Hello Games has launched the Cosmos update for No Man's Sky, a significant patch coinciding with the game's 10th anniversary. This update aims to fundamentally change the experience of space within the game, which developer Sean Murray described as one of their "biggest and craziest" additions yet.
Murray noted that while No Man's Sky has always been a space game, the void itself had seen little direct alteration since the game's initial release. The Cosmos update introduces a suite of new features designed to make space feel more alive and a place players can more deeply inhabit. Key additions include a new Star Map, expansive space hulks, additional space outposts, bio-wrecks, asteroid belts, and the ability to construct free-floating orbital bases.
Enhancing Space Exploration and Interaction
A highly requested feature, space station ownership, is now a reality, allowing players to purchase, customize, and decorate their own stations. These can serve as personal clubhouses or hubs for player-created alliances. The introduction of alliances enables players to collaborate, build networked empires across multiple stations, and compete on new leaderboards for dominance.
The update also brings perilous journeys to the center of star systems, a long-anticipated feature. Players can now undertake the challenging voyage to reach the star at the heart of their system. The patch notes detail various new celestial phenomena and points of interest discoverable via the Star Map, which can lead to new mission threads and exploration opportunities.
New Dangers and Rewards
Explorers will encounter large "space hulks," derelict structures that can be salvaged for resources using ship-mounted tractor beams and the physics gravity gun. However, players must be cautious not to over-exploit these wrecks, as they risk triggering meltdowns and explosions. New space outposts offer opportunities to trade with alien lifeforms, acquire valuable maps, and accept new missions.
Players should also be wary of bio-wrecks, some of which have been overrun by biological hazards that will require careful clearing and reclamation. The update enhances existing environments with the addition of gorgeous asteroid belts rich in valuable crystals, some of which are large enough to land on and build bases.
An Anniversary Expedition
Accompanying the Cosmos update is a new expedition titled "Our Journey Continues!" This expedition features milestones that reflect the 40 major updates No Man's Sky has received since its 2016 launch. The expedition acts as a retrospective, allowing players to unlock features from past updates while also accessing a spacelog containing interesting facts and developer commentary on each milestone. Murray expressed that revisiting these past moments has been a significant joy for the development team.