Is No Man's Sky an MMO?
No Man's Sky is a video game that features an expansive universe in which players can adventure through spaceships, spacesuits, while discovering new planets, surviving and finding new forms of life. No Man's Sky was developed and published by Hello Games. No Man's Sky has been praised for the size of its universe, the variation between planets, locations and life forms, as well as the overall gameplay experience and innovation in the video games industry. Players who have not yet experienced No Man's Sky may wonder whether this video game can be considered an MMO (massively multiplayer online) video game, or whether it is a single player video game. Especially considering the size of the universe of No Man's Sky, and also that it features multiplayer aspects, there are indeed similarities between No Man's Sky and MMO video games.
No Man's Sky is not an MMO, because it can be played offline. While this video game features social and multiplayer elements, it can also be played in single player, which is why it is not a typical MMO video game.
Elements of MMOs in No Man's Sky
- Persistent, shared universe between players
- Multiplayer and social features
Elements of Single Player Video Game in No Man's Sky
- Can be played offline
- Can be played in single player
- Different game modes
The Elements of No Man's Sky
No Man's Sky features an expansive game universe in which player characters are able to adventure and discover new planets and life forms. While No Man's Sky is often played in multiplayer, with friends and other players, this video game can be played and in single player. More importantly for this article, No Man's Sky can be played offline, without an Internet connection, and this is an important reason why No Man's Sky should not be described as a typical MMO, even if it features the social aspects and multiplayer aspects also seen in MMO video games. To be more precise, No Man's Sky is a survival and adventure video game that features both single player and multiplayer aspects.
Internet Connection in Most MMOs
While many MMOs and MMORPGs can be played in single player, these video games require a constant Internet connection. This is the case for most of the mainstream MMORPGs and MMOs. In these video games, if the player does not have an Internet connection, then the player is unable to play these video games. Moreover, if the player has an unstable Internet connection, the player will often have several difficulties while playing the video game, such as being disconnected.
Similarities Between No Man's Sky and MMOs
Such as in mainstream MMOs, in No Man's Sky, players are able to help each other, communicate, and facilitate their progress in the video game. Moreover, players characters inhabit a shared persistent universe between several players, a characteristic that is most often seen in MMO video games, but also in some survival video games which feature player-hosted dedicated servers. Due to these similarities, some players describe and consider No Man's Sky as an MMO video game. Although No Man's Sky features some of the aspects of typical MMOs, its lack of need for an Internet connection in order to be played is a defining factor and difference between No Man's Sky and a typical MMO video game. To be more precise, due to its lack of necessity of a constant Internet connection, No Man's Sky can be played as an MMO, and it can also be played as an offline single player video game.
Why Is No Man's Sky Not an MMO - Differences Between No Man's Sky and MMOs
While No Man's Sky shares similarities with mainstream MMO video games, No Man's Sky also features some typical features of a non-MMO video game. While No Man's Sky can be played with friends and other players, this video game can also be played and experienced in single player. To be more precise, the player does not require the presence of other players or friends in order to progress through the video game, unlike some mainstream MMOs which will often require the player to form groups, parties and guilds in order to reach certain points of progression in these video games. MMOs, and especially MMOs of the 2000s and early 2010s, often featured these aspects as an incentive for players to socialize and form groups. However, as time went on and some MMOs lost population, these aspects which originally were intended to incentivize players to socialize became barriers of progression as the lack of population in these video games would present a challenge for players to find groups, parties and guilds. This type of barrier is generally not seen in single player video games and in non-MMO video games. While more recent MMO video games have employed more strategies for players to play through the content of the video game solo, including AI NPC companions to help the player character, as well as content that is designed to be soloable, many MMOs also feature gameplay systems that may require groups of player characters, such as parties and guilds. In the specific case of No Man's Sky, this video game can be played in single player and does not require the player to form groups, such as parties or guilds, with other players. This one of the important reasons why I do not consider No Man's Sky to be an MMO, in addition to the fact that it does not constantly require an Internet connection in order to be played.
The Case of No Man's Sky
While the lack of need of a constant Internet connection is a very important difference between No Man's Sky and mainstream MMO video games, at the same time No Man's Sky is a video game with prominent multiplayer and social aspects. Even though this video game can be played in single player, many players play No Man's Sky with friends and other players. Moreover, there are many aspects of a persistent, shared universe between players, which is indeed a typical characteristic of an MMO video game. For this reason, while in this article I do not consider No Man's Sky to be a typical MMO video game, it is also reasonable to describe No Man's Sky as a video game that shares many similarities with MMO video games.
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