No Man's Sky

[thesheeep]

I really admire how they manage to add more and more shallow systems to the already existing world full of entirely shallow systems.

NMS must be one of the games with the highest breadth-to-depth ratio.

You have basically seen the entire game a few hours in (random worlds that are all the same in the end, space combat, ground combat, buildings), but can continue to do irrelevant stuff for dozens upon dozens of hours. Which does nothing to change anything, but numbers go up.
It's honestly impressive.

 

[MadMaxHellfire]

20 years later, i still haven't understood the praise for freelancer. it does EVERYTHING wrong.
combat takes no skill, is artificially prolonged with special skills only npc can use and with instant heals, there's just three ships (two of whom are useless), and pretty much as many weapons, space depiction is retarded, story is retarded, traveling means are retarded, trade is the same as elite which was 15 years older.

 

[HeatEXTEND]

You have basically seen the entire game a few hours in

How many hours? like 20? Kinda wanna try this shit

 

[Late Bloomer]

You have basically seen the entire game a few hours in

How many hours? like 20? Kinda wanna try this shit

Its just not true. They either played when it first came out and quit or tried again a few years later, acted like a spaz looking for who knows what. There is a tremendous amount of planet types with exapansive caves and oceans, crashed freighters, bases, outposts etc. The base building is in-depth if you are into that. There are many ship types of which you can own multiple including a freighter. You base and freighter have your own crew of workers. You can name the galaxy, planet, and everything you find on it if you are the one to discover it. There is a main quest and procedural quests. There is a lot more to the game than these no imagination hacks are letting on. There is combat too both on and off planets.

 

[rusty_shackleford]

You just agreed with what he said.

 

[Late Bloomer]

You just agreed with what he said.

Do you mind rusty? There are people who actually play games talking.

 

[thesheeep]

ts just not true. They either played when it first came out and quit or tried again a few years later, acted like a spaz looking for who knows what.

Nah, I just actually studied game design and can tell depth from breadth.
I also happened to work for years on procedural generation, so I know when something just looks different but is actually entirely the same.

There is a tremendous amount of planet types with exapansive caves and oceans, crashed freighters, bases, outposts etc.

All of which are generated in a style of procedural generation that creates vast worlds that are entirely devoid of meaning and character.
Nothing placed on a planet has any purpose to it, it's all just "throw these few dozen things somewhere at random on this planet, make the fauna and flora look crazy*, and make sure each planet has at least these things so the player can fulfill the minimal game loop".

This kind of generation is also the reason the universe is (almost) unlimited - it's all just pure randomness, devoid of almost any thought behind it.

* Credit where credit is due, the random plants and animals are fairly amazing.

The base building is in-depth if you are into that.

It's basic survival stuff as well as a few toolboxes.
There is no depth here, only different coats of paint.
Please don't make yourself look even more like you have no clue what you are talking about.

There are many ship types of which you can own multiple including a freighter.

Wow. Multiple ship types. Crazy. Unheard of.
I bet they all behave entirely differently and require completely different skill sets?
Oh, wait, no, they don't.
They, too, are all more or less the same ship just varying in the amount of slots / equipment / cargo space they have. No depth, only breadth.

You can name the galaxy, planet, and everything you find on it if you are the one to discover it.

You have to be fucking kidding me.
If that's what counts as depth these days, that would explain a lot about game "journalist" ratings...

There is a main quest and procedural quests. There is a lot more to the game than these no imagination hacks are letting on.

All of which is as shallow as a puddle. Exactly as I was saying. Real depth doesn't need imagination to fool yourself into believing a game is something it isn't.
But thanks for confirming it.

You have basically seen the entire game a few hours in

How many hours? like 20? Kinda wanna try this shit

Tried multiple times and each time it took me about 12-20 hours to get really, really bored by all the sameness.
So I'd say give it a go, yeah. Good for one attempt, IMO.

 

[HeatEXTEND]

took me about 12-20 hours to get really, really bored by all the sameness.

Cool, I'll just wait to get it for lowcheap.

 

[Late Bloomer]

Nah, I just actually studied game design and can tell depth from breadth.
I also happened to work for years on procedural generation, so I know when something just looks different but is actually entirely the same.

Cool. I am always ready to try some new games. What did you work on?

 

[Ein Axt]

I played this over a few days. Clocked around 15 hours or so then it got pretty boring.

I'm not much into the "make your fun" type of games I gave it a try since it was extremely controversial on its launch and apparently the devs stopped giving interviews and started cranking out updates after updates, patch after patch trying to regain their honor.

Although it felt like it had potential at the start the more I play the more I realize how shallow the game is. A shallow game does not automatically make it a bad game, however. Sometimes some people want to just chill and build some basis, maybe fight some pirate or two.

The problem is the game has a lot of clunk and jank going for it even today. It also doesn't help that that, although the game is advertised as a PC game, it is a console game. The PC version is a port. This becomes extremely obvious once you play the first minute of it. The max FOV feels like 60 degrees. The controls are terrible. You have one key that opens a "menu" and you have to scroll through it to do certain actions like recharging your mining tool or your shields instead of having dedicated keys for them.

Outside of the poor PC port there's MORE problems. From glitches and bugs, to outright bad game design. Examples would be:

-Clipping through the ground in a planet, falling you your death into the void.
-Walking around your freighter and suddenly the floor is gone and you fall from your death again.
-Getting pecked by an animal for miniscule damage BUT the impact hurls you 500 meters away, dying yet again.
-Inventory has no auto sort. Really? With hundreds of kinds of items we have no auto sort?
-UI/UX is bad. There is not a key to get directly into one of many inventory windows. The game has ONE key to open your exosuit's inventory, high storage window, ship inventory, ship high storage, multi tool tech, exocraft's inventory, etc. You have ONE key for all of these and you have to navigate through it every time. This wouldn't be so bad if the game remembers the last inventory/storage tab you opened, but no. The game "guesses" which one you currently want/need. This decision to make this actually blows my mind.
-The only way to split items is by diving them into halves. Oh, you need 100 copper out of this 250 stack you have on storage? Here, have 125 instead.

Outside of technical and gameplay related jank, game also has the artistic, muh cinematic jank.

Why does the devs feels like you have to cut into some cinematic achievement unlock graphics and music every time you get a "milestone". This game's milestones are related to: distance walked on foot, money earned, etc. On a normal playthrough I get a few of them every hour. Oh, yeah that cinematic shit also happens every time you teleport into another zone or system. You have to hold down a button for 3s for it to disappear quicker. I just can't believe someone thought that adding that to a game which is supposed to be played many hours to be a good idea.

I was going to write about how terribly generic and pretentious the music and writing but I can live with that. This game isn't a storyfag game after all.

Yes, this game is very hard to like. I had little expectations of it and I still got disappointed.

 

[WhiskeyWolf]

You may think this game is a big piece of crap but Bethesda thought it was good enough to ripoff, teehee.

Even Bath will be able to make a better game with this concept.

I wanted to give this game another try since playing it more than a year ago, mainly with the idea to find some nice planet and build a spiffy base. But got quickly reminded that this game is not only boring... it is boring and tedious.

Resource gathering - tedious
UI navigation - tedious
Using your ship to get to places - super fucking tedious

Not to mention you need like what? Three different resources just to operate your dinky ass ship? Would it fucking kill you to only have one type of fuel?

 

[thesheeep]

Not to mention you need like what? Three different resources just to operate your dinky ass ship? Would it fucking kill you to only have one type of fuel?

Small hint about that: Install the mod that removes fuel cost of lifting off on a planet (forgot the name, but probably easy to find).
Like most things in the game, that fuel cost has no real purpose other than make people grind more.
Gets tiresome very quickly.

 

[Machocruz]

I'll recommend that if/when you find the Space Anomaly, just stop doing the main quest then and there. You become the ultimate errand boy. Maybe even before that, as a sense of isolation makes the game more interesting imo. Treat it more like (a very watered down) Minecraft and go about doing your own thing. Keeping some mystery alive is the only hope of enjoying the game imo. The main quest does help in guiding you through the game and how to build various machines/tools, etc. but again you are made into errand boy to do these things. It's tedious. If you want to know how to build/craft/find something (which the game will still provide you scant reason to do), just consult the internet like you would with Minecraft or Terraria.

Once I started doing that, the game became enjoyable to check in with every now and then. Still shallow as shit across the board, but I like the visuals and seeing if I can find any creatures or biomes I haven't found before. Plus I'm playing on Game Pass, so I'm almost paying nothing for it.

 

[BoroMonokli]

I don't remember how far you need to go to unlock the part that lets you scan for power hotspots and build the generators, mineral and gas extractors at their hotspots, plus supply depots, but the space anomaly sounds just right. Once you have those, plus all refiners, you're golden.

 

[Machocruz]

The main quest was already tedious by the time it lead me to the medium refiner, which is well after finding the SA, and extraction is beyond the refiner. Tying gear to storyline progression, in the way they did it, was a big mistake imo. In Subnautica you can get everything you want just through exploration and scanning.

 

[BoroMonokli]

Well, there is the research terminals at the SA at least. I guess I meant that.

What you said pretty much describes what I did: get to the SA to unlock the panels, and go off my own way to get ingame-rich:

I started on an uranium world, which is where I eventually found a good uranium deposit, then my original base also houses ammonium silos (and copper, because it was kind of important back then), then found a good site for pyrite, phosphor, dioxite, and also paraffin. these also had sulphurine, radon and nitrogen. Combined I can make the highest tier trade material for tons of units.

Oh yeah I also needed tons and tons of ferrite dust to build these, so a rusted metal deposit on a moon would become my main base. Best of all the nomad/pilgrim flight trick still works there.

I know its all old news, and that building a single stacked activated indium mega-base is probably more efficient (a small one in the sister-moon of the main base is already built), but I like the crafting.

Oh I realized though that its a lot better with a couple mods (one that increase stack sizes for substances and products, one for removing the delay when you craft or interact, and one that makes refiners ten times faster).

 

[rusty_shackleford]

one of my biggest pet peeves was the console-tier "hold to activate" on everything.

 

[Zarniwoop]

20 years later, i still haven't understood the praise for freelancer. it does EVERYTHING wrong.
combat takes no skill, is artificially prolonged with special skills only npc can use and with instant heals, there's just three ships (two of whom are useless), and pretty much as many weapons, space depiction is retarded, story is retarded, traveling means are retarded, trade is the same as elite which was 15 years older.

Those are true of Elite Dangerous as well, but the hype for that was at least 26 times bigger.

 

[Ein Axt]

I haven't had a console since PS2. Is that really the norm for console games nowadays?

I thought it was just a retarded design choice.

 

[Fedora Master]

So this is the part where the thread gets revived and idiots talk for a dozen pages about how the game is still bad, which everyone already knew anyway and then it slinks back into oblivion until the next pointless update/Infinitron news post huh.

 

[Rahdulan]

one of my biggest pet peeves was the console-tier "hold to activate" on everything.

Can't you disable that under options?

 

[rusty_shackleford]

one of my biggest pet peeves was the console-tier "hold to activate" on everything.

Can't you disable that under options?

not when I played it

 

[Late Bloomer]

one of my biggest pet peeves was the console-tier "hold to activate" on everything.

Can't you disable that under options?

The in game option is only for menus only

Or just use this
https://www.nexusmods.com/nomanssky/mods/1081

 

[Latelistener]

I don't get people who like this or games like it. It's a pain in the ass simulator.

Omg, you're irradiated. Get sodium. Omg, your mining beam is depleted, get carbon. Omg, you're irradiated, get sodium. <repeat forever until you uninstall>

That was my experience as well.

I started on some kind of lava planet and while I was trying to figure out just what the fuck is going on my suit was already melting. I think they won't allow you to die at this point yet, but still.

Get shit to fix suit. Get shit to fix your ship. Get shit to do this and that. Then I launched a ship two or three times and imagine this... you need to get shit to power up the engines to fly again. Even your laser that is in fact getting shit for you needs to be fueled.

To be honest I even regret trading some games for it. If I've bought it that would've been depressing (but I wouldn't have done it).

I expected this game to be just bland, but instead it's simply irritating.

And the one and only good thing about it that is 70s sci-fi vibe is disappearing with each update.

 

[BoroMonokli]

funny how much of it you can leave behind once you graduate to a few space station terminals and the medium refiner:

you buy oxygen for cheap, you convert some of it to have enough sodium, and you need a lot less sodium since you are in a base where your hazard protection recharges on its own.

then you can also do the crafting of di-hydrogen jelly and refine back to di-hydrogen for a continued expansion of di-hydrogen stocks,

then you can refine pure ferrite with oxygen for rusted metal, which you refine to ferrite dust.

finally you keep your finances fueled by combining oxygen with chlorine for more chlorine.

And this is the beginner strategy, before you start making mineral extractors, storage depots, gas extractors, and a veritable network of resource extracting bases to make enough fusion ignitors or stasis devices to buy whatever freighter you want. In the meanwhile you get to upgrade your spaceship to have recharging launch thrusters.