One day, many years from now, someone is going to have to sit down and parse through the complicated legacy of 'No Man's Sky'.
The game, for those who don't know, was released to huge amounts of hype - which was stoked by its creator, Sean Murray - as the game to end all games. A procedurally-generated universe of planets to explore with endless possibilities was promised, but instead the game became a byword for dashed expectations. The backlash against the game was on a scale unheard of in the entire industry, but a subsequent update helped to ease some of the sting and brought in new features that were promised in the game's initial release.
Now, some two years after its first release, another update shifts the game on in an entirely new way and pretty much reimagines the game in an entirely new light. Speaking with Polygon, Sean Murray gave a full breakdown of what to expect in the NEXT (that's the title, not us shouting) update.
Among the points highlighted in the trailer was the huge visual overhaul, with the game fully playable in first or third-person view with planetary rings, improved planetary terrain generation, new ground textures, water textures as well as more detail added to NPCs, ships and buildings. You can also customise your third-person appearance, and most importantly of all, multiplayer is now a reality. The previous update allowed players to visit bases built by other players and see a sort-of representation of other players that you couldn't interact with.
The NEXT update, however, adds in an entirely new element. You can build colonies and bases together, lead raiding parties to prey on other players, and you can now own multiple bases and build far more intricate ones in the process. Not only that, fleets of capital ships are now an option.
Here's the trailer to give you a flavour of what's in store when the NEXT update lands on July 24th.
