According to a recent post on the Xbox Wire, Hello Games’ hit No Man’s Sky will be joining Game Pass in June. According to Sean Murray of Hello Games, there is much in store for existing and future players. He cites the latest major free update, Beyond, as well as regular updates including the Living Ship and Exo-Mech as examples of ongoing support for the game.
The launch of No Man’s Sky on Xbox One was not without its issues. The corresponding NEXT update which launched with the Xbox One iteration also introduced multiplayer gaming to the title. However, while solving some of the existing problems gamers experienced in the game, it also brought its own host of bugs. Games have bugs. Bugs get patched. Patches bring new bugs. It’s a seemingly-infinite cycle, however, companies like Hello Games go out of their way to service their titles well into the future beyond release.
Unfortunately, as is the case with any wildly-anticipated game, the biggest issue with No Man’s Sky appeared to be the varying expectations of would-be players. Much like different receptions received by Peter Molyneux (formerly of Lionshead and Fable fame) gamers came to expect things of this title that, in some cases, weren’t possible at the time of its release. While the company has stood by its game from the beginning, it was met with reviews running the full gamut of emotions – from ecstatic to outraged – depending on the expectations of the individual gamer. Even more unfortunate was the fact that, in our toxic online culture, these realistic disappointments (or sometimes unrealistic demands) were accompanied by hateful conduct from those who represent the worst of humanity as a society. Personal attacks. Vilification. Death threats.
Just as it takes a special fraction of “person” (following the loosest definition of the word) to attack and threaten their fellow humans because a creative product doesn’t match their expectations, it takes a uniquely special individual or group to stand by their art in the face of adversity. Murray and the team at Hello never wavered in their support of the game, and their assertion that the experience delivered was always the target at which they were aiming. And while toxins tear down and destroy, tonics build up and support. The teamwork and positivity at Hello Games serve as a tonic – a cure potion, if you will to the negativity that pervades internet culture. They just continued to adapt, develop, and expand the experience to bring more gamers into the fold, and to meet the expectations of every – yes, every – gamer.
Those expansions include fixes to the various bugs that crop up in new releases and updates, as well as the aforementioned enhancements to multiplayer and the in-game universe, while still maintaining the almost Zen nature of the game’s exploration and discovery.
As a player of the game starting at the NEXT update and its accompanying Xbox One launch, I can confirm that gamers who have yet to try this game will find themselves exploring a mind-bogglingly vast and deep universe. Yet, somehow, the game still manages to be somehow… relaxing. I know I’ve barely scratched the surface in the game, but look forward to jumping back in, and now I’ll have an additional 10-million-plus potential teammates when the game comes to Game Pass this June. Enjoy!
