Star Wars Outlaws is the newest addition to the catalog of sci-fi space exploration in video games. The new game is currently sharing the limelight with Bethesda’s 2023 planet-hopping RPG, Starfield. But there was another space adventure game on the scene years before these two were released: No man’s heaven. It may seem unfair to compare two current-gen Triple-A games with an indie game from 2016, but that’s exactly what one YouTuber did — and the results aren’t quite what you might expect.
YouTuber NikTek Uploaded a video comparing what landing on a planet looks like in all three games. All three start the same way, with the spaceship approaching a planet.
How the actual landing sequence is handled, however, differs from game to game. And even though it’s a much older game from a small studio, hello games No man’s heaven emerged as the clear winner.
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No Man’s Sky tops both Starfield and Star Wars Outlaws with its spaceship landing animation
A much more subtly hidden loading screen
Star Wars Outlaws Hides a loading screen by showing the ship flying through the clouds of the planet. The scene then shifts to an automatic landing animation that ends with protagonist Kay Vess standing up and approaching the exit. Starfield Doesn’t bother to hide the loading screen. The player picks where they want to land from a static map and loads into the automated landing animation sequence. This is followed by yet another dark loading screen.
No man’s heavenOn the other hand, it handles the landing much more seamlessly. The entire sequence is displayed without any traditional loading screens – Only a very quick transition from space flight to flying in the atmosphere of the planet – or landing cutscene, instead allowing players to interact in real time with the planet they are approaching. The spaceship can land anywhere, and each planet has a unique environment and atmosphere that is procedurally generated, making the seamless transition even more impressive. The dynamic nature of travel in NMS Makes each visit to a planet completely unique, whether players land in the middle of a storm, get attacked by enemies on the way down, or have to shoot down some space debris that jumps their way.
Before it became the indie success story that it is today, No man’s heaven Went through a couple of rough patches. The great investigation of No man’s heaven Today looks very different than it looked when it first launched and its success hinges on dedicated developers listening to a passionate community. However, it’s worth noting that the specific element being compared here, the planet-landing mechanic, has been a part of the game since its initial release over eight years ago.
YouTube user hakimehamdouchi7468 summarizes viewer reaction to the video with a tongue-in-cheek comment: “It’s unfair to expect 2 AAA studios to compete with the indie studio that made Joe Danger.” Star Wars Outlaws And Starfield Are not bad games by any means, with Star Wars Outlaws In particular being absolutely gorgeous. and yet, No man’s heaven Has earned a place at the top of space exploration games and shows how to do long-term development support properly.
Sources: NikTek/YouTube, hakimehamdouchi7468/YouTube
Adventure
Action
Survival
- Released
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August 9, 2016
- Multiplayer
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Online multiplayer, online co-op
- motor
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Proprietary
- ESRB
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T for Teens: Fantasy Violence, Animated Blood
- How long to beat
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30.5 hours
- File Size Xbox Series X
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20.36 GB (September 2024)
- Metascore
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83
- Platforms that support crossplay
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PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S
- PS Plus Availability
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N/A
- Cross-platform game
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PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PC