##
Five minutes into No Man-s Sky and I have discovered a new planet, shot an innocent unicorn lizard creature literally the first sign of life I had seen and angered a fleet of space police drones// Let me back up first// I-m at a suite overlooking the Los Angeles Convention Center meeting with Sean Murray, Managing Director for No Man-s Sky developer Hello Games// No Man-s Sky is a space exploration game that promises to support 18 quintillion procedurally generated worlds [that-s 18 trailed by 18 zeros], each of which are massive, colorful planets covered in various climates and procedurally generated creatures// The ultimate *goal,* if you need an incentive, is to explore your way to the very center of the universe// It-s a very ambitious project, especially given that the entirety of Hello Games is less than a dozen people//
## 18
QUINTILLION WORLDS Murray and I are talking about intergalactic continuity how the math behind the game works so that each procedurally generated planet will be the same for each player who visits [presumably because the *input* is based at least in part on spatial coordinates]// On a couch behind us, another developer is typing away on a laptop trying to find bugs in the game-s code// Sean is swimming through a lake on the planet Konanko scanning for new aquatic life// Above us looms a large trading post// Then he hands me the controller and tells me to go find a new planet// I thumb left through the dense cloud of dots and press X into the ether// A name pops up for a planet called Dreapolys// Like all things in this game, the name is procedurally generated, too, and if you-re the first to find the planet, you can rename it// That goes into the cloud for others to see; Murray promises they-ll try their best to find and remove offensive [likely genital related] titles//I warp into Dreapolys orbit// On stage at the E3 2015 demo, this took about five seconds// Here it-s more like 20 seconds still surprisingly quick, and something Murray says will be quicker by the time the game is released// I twist the nose of my spaceship to and fro to get a feel for my surroundings// I look to the large planet below and begin my descent to the dark side of Dreapolys// Murray points out that I should probably start moving towards the brighter side of planet; by the time I break into the atmosphere, ## I-m at the edge of daylight// Landing is thankfully easy just press triangle and my spaceship will find the next suitable spot and drop down// The part where I land is less grass and more rock, looking out over several small lakes// Still, it-s serene; large, simple shaped crystals of bold colors jut out of the surface// If I blast them with my *gun* which is also used for scanning the environment I can collect minerals to use in crafting upgrades for my gun, suit, or spaceship// I can also sell these minerals at various trading posts for space money and buy nicer guns, suits, and spaceships [you can only have one of each at any given time]// I scan the environment, looking for new creatures to add to my logbook// At the same time, a group of pink blurs are jumping past me// There was no imminent threat I don-t even think they noticed me//
##
I shot at the crowd and killed one with my first shot// Nice job, me// I-m already upsetting the ecosystem with unprovoked murder//The best way I could describe the creature is a pink, elongated unicorn / lizard hybrid// I-d like to say it was a mistake, that I had pressed the wrong button and intended to scan him// Nope// I think I was just curious what would happen// Nearby, a stout bunny / gnome looking thing looks up at me, clearly judging my actions// Then he looks past me and quickly hops away as I notice a glow at my feet// Cue the space police// As Murray tells me, mining [ie *shooting and collecting*] crystals and minor terraforming are fair game// Kill a living creature, however, and your wanted level goes up// The first responders are the tiny floating drones that emanate a light and shoot lasers// Killing one also only took a single shot, immediately raising my wanted level// Two more drones fly in, followed by an AT AT like walker// I scan to try and find my spaceship, but I-ve wandered too far away// I-m going to die here// The screen very quickly goes to black, with a quote from Dan Simmons- Hyperion Cantos laid over it I can-t remember what it was exactly
## Hello Games- Alex Wiltshire tells me the game will rotate through a series of classic science fiction quotes and one from Jaden Smith// The penalty of death is that all my progress on the planet anything I scanned or collected is lost// This whole story takes places over maybe ten minutes of playtime// If this is what No Man-s Sky is exploring random planets, doing dumb things, and telling your friends about it I think I-d be very happy// There-s no release date set for No Man-s Sky Murray says they were originally planning to announce it at E3 but those plans had changed [he didn-t elaborate on why] for both PlayStation 4 and PC// If you ever find yourself in Dreapolys and see a judgmental gnome bunny thing hopping, please remember what it-s had to witness and tell it I-m sorry//
