Hype is a phenomenon that is by no means exclusive to the video game industry, but it’s one that burdens the most eye-catching titles that rear their head with each passing event. For Hello Games’ upcoming space sim No Man’s Sky, the studio’s sprawling, near-unfathomable adventure has been teetered to nine kinds of expectations, with some claiming it to be the most anticipated games in decades.
But, as Creative Director Sean Murray notes in an interview with The Guardian, hype and the preconceptions it fuels can be dangerous – particularly for a new IP trying to make a name for itself in such a competitive industry. Murray went on to reveal that “people say to [him]: there’s never been a game that’s had this much hype and hasn’t disappointed everyone.” So, no pressure, right?
Perhaps the reason No Man’s Sky has garnered so much attention prior to its debut is the sheer ambition lurking behind those striking, pastel-colored vistas. With a vast, procedurally-generated universe at your fingertips, there’s simply no way to explore everything on your lonesome, and that burning desire to set your proverbial sails for the unknown has piqued the collective attention of the industry.
So much so, in fact, that Murray also revealed that major publishers – including Sony – wanted to invest a significant amount of money to broaden the game’s scope. And though the developer didn’t delve into the finer details of those proposed expansions, he did confirm that the studio turned down financial offers in order to craft the game they intended to make in the first place.
“A lot of other companies would have taken the interest, taken loads of investment, grown the team massively and so on,” Murray said. “And of course, we did talk about things like that. But it felt like it wouldn’t work. We had an idea for a game and we may never be able to deliver on the hype. But we can deliver the game we set out to make. That has to be enough.”
No Man’s Sky has been tentatively slated for a release across PlayStation 4 and PC later this year.