Highlights

  • Lightyear Frontier is a relaxing co-op farming game with similarities to No Man's Sky, including mech suits and multiplayer exploration.
  • The game differs by focusing on casual gameplay with no survival mechanics, offering a tranquil experience with a variety of farming elements.
  • While Lightyear Frontier may not feature interplanetary travel like No Man's Sky, it still holds potential for fans of cozy farming sims.

Despite its initial divisive launch, Hello Games' No Man's Sky has risen through the ranks and become one of the most prominent space exploration and survival games on the market, leaving an undeniable mark on the gaming industry in the process. However, fans of No Man's Sky may find an attractive detour in FRAME BREAK and Amplifier Studios' upcoming casual farming adventure, Lightyear Frontier, as it combines the joys of alien planet exploration with the comforts of a cozy farming sim.

While it won't be released into early access until March 19, the demo is currently available on Steam and Xbox Game Pass, offering a fairly extensive hands-on experience with the game that already proves it to be a worthwhile adventure. Lightyear Frontier may be a casual farm sim game, but it still shares a host of similarities with No Man's Sky. As such, No Man's Sky fans will want to keep tabs on Lightyear Frontier as it develops through early access.

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How Lightyear Frontier Feels Like No Man's Sky

Right off the bat, No Man's Sky fans may notice something about Lightyear Frontier that looks a lot like a feature in their favorite space exploration game: mechs. The primary mode of traversal in Lightyear Frontier sees players hopping aboard their customizable mech, which happens to bear a rather striking resemblance to the Exo Mech Suit players can use in No Man's Sky. While aboard their mech in Lightyear Frontier, players have access to an array of tools that will allow them to break down objects for materials, remove Noxious Slime from the ground, vacuum up water and other items, and plant seeds.

Like No Man's Sky, Lightyear Frontier is also a multiplayer co-op game, allowing up to four players during a session to work together to restore regions and build farms. Players can also feed the alien animals in Lightyear Frontier, much like they can in No Man's Sky. Despite its similarities, however, Lightyear Frontier differs from No Man's Sky in several ways.

How Lightyear Frontier Differs from No Man's Sky

Unlike No Man's Sky, Lightyear Frontier is a highly casual experience. Whereas No Man's Sky requires players to pay close attention to its survival mechanics, Lightyear Frontier has zero survival mechanics to speak of and even maintains its casual nature through tranquil music and ambiance. There is very little pressure put on the player to accomplish anything at all, with the main encouragement coming from a short list of objectives that appear in the top left corner of the screen. In some ways, it feels like a plethora of other casual farming games combined into one, even if it does manage to remain separate from the library of games it has been influenced by.

There may be Noxious Slime covering the ground in Lightyear Frontier, but there are no cute and lovable slimes as in Slime Rancher. However, Lightyear Frontier nonetheless feels a lot like Slime Rancher, especially in its art design and shooting mechanics. There is also a host of elements from other casual farming games, like Giants Software's ongoing Farming Simulator franchise and even Pathea Games' My Time at Sandrock, in Lightyear Frontier, which effectively set it apart from No Man's Sky. Furthermore, there is currently no indication of whether players can travel to other planets in Lightyear Frontier, though it's not likely, considering the game's premise.

After it heads into early access in March, Lightyear Frontier will likely continue to receive regular updates from its developer. However, based on the demo alone, it already appears to be a solid experience and perfect for No Man's Sky and cozy farming sim fans. As such, they would do well to keep an eye on it as it continues to develop.