In this first episode of the term, we discuss the highly controversial game No Man’s Sky. We go in depth with the early and more recent marketing of the game and how Hello Game’s relationship with Sony helped and hindered the development process of the game. We also talk about our personal experiences with the game, how the procedurality is executed in comparison to similar games. We close out the episode with a discussion about how games scholars and media archeologists might want to approach a game like this.

• Killscreen: “No Man’s Sky is a Theater of Processes”
• David Craddock: “Procedural Dungeons of Doom: The Making of Rogue – Chapter 1″
• GDC 2016: Tanya Short and Tarn Adams: “Practices in Procedural Generation”
• Felan Parker: “Infinite Typewriters: Canon, Criticism, and Bioshock” and “Canonizing Bioshock: Cultural Value and the Prestige Game“
• First Person Scholar: “Interview with Chris Park”
• Rob Parker: “Voluntary Constraints”
• Austin Walker: Real Human Beings: Shadow of Mordor, Watch Dogs and the New NPC
• Natalie Zina Walschots: “#BloodbornePoems: May the Good Guide Your Way”
• Mark Johnson’s Ultima Ratio Regum
• No Man’s Sky Archaeological Survey Code of Ethics