has presumably made it this far because of its content, quality isn't sustainable on its own – we've been able to write news, produce videos, record podcasts and talk about video games for years because of all of you. Whether you stop in every day, have only read a single breaking news story from us, or you've just fallen down an impressive wrong turn on the Internet and have no idea why you're here: Thank you. Your patronage is a huge part of why we get to cover this industry, and we look forward to creating compelling content for you for another 10 years. Speaking of content, there's a ton of it this week: EA CEO Andrew Wilson addressed Battlefield 4's launch, we have reviews for Entwined and Pushmo World, and there's an avalanche of written previews and video interviews from E3, all waiting for you in a neat pile of bulletpoints. Dive in after the break, right after you drop off our presents next to the cake.
Hello Games wants No Man's Sky to surprise you
We still don't know much about No Man's Sky, but after seeing a live demonstration we can say it was one of the most intriguing projects on display at E3 this year. So far, we know that it allows players to explore a full, unique universe, every bit of which is procedurally generated – planets, plants, animals, spaceships, buildings, everything. It's still difficult to tell what will drive players to explore that universe, but Hello Games founder and managing director Sean Murray says some of the game's key factors are surprise and discovery. In one moment, you might be naming a new species of dinosaur, in another you might be engaged in a space dogfight with a hostile alien race. "I really like that when I play the game, those things naturally happen, naturally emerge," says Murray. "And sometimes you're just not sure why, and you have to start to learn a little bit more about the universe." Video game players have become inundated with information, he says, which makes it hard to be surprised by a game. "I think we've become really good at telling you everything you need to know about a game before you play it, to the point where you pretty much know how it starts, you know where you'll be in the middle, and you know how it'll end. I mean, I played Watch Dogs, and I actually really enjoyed it, but I had watched like 13 different videos about it before I played it, and there was so little surprise left for me," says Murray. "And I think we want to leave that a little bit for the player. This is a game about exploration, not in a kind of ambient way, not in a way that is just laid back and boring, [but] in a sci-fi way, which is kind of adventure and discovery."
No Man's Sky: Name your own dinosaur, get eaten by it
A 10 minute, hands-off demonstration is not enough time to take in No Man's Sky. I know that because 10 minutes is about all I've seen, and I still don't quite know what to think. At the very least, I can confirm everything we saw during Sony's E3 2014 media briefing. Played from a first-person perspective, No Man's Sky can take you from the surface of an alien planet teeming with life into outer space, where you can engage in zero-G dogfights, and then down to the surface of another planet, all without a single loading screen. Take a moment to comprehend the scope of that: Terrestrial exploration, interplanetary travel, space combat – all of it seamless and procedurally generated. It's impressive to watch, and gorgeous to boot, but I still can't nail down what drives players to do it all. Like ten minutes of out-of-context Minecraft, my demonstration was fascinating but a little inscrutable. Please understand, that's not intended as a criticism, it's just that what Hello Games is promising is so big that I'll have to see a lot more of it before I can form any concrete impressions. For now, let's talk about that promise.
E3 2014: No Man's Sky gets a new trailer
Procedurally generated space exploration sandbox No Man's Sky resurfaced at E3 yesterday with a new trailer and a commitment to launching first on the PlayStation 4. The sci-fi title blew us away late last year with its first trailer, and even though it probably won't fit everyone's definition of an MMO, we're keeping tabs on it due to its multiplayer ripple effect and its vast gameplay space. You can watch the new clip after the break!
No Man's Sky takes off first for consoles on PS4 [Update: trailer]
The PlayStation 4 will be the first console to receive ambitious space-faring adventure No Man's Sky. The upcoming game from the Joe Danger studio takes place in a procedurally generated universe, with Hello Games' Sean Murray going as far as to say during Sony's E3 conference that the universe is "infinite," with each player starting from his or her very own planet. After making an impressive debut last year, it was feared No Man's Sky would be held back after Hello Games' studio was devastated by floods. The British team said it would be able to continue development without issue, but we'll still have to wait to find out when the game will land on systems.
No Man's Sky won't be delayed by office flood, Hello Games says
Joe Danger developer Hello Games is up and running at "full speed" following a flood that gutted the company on Christmas Eve, managing director Sean Murray reports. Development of the studio's sci-fi roguelike No Man's Sky has resumed, and the game will not be delayed as a result of the flood. Hello Games discovered that it was not insured for damages in the flood's aftermath, but has since constructed a "make-shift post-apocalyptic set of workstations" in order to continue development unabated. Murray expects the company to either relocate to a new office or rebuild its previous studio setup in the coming months. Despite its setbacks, Hello Games has seen a busy month, with Joe Danger Infinity recently making its App Store debut and Joe Danger 2 remaining up for grabs in the ongoing Humble Bundle X.
Hello Games not insured for flood damage, Microsoft's Phil Spencer 'going to look into' situation
Hello Games, the studio behind surprise VGX 2013 hit No Man's Sky, continued their run of bad luck this week. The company announced via Twitter that insurance won't be covering damages the studio sustained during a Christmas Eve flood. "BAD NEWS! Had a 'hilarious' call with insurer yesterday. Small print is if you are in a flood risk zone, you are not insured for flooding :(" the tweet reads. Another tweet, timestamped 13 minutes later, tried to find the silver lining: "On a brighter note, no insurance means we can just wade in and start setting things straight! Hello Games assemble!" The studio has received many tweets of support and well-wishes, and the situation has not gone unnoticed by bigger companies. When Corporate VP of Microsoft Studios Phil Spencer was asked by a Twitter user if he could "spread some cheer" to Hello Games, Spencer responded that he was "going to look into it." Hello Games has not announced any external funding, corporate or otherwise, that would cover the flood damage.
