The Fan Who Paid $1,300 to Play 'No Man's Sky' Has a Weak Argument 

Would you pay $1300 for an advanced copy of No Man’s Sky if it meant you could play it right now? For one diehard fan, the answer to that seemingly lunatic question is an emphatic yes.

A redditor going by username daymeeuhn apparently found a leaked copy of Hello Games’ insanely anticipated game on eBay ahead of its August 9 release date and agreed to pay a princely sum, having it shipped right away – express shipping, no doubt – as he confessed Friday on reddit. (Note that on the reddit page it says daymeeuhn paid $2,000 USD despite comments and reporting that say otherwise, and the original eBay listing is already removed.)

In an attempt to eschew Youtube’s copyright policing, daymeeuhn is backing up his claims by posting videos of his exploratory exploits on Daily Motion, although as of this writing the ones with gameplay footage have already been removed. For what it’s worth, it doesn’t seem like the first time you climb aboard your spacecraft or disembark onto the surface of an strange, unknown planet would feel any more exhilarating when played or watched earlier, but if he finds a way to release more videos, it’s probably best to experience the game for yourself.

Naturally, the developers at Hello Games aren’t too pleased – and rightly so – with a “fan” who neither gave them any money for their years of hard work nor seems any more likely to support them in the future. Not to mention spoiling the game for other fans. As the team’s Sean Murray put it, “we’ve spent years filling No Man’s Sky with surprises. (What a surprise looks within the design of No Man’s Sky is anyone’s guess.)

For his part, daymeeuhn felt the need to justify his purchase with a lengthy explanation as to why he would spend such an exorbitant sum on a game he couldn’t wait less than two more weeks to experience. He doesn’t show any remorse for what amounts to a slap in the face to the people who made the game either, saying his “best experiences” are when he gets games before their street date. Enthusiastic fandom aside, it makes for a pretty weak argument that boils down to a lack of self-restraint – it’s almost as limp as the one publishers use for pre-loading digital games in advance of them launching.

Here it is, in his words:

I’m a lucky guy. I’ve done well for myself. I have disposable income and I’m happy in life. I’m in a state of being where I don’t look at a purchase and determine the overall value by the price tag, but rather by how much happiness it will bring myself or the people I care about. I’m also very much in a weird state of mind half the time in that I’ve seen some shit, and I’ve dealt with loss, and I know all too well that too many of us take life for granted. I could die in a car accident tomorrow - who knows? If I did, all that money I had saved up didn’t do me a whole lot of good, did it? That’s not to say that I’m YOLO spending every cent every day, because I’m not - contrary to what you might believe looking at a purchase like this that some would label with the “completely insane” tag, I’m actually pretty good with money. Most of the time. :) But that buys me the opportunity to live on the edge a bit with more reckless and crazy purchases when the time comes.

I’m a gamer that enjoys the journey. For me, the idea of secrets and puzzles that lack google-able answers is super thrilling. I love it. My best gaming experiences have been when I’ve received games before street date, knowing I was truly on my own in the universe of that game, and no matter how tempted I might be to ask a friend for help or check a website for a tip or cheat, I CAN’T because it doesn’t exist. It’s all you, you’re representing everything there is in that moment of the game. If NMS is crack for everyone here in this reddit, the idea of an early experience with zero information surrounding it is the equivalent of the purest, uncut and unfiltered crack money can buy for me. This is it for me, this is the nut high.