What drew you to play No Man's Sky initially?
Initially I'd heard of the game at the E3 reveal interview a couple years before the release. The procedural tech was a new innovation and I was interested in how it would work at this scale. When the game was released for purchase on Steam, I picked it up.
Now that you're an experienced NMS player, what do you think of the game?
Actually, I was happy with the original release. It had rough spots, for sure. Even then, I sunk many, many hour into the release version and always enjoyed the experience.
What impresses me the most is the fact that Hello Games turned to face the issues of the game, continued to stay focused on giving the players a great experience and ultimately delivered on their initial promise.
At this point there is so much great content and a health range of play options available. The game today can be pretty much anything you want to make of it. There are limits and repetition but I tend to find myself just hanging out in the universe and doing not much of anything at all. It's extremely relaxing."
How did you get started building in NMS?
Originally there was a short starter quest to teach you the game systems. After that, I never really gave it any thought.
One day, I stumbled across a player base in the middle of nowhere. It was a cave base build buy a player named Kellz_503. The design and construction was way outside anything the basic build system had taught me. That base was so far out there from a build perspective. It got me interested in learning more about what you could do with the NMS build system.
I started exploring more about base building in NMS to find out how it was possible. I eventually ran across reddit posts, youtube videos, etc and was eventually able to piece together a path to learn how glitch building worked.
What is it about building bases that you enjoy most?
The creativity and challenge. There are so many things to learn and explore. So many ways to approach building. It's always interesting. Also, sharing base builds with people, visiting their builds, teaching people what I've learned and learning new things in turn. It's one of the best games I've ever encountered for things like this.
How would you describe your design aesthetic?
Well-used Industrial, brutalism, cyberpunk, Firefly-style frontier tech and a bit of whimsy.
Where do you find your design inspirations?
I'm a fan of scifi and fantasy stories. I also have a background in system design and industrial design. I pull references from all the materials available throughout all those areas of interest.
Do you usually have a clear picture of what you're going to build before you start?
Sometimes. I mean, i usually have a vague idea of where I want to end up. Sometimes I sketch out what I want to try. More often than now, what I end up with is near where I wanted to be when I started but different from what I thought it would be.
How do you choose locations for your builds?
Most of the time, I go by feeling. When a place as a certain "vibe" or if it has a great view it'll grab my attention.
How do you choose locations for your builds?
Most of the time, I go by feeling. When a place as a certain "vibe" or if it has a great view it'll grab my attention.
Tell us a little about your thought process when you begin a build.
I always start with a backstory. Some guiding narrative that helps me keep the idea of the space alive in my mind while I build. That narrative helps me create a sense of meaning or purpose for everything in the build.
From my experience as an engineer and a designer of complex systems, I've learned to build from the perspective of modular structures, potential growth and portable templates. My builds tend to evolve along these themes, incorporating new techniques and ideas with every new build.
What techniques and tools do you use?
There's a healthy mix of standard building, glitch building and free placement by hand in all my builds. I'm on a PC so I also have access to the full range of mods.
How do these techniques and tools fit into your process?
Eventually, if I have a solid design from one of the experiments, I'll use the save editor to copy the base into a new save at a desired location.
What are the pros and cons you encounter by using these techniques and tools?
Glitch building adds a nearly infinite amount of options for creative design. The use of save file editing for moving bases around gives me the ability to use bases as templates. The only real downside to using these more advanced techniques is that way you play the game changes from one type of challenge into something completely different. The altered style of play is great but it does lack some of the value of playing while not in "God Mode."
What do you find most challenging about building in NMS?
Aside from the placement of stairs (what I affectionately call the Stair Mini-boss) I think balancing the build part count and the game's ability to render complex bases to always be a factor. The stability of the upload/share function for base builds is always a bit of a challenge as well. Having a bunch of player bases in close proximity is another huge issue.
How do you deal with a design that just isn't working?
Learn what i can from what I have done. Try to find some new way of looking at it and begin from there. Or just junk it and start over. Most things won't work out the way you intended. It's all part of learning to build.
Has there been any specific design type or style you've not found a way to create?
I do struggle with unstructured builds. Maxamus88 builds incredible bases with mostly just plant parts. That is a style I appreciate but have a tough time pulling off.
How would you recommend someone new to NMS begin learning to build?
Find a builder to help get you started, join one of the builder communities and check out build tutorials on youtube.
What additional advice would you give to new Builders?
Just get started. You'll be glad you did.
