Welcome to another edition of Paula’s Games Ramblings; you can find the other ramblings here.
I don’t know about you, but I’m glad January is over; it was a long month after the festive season. Of course, it’s not longer than any other month of the year, but it feels like it is with the dark winter nights.
Escape from the Real World
Apart from playing games because I enjoy gaming and I review them, gaming can also be my escape from the woes of real life; be it family, health or any problem that’s bothering me, gaming is my solution.
Even when I’m reviewing games, I always have one game I am playing that isn’t a game to be reviewed. A game that is entirely my choice to play.
Lately, I’ve been getting lost in space, discovering new planets, flora, fauna and strangely shaped creatures. Losing myself in hunting down anomalies, chatting with every alien life form I’ve met, and managing the resource I’ve collected.
No Man’s Sky
The game I’ve been playing on Switch is No Man’s Sky; you may have heard of it when it was released on PC years ago. It’s a survival adventure with different game modes, so you can tailor the game’s settings to your liking.
In addition, you may remember when No Man’s Sky was first released; it was a letdown for players. The game was different from what the Hello Games had promised and released on a shoestring budget. Since No Man’s Sky’s initial release in 2016, it has had many updates and improvements. Also, it has been released on the Nintendo Switch, and I bought it a few weeks ago.
Free Roaming
I’ve always enjoyed games that let me roam freely and do my own thing when I want to. I can follow the storyline quests or go off exploring, but ultimately the choice is mine to make.
Furthermore, I’ve a habit of wandering off when playing a non-linear adventure game, like, for instance, The Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild; when the game says you must go left to a particular village, you can get your bottom dollar that first, I will go the opposite way and go off exploring.
Exploring an open world is too tempting for me to resist, so I was drawn to No Man’s Sky for that reason.
In No Man’s Sky, I am playing an unnamed explorer who awakens on an alien planet near a damaged starship that needs to be repaired and refuelled. Once I repaired the starship, I was off to explore many different planets with unique atmospheres and plenty of available resources. The various planets, flora, and fauna are all procedurally generated, allowing billions and billions of different unique locations across a vast galaxy.
Sometimes I take a break from exploring new planets to start to uncover the game’s mysterious storyline: though that depends on my mood at the time. The storyline could be better; it’s not the worse, but I much prefer the freedom of flying around space.
In addition, I enjoy setting up and building a base on a planet I claimed as my own and making it home for a while. Though is never too long until the urge to explore grips me, and I’m off flying around space again.
When I’m moving around space, a song from many years ago comes to mind, here’s a snippet of it…
Space Oddity
Ground Control to Major Tom
Ground Control to Major Tom
Take your protein pills and put your helmet on
Ground Control
To Major Tom
Commencing countdown
Engines on
Check ignition….
Credit: Music and Lyrics by David Bowie.