4 5

It's rare that something like No Man's Sky comes along, the PS4 sci-fi exclusive that at last promises a '70s Star Trek universe to believe in.

Not only is every single person on our PSN friends list playing it right now, but the internet is alive with chatter of discoveries, hints, tips and celebratory outpourings. Pokémon Go might be the game on everyone's lips, but Hello Games' No Man's Sky is the one that has burrowed into their brains and is poking them awake at night with questions.

Because no matter how long you play No Man's Sky for, you're going to have questions. We haven't even reached the centre of the universe - despite blazing through plenty of solar systems without even a scan for time's sake - and we have so many whirling in our head.

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Why are there no cities? Is the entire universe only filled with three (or four including you) alien races? Where do the Sentinels come from and why are they everywhere? What lies at the centre of the universe? Can I come back again? But also, who are you? Where do you come from? And why is it up to you to travel the universe?

Now, from the sounds of those questions you might think that this is going to be a negative review of No Man's Sky, but the unknowing is part of the game's appeal.

From nothing, to everything

No Man's Sky drops you into a world where you start with nothing and end up with pretty much everything at your fingertips. Once you've worked out that this is a survival game first and foremost, repaired your ship and blasted into the cosmos, you're suddenly very aware that there are over 18 quintillion planets to explore in this universe, and although there are other players doing exactly the same thing elsewhere on the galactic map, there's still a gigantic pocket of space to call your own. If you can survive long enough anyway.

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As you might expect, space is full of stuff that can kill you. And to be honest, we didn't really think of that before heading into No Man's Sky. We thought it was just going to be focused on exploration and discovery, but there are a hell of a lot of survival elements to the game too.

You'll constantly have to be on the hunt for resources to power your mining tool, your weapons, your Exosuit that protects you from the environmental elements - whether that's the cold, the heat, radioactive rain or other equally perilous scenarios - create your ship's fuel, rebuild its shield and power the hyperdrive. But gathering resources also builds into the game's crafting system, as you'll need to create various technologies to upgrade your suit, ship and Multitool, and make yourself components for larger, more important tech to help you on your mission to the centre of the universe.

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If you die in No Man's Sky, which you can do quite easily, you'll leave behind a grave - a la Dark Souls - that also takes hostage of all your Exosuit inventory. To get it back you'll have to head back to wherever you died and collect it all from your floating gravestone. Thankfully, we've never died en route to our resting place, so we don't know whether you lose all your stuff like you do in Dark Souls.

Exploration is the spice of life

Of course, to find any resources in the first place you'll need to explore the planets and solar systems that you discover on your journey through the galactic entity.

And that's where the beauty of No Man's Sky really lies. In this procedurally generated universe of over 18 quintillion planets, there are some seriously stunning locations to discover. Each planet has its own climate, flora and fauna, meaning that there's a risk of coming across a barren landscape or one that's rather hostile.

While the variety is rather staggering, and the graphics and colour scheme are ridiculously beautiful, there are some things that break the procedurally generated illusions.

For one, the berry-topped flowers that give you zinc, platinum or other useful resources are exactly the same on every planet. It's useful, sure, because you know what you're getting, but it makes the planets seem less authentic.

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Creatures are mostly a variation on a theme - from the hundreds we've seen anyway - and sometimes things can feel a little too familiar. In addition, the Sentinels are always the same and are always present on every planet you land on - although their behaviour may vary from place to place.

What also bugs us is that settlements take the form of a couple of huts sprinkled across planets manned by a lone alien. You never see cities or massive communities ever in No Man's Sky, which feels a little unrealistic - regardless of how lovely the landscapes often are. Meanwhile, the world textures are often slow to load as you fly over them, meaning you see the backend of the game whirring away in front of you, doing all that math.

For the majority of the time, though, the worlds and their inhabitants do take your breath away or make you chuckle.

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And our gripes don't deter from the fact that there's so much to see on each planet - we've lost hours to discovering and exploring without even realising.

Our particular fascination is with the alien languages, which you can learn through discovering ancient monuments, plaque or stones that unlock elements of their culture and new words. Doing so unlocks so much more, offering you variety in discovery and trade - another massive part of the game if you wish to partake in it.

In space, someone will hear your screams

There are actually four alien races to discover: Gek, Korvax, Vy'keen and the Atlas itself - don't ask us why there are only four in the entire universe (plus you, who appears to be part of another race altogether).

These aliens provide most of the 'story' of No Man's Sky, forcing you to deviate from your march towards the galactic centre to discover new waypoints and characters. Everything's optional, but the options are always there. Freedom is celebrated in No Man's Sky and linear gameplay is a dirty word.

And that's part of the reason we haven't reached the centre yet. We've played for nearly 40 hours and although we spent a lot of time aiming for the centre, it felt disrespectful to the game to attempt to cut short the experience. After all, this isn't a game that you can really 'finish'. It's an experience to while away the hours with, discovering new creatures, earning dosh, playing the market trading,

The grind, oh the grind

Although we're addicted to No Man's Sky, we're very aware that it won't appeal to everyone. This is a game that can sometimes feel like a grind, as you waste a lot of time having to constantly manage your limited inventory spaces - most of the really valuable items annoyingly don't stack - mining for resources, ploughing through endless upgrade paths and basically undertaking a lot of busywork, especially when it comes to scanning, uploading and naming your discoveries. (The latter we've given up doing unless we see something particularly deserving.)

But finding a new ship or Multitool, or nabbing yourself a top-notch upgrade, is rewarding in itself. You suddenly feel even better prepared to take on the universe.

Barely anything is explained to you, so you're going to have to work most of the systems and crafting out for yourself. There is a grand sense of achievement to that though, especially if you're part of a connected network of No Man's Sky working together like a hive mind.

However, if you're thinking this sounds something like World of Warcraft or even Minecraft and you're wanting to run in the opposite direction, then you probably should.

There is some combat from the Sentinels and space pirates - or more if you go looking for trouble - but for the majority it's a very tiny part of the No Man's Sky experience. And don't even ask about multiplayer elements at this stage.

No Man's Sky verdict

No Man's Sky is already a technical marvel, both in the amount of content it delivers but also in that it launched practically bug-free and ready to go from a team of just 13 people. We've been enjoying it for around 40 hours now and our excitement shows no signs of waning. It's just too damn peaceful.

But it's also exciting to know that this is just the beginning for No Man's Sky. Hello Games has already teased that base building is on its way, along with more multiplayer elements, and the game will have lots of updates rather than paid-for DLC.

If there's a risk of us ever getting bored, we bet Hello Games will have the solution.

No Man's Sky is a masterpiece of gaming and should be written down in history as such - quirks and all.

4 5

No Man's Sky release date: August 10, 2016

Available on: PS4 (tested) and PC (on August 12)

Developer: Hello Games

Publisher: Hello Games

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