Sean Murray, developer of No Man’s Sky at Hello Games, has been talking in depth about some of the details that will feature in the eagerly anticipated indie game.
In a Q&A with IGN last week, Murray discussed a host of possible features including natural disasters, factions and stars. The game will feature some 18 quintillion stars (give or take) and apparently, each one will be different. According to Murray, stars will greatly affect the planets around them depending on a number of variables including: size, type and formation.
He said:
We have a variety of different types of star, some of which are super rare, and you’ll start to realize they’ll tend to offer certain opportunities. In the videos already out there, as I zoom through the Galactic Map, you get glimpses of different types, sizes, and colours of stars, and, more interestingly, different formations.
No Man's SkyMany people have asked whether there will be phenomena like black holes in the game, to which Murray said:
The rule we’ve set ourselves is that it’s a game first, not a simulation. Space has to be fun, and everything you find in it should offer interesting ways of playing. So for instance, a black hole could be a really cool gameplay element, but maybe a supernova isn’t so much…
He continued to discuss the possibilities of natural disasters:
Rain, dust storms, snow, blizzards, storms, and a bunch of other things [are] possible. There are also more alien weather types, effectively like radioactive and toxic hazards, and atmospheres made from different compositions to ours.
GamespotNo Man’s Sky will also feature a host of randomly generated factions, each with their own personalities and characteristics, and how you approach them will usually determine how they interact with you.
Murray says:
Factions will become friends with you if you help them out, maybe by defending them against an attack from a warring faction or a pirate attack. Perhaps if you’re attacked and they’re around, they’ll come and help you in return, or maybe they’ll give you preferential treatment as a trader.
Unfortunately there is still no word on when the game will drop, with Murray only saying that the release date is being kept under wraps by factors out of his control. We do know that the game will be available on Playstation 4 and PC, and that the development team are currently considering virtual reality support.
Mark is the Gaming Editor for UNILAD. Having grown up a gaming addict, he’s been deeply entrenched in culture and spends time away from work playing as much as possible. Mark studied music at University and found a love for journalism through going to local gigs and writing about them for local and national publications.