Hidden files suggest ground-based vehicles are coming to No Man's Sky

Like a putrid fist punching through well-tended cemetery sod in the wee hours of a clammy, fog-enshrouded October morning—but in a good way—Hello Games recently sprung back to life to announce, and then quickly deliver, a No Man's Sky update of considerable substance. I'm still not convinced that building bases is entirely compatible with my fantasies of sailing amongst the stars, but coupled with the new Survival mode, teleport-equipped freighters, and improvements to the inventory management, the Foundation update sounds like a big step in the right direction.

Hello Games said when the Foundation update was announced that it represents "a foundation for things to come," and it seems that it may have meant the point literally. Poking through the No Man's Sky files after the update, a Redditor by the name of eegandj discovered the presence of a folder named "Buggy," which further investigation revealed was not a sly comment on the state of the game but rather a land-based vehicle, confirmed by the presence of references to "tire textures." He also found what appears to be an unused "specialist terminal" for ground vehicles, and models of buggy wheels that he was able to import into the game.   

Obviously this doesn't mean that we're on the cusp of a No Man's Mako, but the fact that this much of it exists within the confines of the game would certainly suggest that the wheels are turning. (That's right, I went there.) I've emailed Hello Games to ask if we can look forward to doing some interstellar burnouts in the future; for now, you can kick the tires yourself with the "Land Vehicle Test" mod (which, to be clear, just places the tires into the game so you can look at them) available from nomansskymods.com. Our own Chris Livingston is exploring the Foundation update as we speak, and will report on what he's found soon.

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Andy Chalk

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.