I can’t wait for No Man’s Sky again!

I bought No Man’s Sky when it was initially released and I thoroughly enjoyed it.  It was, for me, exactly what it was advertised to be: a relaxing, chill space exploration game across an impossibly vast galaxy.  I collected materials, salvaged ships, hunted for alien relics, and hopped from planet-to-planet cataloging (and sometimes naming) all the flora and fauna I encountered.  I made up little stories for my “character” as they focused on translating alien languages, and generally had a great time.

No Man’s Sky had a lot of harsh critics, which I feel gave it an unfair reputation.  Gaming sites and top 10 lists often listed it as “the most disappointing game of the year” or cited it as an example of “broken promises in gaming.”  I didn’t see any of that, having thoroughly enjoyed my time playing the game and chilling out among newly discovered planets.  But still the criticisms continued, and for a time I was scared the game would shut down under the verdict of the Court of Online Opinion.

But the developers stuck with their game.  They slowly added new features and fixed reported issues.  They changed and/or tweaked some aspects of the gameplay.  They clarified and streamlined some aspects of the story.  Over time, the critics moved on to hating the next thing that was popular to hate, and No Man’s Sky continued its gradual change and improvement.  I logged in every so often to check in on the game, and was always impressed by how much work they were continuing to put into it.

All this seemed to be leading to their big announcement, which has me giddy with anticipation.  No Man’s Sky: Next looks absolutely amazing.  And it’s coming to XBox One, which is the platform I’ve always wanted to play it on!

What has me the most excited about all this is the lesson to be learned from the development and evolution of No Man’s Sky.  The criticism it received was harsh, and unfairly so in my opinion.  But instead of buckling under the weight of negative opinions, instead of giving up in the face of proclaimed “failure,” the developers stuck by their vision and worked on it.  They put the time in and fought an uphill battle to improve their game and redeem it in the eyes of those who found it unfavorable, all without losing sight of their original vision.  That not only takes dedication and love, it takes guts.  That kind of courage can take you a long way.

Dedication and courage are virtues that are worth cultivating, in creative fields or anywhere else.