No Man's Sky is starting to look a bit rubbish.

[Hyena200]

I agree that with randomly generated content you just see the same assets popping up over and over in different constellations.

Its 'procedurally' generated, not 'randomly' generated. There's a big difference between the two. With procedurally generated content you can have infinte variations, you can't with random, which means in No Man's Sky its actually very unlikely that you'll see the same assets popping up over and over in different constellations. In fact, in No Man's Sky its unlikely that you'll EVER see the same asset twice. http://iq.intel.co.uk/no-mans-sky-procedural-generation/

Of course, you might not be able to tell the difference between "Seeing the same asset twice" and "Seeing the same damned things, but oh look, this time it's blue, or taller, or fatter, or has an extra leg."

If everything is still running on the same basic behavioral scripts, people are going to see individual assets for the pseudorandom strokes of pain they are. The issue then will be what's created with those brush strokes?

Not fucking much seems to be the answer so far.

Its certainly being judged currently by all the known gaming conventions we can think of. I seem to remember an early interview with Sean Murray in which he said you need to think beyond what you currently think games should be doing to get what NMS is about. But thats easier said than done for a generation of gamers who can't think beyond quests, objectives, multiplayer and pvp. Here's a true story, when the TV was first revealed everyone thought it would be rubbish and never catch on, because it wasn't a radio.

 

[EbonBehelit]

You've got the classic open-world game design problem at play here: the bigger the scope, the shallower the depth. How does one populate a near-infinite game world without using the same few concepts repeated as nauseum?

I mean, the game looked nebulous and sparse even with all the trailers being shown, but the confirmation that the game is effectively single-player only killed off what little interest I had.

 

[Hyena200]

Its certainly being judged currently by all the known gaming conventions we can think of. I seem to remember an early interview with Sean Murray in which he said you need to think beyond what you currently think games should be doing to get what NMS is about. But thats easier said than done for a generation of gamers who can't think beyond quests, objectives, multiplayer and pvp. Here's a true story, when the TV was first revealed everyone thought it would be rubbish and never catch on, because it wasn't a radio.

This isn't some genre breaking thing though.

This is the issue with gamers. You're building up so much hype that you think this game is going to reinvent the wheel.

Procedually generated assets aren't something new, and it isn't something ground breaking. What it means is that certain asset components have been created, and the game will slot those components together in different ways in order to form different looking assets.

And then, in order to further add to the variety, it uses procedually generated materials (many games use these) that use various colour values on the different conponents in order to add a variety.

There are still a finite type of trees, or a finite style of rocks. They haven't created a new style of gaming. You aren't required to think of this game as if it's breaking new grounds in gaming conventions. It's comparable to games like Minecraft.

Of course Sean Murray is going to say shit like that. Every fucking game presentation constantly use words and phrases like that in order to sell their game.

Well we'll see won't we. You seem cast iron sure its going to be shit, even though its not out yet, you haven't played it and you don't actually know what it'll be like. Personally, I'm keeping a more open mind. Most likely neither of us will be right and the game will hit a more middle ground because whilst, yes, procedural generation isn't new (i never said it was), used on this scale in this way to create every single thing in a game has not been done before. None of us know whats going to happen yet.

 

[ErrrorWayz]

I'm expecting this game to be the next Evolve.

In what sense? It's gonna go free to play after an initial cash grab and then subsequent rapid bombing?

 

[Hyena200]

Well we'll see won't we. You seem cast iron sure its going to be shit, even though its not out yet, you haven't played it and you don't actually know what it'll be like. Personally, I'm keeping a more open mind. Most likely neither of us will be right and the game will hit a more middle ground because whilst, yes, procedural generation isn't new (i never said it was), used on this scale in this way to create every single thing in a game has not been done before. None of us know whats going to happen yet.

No, I think it's not what most people are expecting. It looks like a vast open world game with nothing to do in it.

You're stating that you need to think of this game separate to any common gaming inventions. That really isn't true. This game isn't breaking any ground. Most of the things which are done in this game have already been done in others.

I just said the ground its breaking. No other game has attempted an entirely procedurally generated universe. Where every single thing, from the gun you shoot to the grass you walk on is generated by a mathematical algorithm. It is breaking new ground, like it or not. And the gaming conventions I'm referring to that you need to think beyond are the same ones which currently make you think there's nothing to do. But if your mind is made up before you've even played it, cool.

 

[Hyena200]

I just said the ground its breeaking. No other game has attempted an entirely procedurally generated universe. Where every single thing, from the gun you shoot to the grass you walk on is generated by a mathematical algorithm. It is breaking new ground, like it or not. But if your mind is made up before you've even played it, cool.

Other games have done that though. For example, Borderlands had randomly generated guns (basically resulted in 99% of them being trash), and even Fallout 4 promised to have fully custom weapons, to the point where you could turn a pistol into a sniper rifle grenade launcher, but they were never able to deliver on this. Spore had randomly generated monsters and planets. XCOM 2 generates different maps and enemy placement every game.

And these are just examples from the top of my head. My point is, that this game isn't doing anything that other games haven't done before.

No, other games haven't done this before, like I said, this is the first time a game has used procedural generation for EVERYTHING. Your examples are of games which used it for 'certain' things. Not 'everything'. There will be a difference in what happens when people play it. But to appreciate it takes a far broader mind than the one you've shown so far. One thing I will agree with you on though is that it won't live up to the hype. Its a victim of peoples misinterpretation of its own premise in that respect. But that also doesn't necessarily mean it won't carve its own path in gaming, for those who are interested in a game thats a bit different to everything we've been spoon fed over and over and over again for the past 20 years.

 

[Tohuvabohu]

You guys should feel proud, you said so many stupid things in a mere 2 pages Reddit picked it up to make fun of you.

In other words, just another Escapist circlejerk.

Welcome Reddit! And yes. It really is that stupid here.

 

[Denamic]

well this and the snobbish attitude of the developer.

I'll admit I haven't really been following the development of this game all that closely, but I've seen no evidence of this 'snobbish attitude' you mention. Examples?

 

[Hyena200]

But to appreciate it takes a far broader mind than the one you've shown so far.

I already know how the game works, what it generates, and what it's capable of

Can I borrow your time machine?

 

[Imperioratorex Caprae]

I'm of the mind that there's every chance of this game being fun as there is it being crap. What we've seen is cherrypicked, that is true but what we haven't seen either wasn't shown because it's being saved for a surprise or its being hidden. From a AAA dev, I'd automatically pick the latter, but with an indie dev, there's a good chance of the former being true.
I'm not hyped, but I am cautiously optimistic. I'm not going to be an asshole cynic and blast a game I've not played. That's just stupid.
I don't think its going to be revolutionary, but if it succeeds at half of what's been presented by the devs, it'll be nice to play. Likening it to Destiny or Evolve though is kinda apples/oranges in that its not an MMO or PVP arena shooter and its also not a AAA game heavily marketed by a clueless AAA publisher.

 

[Hyena200]

But to appreciate it takes a far broader mind than the one you've shown so far.

Again, this is an indie studio promising a game bigger than what AAA titles tend to be.

Also what does the size of it have to do with anything? In km squared yeah its bigger than you or I can imagine but thats possible because its all procedurally generated and conceived by some clever bastard who also happens to be a maths genius who devised a method of generating procedural terrain based on noise patterns and found a way to apply that to an entire game, and then found because of that he didn't need 600 people to make a universe sized game. Indie studios have produced some (arguably all) of the most innovative, ground breaking and interesting games of the past ten years precisely because they ARE independent. A concept like this is far better off in the hands of a small indie dev in Guildford than it is in the hands of ubisoft or rockstar who would fill the galaxy map with busywork quest markers because thats all they know how to do, and because their moneymen told them is what sells. Thinking beyond that is what I mean by needing a broad mind.

 

[Samtemdo8_v1legacy]

I'm expecting this game to be the next Evolve.

In what sense? It's gonna go free to play after an initial cash grab and then subsequent rapid bombing?

Along with the game leading to increadible dissipointment due to the hype it made.

I mean all the features they promised, everything about this game just spells, over-selling and under-delivering.

 

[chrissx2]

That was my problem with the game from the start .. well this and the snobbish attitude of the developer.

But this 'tech demo' looks like a good base for something great. I hope they will know how to push this concept forward.

Snobbish attitude?
Guy's the most humble dev dude I've seen in a long time.
In every interview it's "eh, I think it'll be nice".

I have nothing against the team, just that one guy, Sean Murray. There's something sinister about him. He looks like some villain that is trying to sell oxygen to people on earth . Maybe it's just his constant laught that creeps me out and creates that negative image for me .

 

[Madmatty]

I think it'll still be fun I just want to travel the galaxy discovering new species I'll be a biologist