No Man’s Sky, developed by Hello Games (backed by Sony on the promotional and publishing font,) first saw public release in 2016, with critics heaping praise on the interactive work’s technical brilliance – in the game’s 18 quintillion procedurally generated environments – while others decrying the system as monotonous, and predictable.

Available on PlayStation 4 and 5, Windows PC, and Xbox series X and S – as well as VR – the game is an action-adventure/ survival based game that will keep players busy with surviving, exploring, combating, and trading their way through an overwhelmingly vast universe – in first, or third-person perspective.

Gameplay

The universe is one’s oyster, as a user takes control of a customisable character, referred to – throughout the game – as Traveler, who is a humanoid in a spacesuit one ought to pay attention to upgrading. The Traveler’s Odyssey through uncharted space begins at the screen of a crash site at the edge of the galaxy, that is where one is equipped with a spacesuit, jetpack, and, super-useful multitool (all the better to scan, collect, mine resources, as well as kill one’s enemies with, my dear.)

The Traveller also has a Spacecraft that he can climb in, and out of, repair, and must refuel in order to get to all the various destinations within the game. The player is free to carry out the base activities of the game in any way they like; Trader, Bandit, Explorer, or what have you? However getting-by means getting ‘units’ (in-game currency) which one can get through exploring, selling resources they mined, or stole, as well as, trading trading.

The planets one can explore, as well as discover, on-game are teaming with unique animal, plant life. Some are inhabited by sentient beings that the Traveller will find, either welcoming enough to collaborate, and trade with, or hostile enough to warrant the delivery of a space age smiting. A good number of the planets the traveller will land his exo-suited behind on will house atmospheres that are extremely dangerous, and could prove corrosive to the survival suit – detrimental to overall, staying alive. Keeping the Traveller from kicking the bucket requires continuous upgrades to the suit, that means running about the galaxy, collecting blueprints to craft said upgrades.

As previously mentioned, No Man’s Sky’s gameplay is pretty open ended, but there is a sentient being at the centre of the No Man’s Sky galaxy, which guides players here and there. The fact that one finds better resources towards the centre of the universe – where the entity known as Atlas can be found – suggests that there may be more to this being than meet the eye. It certainly seems central – in some obscure way – to the overall arch of the No Man’s Sky narrative.

No Man’s Sky On VR

No Man’s Sky delivers incredible graphics, and visuals on any screen, console, or PC, but the immersive experience of Virtual Reality is where this bugger really comes alive. While other headsets render the game’s graphics with high resolution graphics, the gameplay has been reported to suffer from Immersion Sickness inducing choppiness. PlayStation VR, on the other hand, seems to offer the smoothest experience, though the graphics are a tad grainier – while the Valve Index is said to offer the best of both.

The No Man’s Sky: Beyond VR patch, for Xbox, PlayStation VR, and PC (released 2019) made it possible for fans of the game to immerse themselves in the No Man’s Sky universe and experience it in a whole new way. The VR experience of the game gives one a full sense of just how immense a 18 quintillion procedurally rendered galaxy truly is. Just the scale of objects, from standing next to a spacecraft, to facing-off with a giant creature on a planet one has just landed on, to the sphere size of some of the rocks one sets foot on while playing this game, everything is just so amazingly almost-real.

The game offers a variety of movement options. Allowing one to, either walk around as normal, or zip about VR style – if one has the stomach for it. The Hello Games team clearly paid a lot of attention to detail, as the game controls very intuitively, though controls are very different to the screen version of the game. Sitting in your spacecraft’s cockpit, flying through space, or fending off marauders is where the VR experience of No Man’s Sky really shines, however.

The VR No Man’s Sky has the makings of a cult classic that informs the evolutionary direction of VR gaming. As the patch simply renders an, already, expansive title for VR gameplay. Future VR titles could become longer, and more elaborate. It certainly sets some standard, in terms of the intuitiveness of controls.

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However, the climb up has at times seems sluggish, having only really started to build up momentum and deliver on the promise to eager consumers in recent years. Not only have the headsets improved, game developers have also started paying more attention to this particular field, resulting in a greater variety of offerings to suit different tastes and levels of experience.

However, variety can sometimes make choosing the right game to suit your taste a little trickier. Here is a list of good quality immersive games that are sure to keep you coming back for more.

The Best VR Games On The Market In 2020

Half-life: Alyx

After going underground for more than a decade, the much adored Half-life franchise returns with what some commentators consider the best VR gaming release thus far.

This installation can only be different from the ones that came before it by way of being better. Fighting your way through the dystopian City 17 faced with alien threats, Combine soldiers, and solving those puzzles that the franchise has become known for. This Half-life with the added benefits of the technological advances that occurred during the decade of silence.

Beat Saber

This is a kinetic rhythm based game where the player must hack and slash away at colourful blocks the rhythm of the song that’s playing. This is a great choice for fans of Guitar Hero, and comes with 10 songs to play to as a standard.

No Man’s Sky

Another great sci-fi for those who are into space exploration, taking the player deep into the new worlds they discover and revel at vastness of space through your VR headset. Definitely a must have, even if you’re not necessarily a fan of sci-fi, it’s still a thrilling experience.

Gran Turismo Sport

This is a gaming franchise that has always worked to give players the most realistic race car driver experience that the tech of the time could support, this latest VR edition of the series is no different.

A lot of attention was paid to giving the game authenticity, from the exteriors and interiors of the featured cars, to the locations and tracks. A great VR experience for a wide range of people.

L.A. Noire: The VR Case Files

A game that has divided people’s opinions since before making the jump to VR. However, this is not the entire game but rather a selection of the crime epic’s cases that have been adapted for the VR experience.

It’s everything we know from the original with an added bonus of VR immersion, making the game that much more engaging. The only downside is that it requires a top of the range PC to get the best out of it, and those don’t come cheap.

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