What just happened? If there's one thing we've learned about modern video games, it's this: just because something has a disastrous launch doesn't mean it will always be a failure. Cyberpunk 2077 is probably the most famous example, but No Man's Sky faced even more criticism and ridicule when it first launched. Eight years later, the space exploration game has finally reached an overall "Very Positive" rating on Steam.
The anticipation for No Man's Sky's release was so great in 2016 that the developer Hello Games received death threats over its seven-week delay. But the launch was an unmitigated disaster. Talk of 18 quintillion procedurally generated planets and the videos shown off at awards shows had people clamoring for the space sim, only to be disappointed when it launched without many features (including multiplayer), loaded with bugs and bearing little resemblance to the pre-release trailers.
There were claims that the studio had not only overpromised but downright lied about what the game would offer. A huge number of buyers were demanding refunds as concurrent player numbers fell to under 1,000 on Steam. Hello Games was even investigated for false advertising. It was found not guilty, but the fallout played a part in Valve banning bullshots from its Steam listings.
Not surprisingly, No Man's Sky started life with an Overwhelmingly Negative rating on Steam. But Hello Games continued to release massive updates, fixes, and new content, pushing it toward the game that CEO Sean Murray originally promised. Two years after release, its rating had reached 'Mixed', rising to 'Mostly Positive' in 2021.
Now, No Man's Sky has achieved something most people thought impossible: a 'Very Positive' overall rating, which means at least 80% of all user reviews are positive.
In April, celebrating a 1% increase in positive Steam reviews, Murray wrote that "I never thought it possible, but guys we might hit 'Very Positive' (80%) one day." He warned that "mathematically each % point is much harder to gain than the last."
After his prediction came true, Murray took to X to thank No Man's Sky fans. "Holy shit you guys - it happened," he wrote. "You have no idea what this means to us."
Holy shit you guys - it happened 🥳
– Sean Murray (@NoMansSky) November 27, 2024
ALL REVIEWS: Very Positive 😍
Thank you Thank you Thank you❤️
You have no idea what this means to us 🙏 pic.twitter.com/Go0uyZHZA6
Will No Man's Sky ever reach 95% positive Steam reviews to hold the coveted Overwhelmingly Positive rating? It might seem impossible, but then so did reaching this point.
This isn't the only redemption arc we've seen in gaming. Cyberpunk 2077, which also arrived to a wave of criticism and disappointment in 2020, hit a Very Positive Steam rating in July last year. Its Recent Reviews briefly hit Overwhelmingly Positive a year later.
Not everyone celebrates games making Lazarus-like recoveries. In 2021, Thomas Mahler, Moon Studios founder and director of the Ori series, called developers of games like Cyberpunk 2077 and No Man's Sky "snake oil salesmen" who shouldn't be forgiven so easily.
"They [Hello Games] released a bunch of updates, so let's forget about the initial lies and deception and hey, let's actually shower him [Murray] with awards again, cause he finally kinda sorta delivered on what he said the game would be years earlier."
No Man's Sky hits "Very Positive" Steam rating, 8 years after disastrous launch
