The No Man’s Sky’s Reviewer’s Note Is Fascinating (And Mentions Australia)

No Man’s Sky is out tomorrow in Australia, but we’ve just received our copy. It comes with a note from game director Sean Murray and it’s sincerely interesting.

I’ll just post it here for your reading pleasure.

I feel sick writing this.
You are about to play No Man’s Sky and I don’t know what you’ll think.
I know I’m proud of it. I’m incredibly proud of the tiny team that is making a game at a scale that’s never been done before. At times I can squint my eyes and see that we’re generating entire planets, solar systems, galaxies on a PS4, and see that maybe that could be a part of how games are made in the future.

At times I can let myself feel proud that our indie game is going to be in shops. That we have a media kit! That you are even taking the time to play our game, when our previous games might not have.

I know I’ve watched playtesters get totally consumed in our universe… but I’ve also seen people feel lost. I’ve seen kids weaned on Minecraft lose themselves, and I’ve seen others feel lost. I don’t know how you’ll feel. I don’t know if we can ever live up to the hype we’ve generated, sometimes knowingly, often not.

I know my strongest memory growing up in the outback of Australia, seeing the stars at night, and feeling overwhelmed. Reading sci-fi and wishing I could escape into those worlds. If for one small moment I can make some people feel tar they have stepped through a science fiction book cover, or to think briefly about the size of our universe… then I’ll be happy with that.

Thank you so much for taking the time to play.
I appreciate it. Hope you enjoy.

It’s not completely unique for review copies to come with notes from the developer, but it is rare. It’s rarer still for them to have this sort of tone. I don’t know how I feel about it. It makes me understand the pressure of making and releasing a game like this, the weight of that expectation. It’s powerful. I’m glad I don’t have to review it, that’s for sure.

It’s also nice to think that Australia, and the night sky, was an inspiration for this game. That’s pretty cool.


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