What just happened? The No Man’s Sky Next update went off without a hitch — almost. Version 1.5 launched on July 24 for PS4 an XB1. Most PC users got the patch through Steam on Tuesday as well. The only players left in the lurch were those waiting for the update to hit on GOG.
The Next update, which includes a highly anticipated multiplayer experience, did not arrive on the Good Old Games storefront until more than 24 hours after everyone else got it. What’s worse is that the GOG update did not include the multiplayer feature.
“The multiplayer component will not be ready at launch,” said Hello Games in a post to the GOG community adding, “We expect it to be released later this year as full multiplayer parity remains in the pipeline.”
Despite the promise that it was still coming, many players complained, and GOG decided to extend its refund policy for disgruntled users. The store will refund any players who request one at the company’s own expense regardless of when the game was originally purchased.
“We know that many of you expressed disappointment about the lack of the new multiplayer feature in the latest update to No Man's Sky on [GOG]. For this reason, entirely at GOG's own cost, we’re offering an extended refund policy for all owners of No Man’s Sky. Even if your purchase is no longer covered by the 30-Day Money Back Guarantee, you can contact our customer support team, and we’ll issue a refund in wallet funds.”
It is unclear what is causing the delay. The difference between GOG and Steam versions of games is GOG’s are DRM-free. It wouldn’t seem that this would cause problems with multiplayer functionality. It might have something to do with the GOG Galaxy client though.
Galaxy is an app you can run on your computer locally. It is similar to the Steam client where you can browse, purchase, install, and launch games without the need of a web browser. It also provides a platform for multiplayer games acting as a hub of sorts.
“For a small, independent studio, developing the feature across multiple platforms is a hugely ambitious and technical challenge which resulted in this delayed release,” said the NMS devs. “Hello Games is, however, joining forces with GOG.COM to introduce full multiplayer via the GOG Galaxy platform.”
So perhaps it does have something to do with the multiplayer feature not cooperating with the Galaxy client.
Hello Games did not have a specific timeframe for when they would have the problem fixed, saying only that a patch would be coming sometime this year. In the meantime, if you purchased No Man’s Sky through GOG and would like a refund, go to their support page and submit a refund request.
https://www.techspot.com/news/75685-gog-version-no-man-sky-missing-multiplayer.html
