For all of its ambition and near-unfathomable scope, the one common concern looming over No Man’s Sky is what exactly players will do in Hello Games’ vast space sim when it launches across PlayStation 4 and PC.
Exploration is a key theme of the title, that much we know, but in a recent gameplay demonstration (via IGN), the game’s creator Sean Murray illustrated what a typical day in No Man’s Sky‘s world resembles. With its own periodic table of elements to discover, mine and fuse together, Hello Games’ new IP can be played and indeed approach from a variety of different angles, be it operating as a lucrative trader or acquiring resources more discreetly as a space pirate.
Everything you see on the screen is procedurally generated, with each planet boasting its own wildlife, geography and even atmosphere based on its position relative to the rest of the galaxy. Weapons and ships can be modified, too, thus stoking the drive to acquire new resources as you hop from one planet to the next.
Throughout the extended gameplay clip, we see Murray encounter an array of alien life, with some even turning hostile as the alien day wears on. Should you hurt the extraterrestrials, you’ll gradually attract the attention of the Sentinels – a race of self-replicating robots that will stop you in your tracks by any means necessary. The force of their attack hinges on just how much damage you’ve caused, and this will be displayed through the game’s GTA-styled wanted level. Think of the Sentinels as the galaxy’s police force.
No word yet on a release date for No Man’s Sky, though it’s understood Hello Game’s intriguing title will task players with reaching the centre of the galaxy. What secrets lie in its galactic nucleus, however, is a different question entirely.
