No Man’s Sky PC vs. PS4: Which Should You Buy?

No Man’s Sky is finally available on both the PS4 and the PC after years of waiting for Hello Games’ virtual universe to finally release. While the game has been polarizing to say the least, we over here at Twinfinite thought highly of the weighted emptiness and freedom offered by the vast, cold expanse of space when we dove in on the PS4.

Friday saw the release of the game on the PC, just three days after it landed on Sony’s console. With No Man’s Sky offering an option of what to play on, many prospective players are stuck wondering what’s the better option between the two. Normally players would just go with the better price, but since No Man’s Sky costs the same on both platforms, that is no longer the simple tie-breaker it usually is.

We’re here to help you out with that so you can go home a happy space explorer and find your own meaning among the stars. 

Graphics

When it comes to art direction, No Man’s Sky looks good on either console. The finely-tuned algorithm that powers the procedural generation of the entire universe allows for some beautiful planets, lush flora, creepy animals, and more beautiful alien life to gaze upon. However, even though the game looks stunning on both platforms, you do have more options and therefore the opportunity for a better graphical experience on PC (depending on your PC’s specs of course).

The PS4 version of No Man’s Sky is as is. While graphical fidelity was boosted with the day one patch, players have no way of controlling how the game looks aside from the brightness setting. On PC there’s a full range of options including shadows, FOV, anti-aliasing, quality options (low, mid, high, etc.), reflections, and resolutions. You can fine tune the game to be the prettiest thing you’ve ever seen, dialing up the immersion of your experience. 

Controls

Controls are strictly a matter of preference. You can use a DualShock 4 or an Xbox Controller to play No Man’s Sky on PC if you want, and you’re stuck with a controller on PS4 (something you probably already knew). There’s also the option of button mapping on PC to better tailor your control needs.

If you’re in need of options, for whatever reason, then PC may be where you want to go. But, if you’re fine with the PS4’s controller then either/or is a viable option. 

How Does It Run?

Porting games to PC has led to growing concerns. It just seems like PC players can’t catch a break when certain console games finally make their way over to the powerful platform. It may be due to the seemingly infinite possible configurations thanks to a large market for different parts, but whatever the reason No Man’s Sky is currently struggling on computer. There are constant crashes, framerate issues, and other bugs plaguing the recent release, and while it’s highly likely that Hello Games is working on fixes, for the time being, the game is broken for many players.

That isn’t to say that the game is 100% issue free on the PS4, but the console version does seem to be running a lot smoother at the moment. It has the occasional crash, and there can be some framerate hiccups when the on-screen action becomes a bit too hectic, but the game actually runs pretty steadily other than those occasional issues. And, while it doesn’t have all of the graphical options that its PC counterpart offers, No Man’s Sky looks damn good on the PS4. 

So Which Should You Buy?

Deciding which to buy comes down to a couple of factors in the end: how long are you willing to wait and do you have a solid gaming PC?

The wait is a factor because right now No Man’s Sky has a lot of issues on PC. If you absolutely must play it now and have a working PS4 there’s really no reason not to pick it up on PC. It runs well, looks beautiful, and the controller gets the job done. There are zero issues with playing on the PS4, you’ll only be giving up potential options in terms of control and visual presentation, neither of which necessarily hold the game back in any way.

However, if you don’t mind exercising a bit of patience and have a powerful gaming rig, the experience will definitely be better on PC. Those graphical options allow you to dial up the immersion, and having the freedom to control the game as you want is hard to pass up on. There’s a lot to take in while playing No Man’s Sky, so any extra options are certainly welcome.

In the end, it comes down to what you want and where you’re playing. Either way, you’re in for a mesmerizing experience that just hasn’t been done before, so there’s no going wrong. Which platform are you planning on picking No Man’s Sky on now that you’ve considered the options? Let us know in the comments below.