Interesting snippet about how they intend to create the creatures of NMS. http://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2014/12/24/a-look-at-no-mans-skys-creature-features.aspx

 

Hello Games is a small studio, but even a team of thousands of artists couldn’t create and animate enough creatures for No Man’s Sky using conventional methods. Rather than design, model, and animate everything by hand, they’re using in-house tools similar to the ones that generate the game’s planets, stars, and galaxy.

When they started their work, art director Grant Duncan said they didn’t have to look far for inspiration. “When it came to creatures, we built the kind of creatures that exist on the Earth. Looking at their anatomy and skeletal makeup, and it's quite surprising how few different types of skeletons there are. There are obviously variations for things like the length of limbs and the number of vertebrae and that kind of thing, but actually, roughly, they're fairly similar.”

Some lesser know fact about the game. http://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2014/12/26/an-assortment-of-lesser-known-no-man-s-sky-facts.aspx

 

The Lack of NPCs

I feel like games just don't do NPCs very well. I don't know how much it adds. We've talked about it. It would actually be easy using the procedural stuff to put in every single one of those trading posts a guy behind a desk. Sometimes I think about doing it. Who knows? Maybe people feel they need that. But at the moment we don't have that. And I feel like we don't need it. I don't feel it would add anything. But maybe people will really miss it. It's not feedback that we've had so far, but I don't think it gains that much to just have this cold dead eyed guy. “Welcome to my shop. Do you want to buy some weapons?”  And just a few loops, bits of vocal as well. Like when you go into shops in Destiny it's like, "A shipwright’s work is never done." That's how I feel is that it takes from it.

Bet that will have changed by the time it come out.

Podcast http://www.gameinformer.com/b/podcasts/archive/2014/12/29/special-edition-podcast-no-mans-sky.aspx not listened to it so it may just be a rehash of what they have said about the game so far.

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2015-01-22-so-what-do-you-actually-do-in-no-mans-sky

I don't know why but the more I heard about this game, the more I'm convinced it'll be online-only (even on singleplayer) like E:D.

Hope you are wrong!

That my impression as well that it will be an online only game as I don't think they have said anything about a single player game.

I am not sure about this, since it will probably be released first on Playstation and most if not all games usually can play without an internet connection or access to PSN. That's just my experience with my PS3, but who knows. I have to admit I don't buy too many games that don't have some sort of SP element to it so I hope there is a SP element to the game in the end.

Latest E3 trailer for the PS4 and with this trailer it is showing a bit more of the openness and procedural ability of No Man's Sky

I really like the ecology of the planets as it's some thing we rarely see in games  😎  as for the rest it's pretty standard and what you would expect for a space sand box game today.

Watching the other videos, I'm expecting a big variety in the planet types and their landscape. A great job.

The features don't have to be modelled realistically like in ED, important IMO is that the game remains simple by the UI yet showing immersion. And all the artwork in the game makes exactly that I think. 

Hopefully it will have more than one difficulty level, maybe "Easy, Medium, Hard, Extreme" to really make it a challenge. If so, I don't think to exagerate by saying that such a vast universe even containing only 'classical' space game elements has the stuff to become the best space sim ever.

Chosing PS4 is probably the best economic choice the devs have made, but I really hope to someday also see a HD port to the PC.

XenonS

Pretty sure they have confirmed a PC version after the PS4 one but the big unanswered question is will it be online only, multiplayer, single player or some sort of mash up of all three types of game.

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2015-06-17-no-mans-sky-coming-to-pc-same-time-as-ps4

Bombs away!

Nice of them and I believe that they mentioned that it was a download only game?.

Nice that they are going to try for a simultaneous release on both platforms.

I have been wanting to get more information on the actual sharing of discoveries with everyone and what impact they may have on other people playing?

Sony and Microsoft and their ridiculous PR games with those crappy consoles...

I've got to say, the space combat looks AWFUL.  I have a feeling that most of the draw of this game will be visual appeal alone, but that'll probably be enough for me to buy it.

the space combat looks AWFUL.

Since NMS itself seemed to be more focused on exploration and naming planets I doubt decent space combat mechanics is a priority to begin with.

update: Steam store page is up.

http://store.steampowered.com/app/275850

As I understand, some inovative mission types will be in the game, a sort of power-up system gained in exploration missions. I even imagine a serie of missions to perform to reach specific goals.

The videos are showing that different types of ships are already modelled, from fighters up to CAP ships. I would be astonished if they are not used in any kind of combat missions; but adding such mission scripts, even in future builds, is pretty sure in the reach of all these talented developers. 

XenonS

 

 

As I understand, some inovative mission types will be in the game

After Elite Dangerous not being able to figure out what players can spend there time doing, that could potentially be a really big deal.  I don't think it could save lousy space-combat though.  Maybe the FPS portion of the game will be better.

Looks like it has a Steam page http://store.steampowered.com/app/275850/ but don't get too excited as you can't buy it yet.

 Quote from the No Man's Sky Steam Page:

"(...)

Your voyage through No Man's Sky is up to you. Will you be a fighter, preying on the weak and taking their riches, or taking out pirates for their bounties? Power is yours if you upgrade your ship for speed and weaponry.

Or a trader? Find rich resources on forgotten worlds and exploit them for the highest prices. Invest in more cargo space and you'll reap huge rewards. (...)"

All this (and the whole description) sounds very good. And I really don't think it's pure advertisement. With such features one can indeed expect to do a variety of interesting missions and actions to perform not only on the beautiful planets but also in space.

For sure I'm eager to play this game.

Hey, nice to see a reproduction of Stanley Kubrick's monolith (2001: A Space Odyssey)  🙂

XenonS

That's not much different to the premise of basically almost every freeroam spacesims IMHO, plus the planet exploration part.

Of course it's also advertisement, but here they seem to be really intended to get such main features inside the game, and not for a release at doomsday like many Kickstarter projects. Granted, I don't really know the size of the development team and their ressources for making this project, so I have to be fair with other KS projects.

XenonS

It has the standard sandbox features but a lot will depends on how much their is to do on the planets, running around and fighting the sentinels, naming and harvesting the wild life will be interesting but it could become very repetitive after doing it a few hundred times.

Sony and Microsoft and their ridiculous PR games with those crappy consoles...

 

I've got to say, the space combat looks AWFUL.  I have a feeling that most of the draw of this game will be visual appeal alone, but that'll probably be enough for me to buy it.

yeah, its especially pathetic this time since their latest consoles are barely an upgrade over the prior. i.e. cpu has got to be a downgrade, but maybe slightly better graphics.

that said ive been jonesing for this one ever since i saw the first videos. it looked good even back then.

Finally we have started to see some positive signs from what people are saying about the press demos.  It sounds at least like there is a lot of interesting crafting, and a lot of interesting ways to gather resources for the purpose of crafting.  If there truly are a huge number of ("meaningful") ways to upgrade ship, weapons, and even suit, there is some possibility that there will be lots to keep players busy.  Even if most of the value of the game is in visually appealing landscapes, having compelling if somewhat grinding goals to accomplish in said landscapes could keep me busy for a long time.

Considering they have chosen to show so little gameplay, it's hard not to remain extremely doubtful, however.  If they have implemented all of the things that they have supposedly showed in the press demos, I really can't understand why they wouldn't use E3 as an opportunity to at least show canned videos of it.  Certainly the rather pitiful-looking space combat leaves me pinning all my hopes on what will happen after my cockpit has opened.

I'm certainly trying to be hopeful.  We still have seen very, very little in the vein of open-ended space-sims since these ideas started to become talked-about again after the Star Citizen and Elite Dangerous crowdfunding campaigns.