No Man's Sky: Everything You Need to Know

After years of eager anticipation, No Man's Sky is finally out. To better acquaint you with the various facets of this upcoming space exploration action-adventure, we've compiled below everything you need to know about it, as well as several gameplay videos and in-depth guides.

For more on No Man's Sky, check out our recent stories below, and be sure to check back often as we update this article with more news and features.

• No Man's Sky for PS4 Neo Would "Fundamentally" Change the Game, Director Says
• No Man's Sky Dev Explains What You Do, Expects Game to Be "Super Divisive"
• First No Man's Sky Update Detailed, Early Copy Players Recommended to Delete Saves
• No Man's Sky Coming to PC 3 Days Later Than PS4, Dev Confirms
• Guy Who Bought Leaked No Man's Sky Copy Reaches Center of Galaxy
• No Man's Sky's 18 Quintillion Planets Take Up Just 6 GB on Disc
• Listen to No Man's Sky Atmospheric Soundtrack Here

The Review

"No Man's Sky is an exploration game set in a vast galaxy of over 18 quintillion planets. Each one is massive--too big for any one person to explore fully in the span of a day--and if you’re the first to discover one, you not only get to name it, you also get first dibs on any discoveries contained within. This is a game about travel, survival, and commerce, backed by impressive tech that allows for near seamless transitions from ground to space. There are multiple layers to consider, and while some details will make your journey feel more genuine, there are flaws that occasionally derail your investment in the odyssey. However, there's an intriguing narrative that contextualizes your in-game actions, making for a fascinating experience that ultimately trumps issues that appear early on." -- [Read the full review]

For more on reviewer Peter Brown's experiences playing No Man's Sky, check out his pre-review diary series documenting his adventure on a daily basis, sharing his overall experience, insights into trading and exploration, and images of his most interesting discoveries.

• No Man's Sky Pre-Review Diary - Day 1
• No Man's Sky Pre-Review Diary - Day 2
• No Man's Sky Pre-review Diary - Day 3

What You Need to Know

No Man's Sky is an action-adventure game where you can explore a procedurally generated deterministic open universe, which includes over 18 quintillion planets. You'll chart undiscovered planets, mine resources, engage in space battles, and much more; the galaxy is literally your oyster. No Man's Sky's world remains persistent too, which means your actions can have a permanent effect on the world; and since its a shared universe, those actions can be felt and seen by other players. For more details on these exciting elements and others, check out our various features on the game below.

• How to Play No Man's Sky: A Detailed Breakdown--Hello Games' ambitious sci-fi adventure has proven difficult to understand. For an incredibly in-depth look at everything you need to know, check out our feature detailing all the different aspects to the game.
• No Man's Sky Interview: People Want "Crazy, Innovative" Games--Director Sean Murray discusses 18,000,000,000,000,000,000 planets, loneliness in a shared universe, and "the perfect fit for virtual reality."
• No Man's Sky on PS4 Doesn't Require PlayStation Plus--No Man's Sky (technically) has multiplayer support, but it won't force you to have Plus to play online.

Gallery

Guides/Walkthroughs

• No Man's Sky: 14 Essential Beginner's Tips--No Man's Sky is a huge game that doesn't exactly make its various gameplay elements clear in its first few hours. To help you better understand what you need to better play the game, we've compiled 10 essential beginner's tips to help you in your early adventures across the galaxy.
• 11 Things We Wish We Knew When Starting No Man's Sky--From inventory management to multi-tool selection, Jean-Luc has got some valuable advice for the new No Man's Sky explorer.
• No Man's Sky: How to Quickly Get to the Center of the Universe (Without Cheating)--Here's a guide on how to get to the center of the universe as quickly as possible.
• Quick Tips for Making Money--Looking to make some extra units for that hot spaceship? Here is a video guide to making money in No Man's Sky.
• No Man's Sky: Guide to Making Money--Here's an in-depth guide offering 10 tips that'll help you make easy money in No Man's Sky.
• Elements and Resources Guide--There are a lot of different elements in No Man's Sky, and they all have different functions. Check out our breakdown of them here.
• No Man's Sky: 13 Things You Probably Didn't Know You Could Do--We've found several tips and tricks that make exploring quicker, more efficient, and more lucrative.
• How to Get an Atlas Pass--Follow our guide on how to obtain an Atlas Pass blueprint in No Man's Sky and you'll be ransacking all the debris and containers in sight!

Gameplay

• Travelling to a New Galaxy Gameplay--We head to a new galaxy in No Man's Sky and find ourselves a new planet to explore.
• Finding and Repairing a New Ship Gameplay--We find and repair a new ship to explore the galaxy with in No Man's Sky.
• Ship Combat Gameplay--In No Man's Sky we attack and loot some NPC ships before defending our resources from enemy space pirates.
• No Man's Sky Space Pirate Attack!--The pirates want loot! Check out this No Man's Sky space pirate dogfight.
• No Man's Sky: Cave Exploration Gameplay--A mining journey takes a detour through an alluring cave when hostile drones deploy.
• Confronting the Monolith Gameplay--Potential spoilers as we observe a cryptic scene at the site of a monolith in No Man's Sky.

Features and Impressions

• The Consequences of No Man's Sky: Will Players Destroy or Preserve the Universe?--It may be possible to affect a planet dramatically enough for the change to become permanent. But is it good to even try? Join us as we discuss the implications of No Man's Sky's shared universe and what our actions might do to affect its virtual world.
• Making Sense of No Man's Sky's Massive Universe--We compare the upcoming space exploration game's ridiculously big universe to other games and the real world.
• No Man's Sky and the Joy of Being Stranded--Needing to go out and collect a certain resource is a chore and can be annoying, but it's also an opportunity.