2016 Gaming Awards – App Trigger Superlatives Edition

2016 Gaming Awards – Dumbest Gaming Decision of the Year – No Man’s Sky

When all you do before a game is released is promise the universe, delivering a galaxy still falls short. That was the ultimate undoing for No Man’s Sky, a tale of broken promises and unparalleled dreams for what would become the definitive space exploration gameplay experience.

Features like planetary physics, homogenizing ship details, a broader faction system, and a much more complicated resource distribution system were some of the main points of contention that fans found creator Sean Murray and the team at Hello Games failing to provide. There are countless promises that have been made about exactly what No Man’s Sky is, as documented online, but all of this came before the game launched.

Still, save for patch notes, most of Hello Games has gone radio silent, working on the ongoing development of No Man’s Sky as the gaming community at large passes them by. It’s easy to talk the talk; you need to walk the walk, as well. Talking a big game and then hiding to “fix” it when you release it isn’t noble, or calculated, or even misguided; it’s pure stupidity.

Next: Game Of The Year 2016, As Chosen By App Trigger Staff

No Man’s Sky looked to be the barter/space piracy/faction combat/explorer/adventure/narrative title that people were hoping Mass Effect Andromeda would be. Instead, it’s hardly any of those things, and still less functional of a game than any of its strongest suits on its own.

Hello Games promised the universe, and went hiding when they could barely muster a planet.