Light No Fire expectations grow as developers promise even more content at launch

The company that brought you an unfinished and boring game that took years to fix is currently working on another game that we hope lives up to expectations this time around. No Man’s Sky eventually became cool, but has Hello Games learned from the launch?

First revealed in 2023 during The Game Awards, Light No Fire is another open-world exploration game with a procedurally-generated planet. Except this time, you’re not in space but in the ocean. In an interview with PC Gamer, Director Sean Murray opened up a bit more about the highly anticipated game.

Light No Fire Gameplay Sounds Amazing, If True

Light No Fire has a ton of massive promises to live up to. There will be customized avatars (either human or anthropomorphic), multiplayer, and even dragons to ride – all on an Earth-sized planet. In the PC Gamer interview, Murray revealed that there will also be massive oceans that require players to explore very large ships with manned crews. Like No Man’s Sky’s Voyagers update, Light No Fire allows players to build and customize their boats.

It all sounds exciting, but can we trust the team to deliver?

“The technical challenges they have had to overcome to make any of this possible have been immense,” Murray admitted. “Almost every part of the game has had to be reworked to accommodate these relative spaces.”

When we first heard of No Man’s Sky, it sounded sick. The ability to travel to all these different planets with randomly generated weather, resources, creatures… At one point I think they even said essentially unlimited planets? However, the game was released without multiplayer, repetitive gameplay, empty-feeling planets with a lack of variety, and a pretty lame goal. Not to mention the bugs.

At first, Hello Games remained pretty silent amidst the disappointment and controversy. However, the developers eventually rallied behind the game, releasing massive updates that added depth to the gameplay and fixed bugs. This took years.

Light No Fire sounds similarly massive and extensive, with a planet the size of Earth, massive oceans, and many of the same early promises. I think we have a better chance of getting it right upon launch this time, however. I think Hello Games is better prepared this time around.

There is still no confirmed release date for Light No Fire, but it’s been confirmed that the team is still hard at work. I would honestly be fine if it took a few more years. Whatever it takes to actually be what it claims it will be.