Despite everything that has transpired with No Man's Sky over the last five months, Hello Games is still hard at work adding more content and updates to the troubled open universe game. After releasing the Foundation Update about a month ago that introduced base building into the game, it appears as though No Man's Sky will be getting land vehicles at some point, potentially as the headline feature for the update that is currently in the pipeline.
Data Miners uncovered a mountain of evidence pointing to ATV/Buggy hybrid vehicles that will have equipable Jetpacks and Photon Cannons as well as a Vehicle Boost System. Here's an excerpt from a Google Doc containing the information.
BUGGYJETPACK1_NAME: ATV JETPACK ALPHABUGGYJETPACK1_DESCRIPTION: A gas-propelled vehicular jetpack system that can be fitted to the Hybrid ATV, to allow short bursts of flight.BUGGYJETPACK2_NAME: ATV JETPACK BETABUGGYJETPACK2_DESCRIPTION: An upgrade to the vehicle jetpack system that increases the maximum altitude and flight range of the unit, improving the versatility of the Hybrid ATV.BUGGYJETPACK3_NAME: ATV JETPACK GAMMABUGGYJETPACK3_DESCRIPTION: A further upgrade for the vehicle jetpack system, maximising the altitude and flight range of the unit, and rendering the Hybrid ATV suitable for even the most extreme environment.BUGGYBOOST1_NAME: ATV TUNE-UP ALPHABUGGYBOOST1_DESCRIPTION: Improved torque and acceleration, toughened shocks, and a longer range between refuelling for the Hybrid ATV.BUGGYBOOST2_DESCRIPTION: Improved air intakes for higher horsepower, ECU tuning, a strengthened chassis, and a longer range between refuelling for the Hybrid ATV.BUGGYBOOST3_DESCRIPTION: A high-flow exhaust system for added speed and acceleration, active traction tyres, and maximum range between refuelling for the Hybrid ATV.BUGGYGUN1_NAME: ATV PHOTON CANNON ALPHABUGGYGUN1_DESCRIPTION: Standard ATV-mounted weapons system, comprising twin small-round photon cannons with a dedicated power source.BUGGYGUN2_NAME: ATV PHOTON CANNON BETABUGGYGUN2_DESCRIPTION:Improved sighting and recoil dampening, and a longer charge capacity for the Hybrid ATV's mounted weapons system.BUGGYGUN3_NAME: ATV PHOTON CANNON GAMMABUGGYGUN3_DESCRIPTION: Improved firing rate, larger capacity and maximised photonic charge for the Hybrid ATV's mounted weapons system.BLD_VEHICLEGARAGE_NAME: ATV STORAGEBLD_VEHICLEGARAGE_DESCRIPTION: A proximity-locked, secure parking facility for the Hybrid ATV personal transport.
Land vehicles make a lot of sense considering one of the game's major failings is the sluggish pace of exploring entire worlds at a time. ATV/Buggy hybrid vehicles would solve a lot of the downtime issues and could potentially make exploration a great deal more engaging. Furthermore, the presence of mounted weapons on the ATV could also point to the potential for land battles. Land combat, as it stands now only consists of fighting off sentries and aggressive wildlife but mostly when you've done something to provoke them.
Could the pirates that you encounter in space, eventually come down to land (and maybe settle?) on a given world. I'm just spitballing now, but features like these would go a long way to adding some excitement to No Man's Sky's enormous galactic sandbox.
Source: [Power Up Gaming UK]
