Since the release of Hello Games’ No Man’s Sky many have openly stated their displeasure and some have even went as far as to call it an outright failure. I have personally spent many hours playing the game on PlayStation 4 and even have a platinum trophy to show for it. So, why do people hate No Man’s Sky so much?

1. Delays

No Man’s Sky was delayed multiple times before it was finally released. The game was first set to be released in June 2016 but just 2 weeks before the release date, Hello Games announced that the highly anticipated game had to be delayed until August. When the delay was announced, many were very upset to say the least. Sean Murray along with the entire Hello Games development team were bombarded with harsh comments and even death threats. The game was then released as planned on the 9th of August 2016 for PlayStation 4 but the game was also delayed for another 3 days before finally becoming available on PC on the 12th of August.

In my opinion, the development team at Hello Games has been very passionate about this game and they only delayed the game so they would be able to release a product they could be proud of. I respect that. As a creator of any sort, putting your name on a product you’re not proud of is just about the worst thing you could possibly do. The first delay was because the development team felt that the game could do with a bit more polishing before being released which is never a bad thing. Hello Games worked on polishing their game and in the end were able to release a product that they – as creators – could be proud of. The 3 day delay for the PC release was reportedly because Hello Games were working on getting proper support for 21:9 monitors which aren’t very common yet but are becoming more popular among PC gamers. I’m glad they made the effort but why they couldn’t have made the effort 3 days earlier and released the game on both platforms simultaneously, we’ll never know.

2. The Hype

No Man’s Sky had an unbelievable amount of hype surrounding it during its development process. Ever since we heard about the amazing size of the universe we would be able to explore, it instantly became a topic of interest. It was inevitable, really. Having 18 quintillion planets in a single game is something we’ve never experienced before so obviously everybody was going to talk about it. Many shared their opinions and theories on what could possibly be included in the game. The hype grew at an uncontrollable rate and when the game was finally released and players got to experience the vast universe for themselves, they quickly found out that No Man’s Sky wasn’t quite the action packed space adventure they were imagining in their heads.

The way I see it, many features that were reportedly going to be in the game were fan theories being passed around. Maybe people were drawn to expect too much partly because it’s a concept nobody had ever seen before and partly due to Hello Games’ affiliation with Sony. Either way, the game was released with many of the theorized features absent and this has led to many calling out the game as a failure, even though there were no official plans for the theorized features to begin with.

3. No Multiplayer

Many were expecting this to be an online multiplayer game in which you could focus on conquering the galaxies with a bunch of friends. Online multiplayer games have become increasingly popular in recent years so this was a feature that many were hoping would be included. No Man’s Sky was said to be set in a “shared universe” which implies that while it would be quite difficult to find another player in the vast universe, it would indeed be a possibility. However, that turned out to be false when within 24 hours of the game’s launch 2 players arrived at the exact same location in the game’s universe at the exact same time and weren’t able to see each other. Needless to say, many were upset.

Even though I’m not a very big fan of online multiplayer games, I’m also quite irritated. The game was said to make use of online features in order to make it a shared universe but then it was later announced to not be a multiplayer game. If it was meant to be a multiplayer game then either Hello Games changed their mind at the last-minute and decided to remove the online feature altogether or they’re incredibly bad at informing players how the game actually uses the online feature. I believe that the game only uses the online feature to catalog players’ discoveries and name changes. It is a “shared universe” but we don’t share anything more than our discoveries and new names we’ve given to the planets and creatures we’ve discovered. Whether that’s true or not, I can’t say but it does seem to be the case.

4. Shallow Story

Many are complaining about the game’s lack of a proper story. While the game does have a loose story in the form of the player’s journey to the center of the galaxy led by the Atlas, many feel like a more in-depth story with more action sequences and elaborate set pieces would be a far better experience. Of course it would be extremely fun to have a proper story with interesting characters and a deep plot involving this vast unknown universe. However, this wouldn’t be very easy to do because each player starts their journey on a different planet and each player’s journey will be completely different to any other player. Because of this, it would be extremely hard to have a properly scripted storyline.

That said, I would personally have appreciated a more in-depth lore. There are interesting bits here and there throughout the game, particularly when visiting monoliths but the overall lore seems to be lacking. It’s all well and good to drop us into the game with little to no knowledge about the universe but it’s upsetting when there’s not much to actually learn. Even a few collectibles revealing some sort of alien history would have been a good addition.

5. Similar Planets

There have been complaints regarding the planet designs which aren’t as varied as they should be. Many feel that the planets in the game are too similar to one another which makes exploration less compelling. Many have also said that the majority of planets they have landed on so far have been quite barren unlike the promotional videos of lush, colourful planets inhabited by dinosaur-like creatures. It’s hard to say if a planet like that actually exists in the game.

Being a procedurally generated game, the designs of the planets, the creatures and, in fact, the entire universe relies on an algorithm. During my playthrough, I have come across a few pleasant, lush planets as well as a few large creatures however none were as big as you would expect from watching the reveal trailer. What I’ve noticed is that while the planets are different from one another due to having different climates, surfaces, creatures and resources, they do tend to be quite monotonous. If Hello Games had included a few more possible variables like small towns, large cities, bandit camps and creature nests into the algorithm I’m sure the planets would be far more interesting.

6. Sean Murray

Sean Murray, in my opinion, has made a few incredibly huge missteps during the course of developing and introducing this game. To put it lightly, he’s amazingly bad at conveying accurate information. Almost everything he reveals about the game, he refutes weeks later. It’s annoying, to say the least.

Perhaps the most talked about statement and contradiction by the man himself was about the game’s multiplayer aspect. During the game’s development, Sean Murray did say that the game would make use of online features in order to let players explore their own corner of a shared universe. Since it was revealed to be a shared universe, many were quite excited for a possible multiplayer adventure in space. Shortly before the release of the game however, Sean Murray tweeted “To be super clear – No Man’s Sky is not a multiplayer game. Please don’t go in looking for that experience.“, which contradicts his prior statement. Another noteworthy statement by Sean Murray was regarding the issue of future DLC. He has said that the team do plan on releasing DLC for the game to add new features such as base building and the ability to own a giant freighter. When No Man’s Sky Launched on the 9th of August, Sean Murray stated that fans wouldn’t need to worry about having to pay for DLC down the line. Just 8 days later, he’s talking about paid DLC. He recently stated that he might have been naive to think the DLC could remain free. He said in an interview with Daily Star Online, “Maybe in the future there’s some reason why we just couldn’t possibly afford to do a certain feature without charging for it.”

In my opinion, it’s okay to change and it’s okay to refute a previous statement if need be, however, to do it multiple times within a short period is a bit unintelligent. Sean Murray might be a very good programmer but I don’t think he’s a very good spokesperson.

I honestly enjoy No Man’s Sky very much. It’s a good game. I don’t think it’s worth the $60 retail price in its current state but if all future DLC was provided for free, it could be worth much more than that. With a few tweaks and some added content, I believe that it has the potential to become a masterpiece. However, if Sean Murray continues to spit out whatever he feels like saying and then decides to refute his statements just days later, I don’t see myself supporting this game much longer.