Published Aug 19, 2026, 5:51 AM EDT
James is a gaming writer from London who has spent thousands of hours exploring titles from every genre. Though he has a particular affinity for multiplayer titles like World of Warcraft, Destiny 2 and League of Legends, he has also put thousands of hours into single-player experiences, from deep RPGs to epic PC strategies. When he's not playing or writing, he can usually be found supporting his beloved Brentford FC.
Though it was the Nintendo Switch that initially changed the proverbial game when it first released, the Switch 2 picked up that momentum and ran with it. Over the years, more games have been released for the console, to the point where it is now probably the most compelling piece of gaming hardware around.
The addition of older games solidified that legacy further, while the arrival of more and more third-party games opened up the ecosystem to those who were perhaps unwilling to take the leap beforehand. Happily, one of the very best examples of the latter is about to go free for a limited period, and it's well worth playing at no cost while you can.
As confirmed by Nintendo UK over on their official Twitter/X profile, players can enjoy the now beloved No Man's Sky thanks to a new game trial, which is set to get started on August 20. This comes as the game celebrates its tenth anniversary, with the decade of development marking one of the most remarkable turnarounds in video game history.
At launch, all the way back in 2016, No Man's Sky was widely considered one of the greatest disappointments in gaming history. Since then, the development team at Hello Games has released update after update, turning the game into something far beyond even the most lofty initial expectations.
Back to today, and a free play period is being given to players on both the original Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2, with the latter able to play the upgraded version of the game that takes advantage of the improved hardware. The offer is also set to run until August 26, with no limitations on how far you can play, so you really should be able to see most of what the game contains right now.
This new offer also comes ahead of the release of a final major update for the game, tentatively titled Cosmos. We don't know much about that yet, but Hello Games' lead Sean Murray shared a brief statement on where they have been, and where they're planning to go to next:
"Voyagers released last year saw more players than we’ve had since launch… and still, all these years later players have explored less than 1% of the planets in No Man’s Sky. In a similar way our small team feels we have a lot left to explore in what No Man’s Sky can be. In the background we are busy cooking on our next game Light No Fire, and big things for the future of No Man’s Sky, with the tease of our upcoming update titled Cosmos. More will follow!"
At the same time, social media has been abuzz about the potential of a further collaboration between No Man's Sky and creature collecting giant Palworld, with both games publicly chatting about the possibility. We'll have to wait and see how that turns out, but in the meantime, you could do a lot worse than playing the game on the Nintendo Switch 2.
Systems
Released August 9, 2016
ESRB T for Teen: Fantasy Violence, Animated Blood
Engine Proprietary
English (US) ·