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What To Do in No Man’s Sky After the Main Quest

So, you’ve navigated the vast expanse of No Man’s Sky, perhaps reached the galactic core, or completed the Atlas Path. Now what? The beauty of No Man’s Sky lies in its open-ended nature, meaning the “end” of the main story is merely a doorway to countless new possibilities. Far from being over, your journey has just begun! The game doesn’t end, it simply transitions into a more free-form exploration and self-guided experience. Here’s what awaits you after the main quest:

Exploring the Endless Universe

Embracing the Freedom of Exploration

The primary allure of No Man’s Sky is its sheer scale. With over 18 quintillion planets scattered across 255 galaxies, there’s always something new to discover. After the main quests, you’re free to focus entirely on exploration:

Venture into New Galaxies: Reaching the core of a galaxy will transport you to the next, each with its own unique characteristics. This essentially acts as a “New Game+”, giving you a fresh start with familiar but distinct environments. Explore different galaxy types (e.g., lush, harsh, empty) to experience varied challenges and resources.
Planet Hopping: Find your favorite kind of planet – perhaps a lush paradise, an exotic biome, or a desolate moon. Land on every planet within a system, and catalog and document the life there. Discover new creatures, plants, and resources.
Become a Cartographer: With endless planets to visit and catalog, you can spend countless hours exploring. Scan every planet, document the various flora and fauna, and upload for credits, becoming a renowned explorer of the stars.

Base Building and Customization

Beyond exploration, base building is another cornerstone of the No Man’s Sky experience. After the story, you can dedicate more time to:

Expanding Your Bases: Build sprawling bases on planets of your choice. Experiment with different architectural styles and customize your living spaces to your liking.
Unlocking More Base Parts: Continue your research at the Anomaly to unlock all available building parts and create truly unique and complex structures.
Constructing Specialized Facilities: Create farms for resources, industrial processing centers, or even aesthetically pleasing resorts for your space-faring friends.

Refining Your Character and Fleet

Ship and Tool Upgrades

Now’s a great time to optimize your gear:

Hunting for an S-Class Freighter and Ships: These coveted ships offer maximum storage and efficiency. Take your time finding the perfect vessel, be it a majestic Star Destroyer-style freighter or sleek Interceptor.
Upgrading Your Multi-tool: Seek out new multi-tools with better stats and upgrade them with specialized modules, such as the powerful Blaze Javelin, Scatter Blaster, or Neutron Cannon.
Acquiring Exosuit Upgrades: Enhance your exosuit’s capabilities to survive in harsher environments, carry more resources, and sprint longer distances.
Optimize Tech Upgrades: Fully max out your tech upgrades on your ships, suit, and multi-tool, allowing you to tackle the game’s most challenging environments and scenarios.

The Art of the Trade

Establishing Profitable Farms: Create automated farms that produce valuable resources like Venom Urchin or Gravitino Balls. Trade these for vast amounts of units.
Mastering the Trade Routes: Learn which systems offer the best prices for specific goods and maximize your profit by trading between stations.
Becoming a Pirate (or a Defender): Engage in space combat by attacking freighters for their cargo, but be prepared for a fight with the Sentinels. You can also join in protecting freighters from pirates to earn rewards.

Endgame Activities and Challenges

Missions and Community Goals

While the main story is complete, there’s still plenty to do:

Completing Space Station Missions: Accept a range of missions from space stations to earn rewards like nanites, units, and upgrade modules.
Participating in Community Research: Join other players in the Space Anomaly to contribute to community goals and unlock unique rewards.
Weekly Missions: Complete weekly challenges, such as the “Nexus” missions in the Space Anomaly, to unlock exclusive cosmetic items and currency.

Exploring the Lore and Secrets

Glyph Hunting: Track down and activate every portal in order to unlock new locations that would be otherwise unattainable. Finding every glyph unlocks a wealth of new locations.
Delving into Ancient Ruins: Discover the secrets of the Atlas and other ancient civilizations by exploring ancient ruins and interpreting the lore.
Following the Atlas Path: There is an alternate ending if you complete the Atlas Path by collecting Atlas Stones. This way reveals the lore of Atlas.
Unlocking Lore: Unravel the mysteries of the universe and find clues about its creation by visiting alien monoliths, abandoned buildings, and ancient ruins.

The Endless Cycle

Essentially, after the main quest, the game transitions into a self-directed cycle of exploration, improvement, and creation. Whether you’re seeking to build the ultimate base, become the richest trader, master every combat scenario, or simply wander among the stars, No Man’s Sky offers endless opportunities for player-driven adventure. The core loop of exploring, collecting, crafting, upgrading, and building continues, allowing you to shape your own unique story within the vast universe.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. Can you still play No Man’s Sky after beating the game?

Absolutely! No Man’s Sky doesn’t have a traditional ending. The main quest serves more as a tutorial and an introduction to the game’s mechanics. Once it’s finished, the universe remains yours to explore and conquer.

2. Should I complete the story missions in No Man’s Sky?

Yes! The story missions unlock essential gameplay elements, provide a comprehensive tutorial, and grant you a substantial amount of free blueprints, which will save you a lot of grinding for resources.

3. What happens if you reset the simulation in No Man’s Sky?

Resetting the simulation transports you to a new galaxy, but damages all technology in your multi-tool and exosuit/starship’s primary inventories, requiring repairs.

4. How long would it take to fully explore No Man’s Sky?

It is mathematically impossible for one player to see every planet in No Man’s Sky. With over 18 quintillion planets, it would take billions of years even if visiting one per second.

5. What is the best weapon in No Man’s Sky?

The best weapons are subjective to your play style, but generally, the Blaze Javelin and Scatter Blaster are considered powerful choices.

6. How many hours does it take to 100% No Man’s Sky?

To complete the main objectives will take around 30 hours. A full 100% completion, exploring every nook and cranny will take 140 hours or more.

7. What is the end goal of No Man’s Sky?

The overarching goal is to reach the center of the galaxy. Doing so will transport you to another galaxy, which is like a form of “New Game+”.

8. Does No Man’s Sky have multiple endings?

Yes, there is an alternate ending, which can be reached by following the Atlas Path while collecting Atlas Stones.

9. What is the whole point of No Man’s Sky?

The game is built around five core pillars: exploration, survival, combat, trading, and base building. You create your own goals and experiences.

10. Can you pirate in No Man’s Sky?

Yes, you can engage in piracy by attacking freighters. This will trigger the Sentinel ships who will attack you in return.

11. Is No Man’s Sky map endless?

The game has 255 galaxies, each with countless planets to explore, effectively making the universe nearly endless.

12. Does NMS end when you reach the galactic core?

Reaching the core sends you to another galaxy, where you’ll have to repair broken technology, but doesn’t “end” the game.

13. What is the rarest creature in No Man’s Sky?

Rangifae are among the rarest creatures, with a 0.25% chance to spawn on a planet.

14. What is the best thing to make to sell in No Man’s Sky?

Create a farm producing valuable trade commodities like living glass or circuit boards, which can sell for millions of units.

15. How much of No Man’s Sky has been discovered?

Less than 1/1,000,000,000 of 1% of the game’s worlds have been discovered, underlining its massive size.

What to do in No Man’s Sky after main quest?