No Man’s Sky has launched its 10th anniversary Cosmos update across all platforms, introducing a complete overhaul of space itself. The massive release brings player-owned space stations, orbital bases, alien outposts, salvageable space hulks, and a new alliance system that changes how players explore the universe together.
No Man's Sky 10th anniversary update is here, and
Hello Games has rolled out one of the most ambitious expansions in the history of the exploratory space simulation game. Marking a full decade since the title debuted in 2016, the update tackles the vast stretches between planets—an area the studio acknowledged has remained largely untouched since the original release. Just this year, Hello Games has given players a gravity gun that lets them rip chunks of debris out of wreckage and fling them around, added an entire Pokémon-inspired monster-raising and battling system, and continued the steady stream of updates that has transformed the game far beyond what it was when it launched 10 years ago.
Space Station Ownership and Modular Orbital Bases
For the first time, players can purchase, decorate, and customize their own space stations inside a chosen solar system. These stations serve as personal headquarters or gathering hubs where friends are invited to enjoy your creative whims.
Alongside station ownership, the update allows free-floating modular bases to be constructed anywhere in space. According to Hello Games, players might like to create their own starship truck stop, military outpost, or perhaps even an orbital restaurant at the end of – well you know how that goes. Asteroid belts have also received a bit of a do-over, now containing a mix of rock and ice formations that provide intrepid space wanderers with valuable crystal resources. Some rare asteroids are massive enough to land on—which does, of course, mean they’re also large enough to build on…
Scavenging Space Hulks and Surviving Biological Hazards
Exploring a newly scanned system reveals fresh points of interest among the stars. Space now contains its own outposts, for instance, where you can trade with alien lifeforms, buy maps, get information about the area, take on new missions, and more. Among these discoveries are space hulks that can be stripped and salvaged using the gravity gun.
Any scrap you successfully secure can be thrown at your ship’s newly introduced tractor beam, but some caution is required. Get too greedy, and you might cause the hulk to melt down and explode. Elsewhere, space now contains bio-wrecks, some of which have been overwhelmed by biological hazards that may need to be cleared out in order to reclaim.
“No Man’s Sky is often referred to as ‘a Space Game’. It’s a huge part of our game, but we’ve never really updated space since release. In most sci-fi games, space is just an empty void. With Cosmos we wondered – can we make space feel truly alive? And could we make space feel more like home? What if you could own a space station? If you could build star bases, and create alliances with other players.”
Hello Games, Developer Unveiling
No Man's Sky's 10th Anniversary Update is a Massive
Alliances, Leaderboards, and Reaching the Sun
To tie all this together, as if there wasn’t already enough to be getting on with, Hello Games introduced a new alliance system. As an alliance, players can work together to build a networked empire of different stations and rise the new leaderboards to compete for the largest, richest, or most prominent alliance.
And finally, there’s the system’s sun, which – for the first time since launch – is apparently now reachable, although a perilous journey awaits those who try.
Museum-Style Anniversary Expedition
In one final 10th anniversary flourish, today’s release arrives alongside a limited-time expedition. It’s called – echoing No Man’s Sky’s long-standing mantra – ‘Our Journey Continues’, and seeing players working toward different milestones that each represents one of the exploratory space sim’s 40 major updates since launch in 2016.
“It is like a museum of each update, unlocking the features of each update as we added them, along with a spacelog of interesting facts and developers commentary for each update. It’s been a real joy to revisit some of those moments for us.”
Hello Games, Anniversary Release Notes
The Cosmos update launches today on all platforms (that’s – brace yourself – PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Switch 1&2, Mac, PSVR 1&2, PC VR and Game Pass), and full patch notes can be found on Hello Games’ website.
