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Quick Answer

  • No Man's Sky offers six preset modes: Relaxed, Normal, Survival, Permadeath, Creative, and Expedition.
  • The Waypoint update (version 4.0) replaced the old rigid system with granular custom difficulty. Nearly all settings can be changed at any time from the pause menu.
  • Four settings are locked at save creation: Survival Elements, Recipes/Blueprints, Tutorial Missions, and Starting Slots.
  • Permadeath is now a custom-mode option (Death Consequences set to "Save Deleted") rather than a standalone mode, but its player pool and bases remain separate from all others.
  • Creative Mode removes all survival threats and unlocks every blueprint for free; achievements and trophies are disabled in this mode.
  • Expedition Mode is a time-limited, community-wide event accessed separately. It's not a permanent difficulty choice.
  • You can start in Normal or Survival and dial settings up or down later, so there's no wrong first choice.

Overview

Picking a game mode is the very first decision you'll make in No Man's Sky, and it used to be permanent. Since the Waypoint update, Hello Games completely overhauled this system. Today, preset modes are really just bundles of pre-selected custom settings, and you can adjust the vast majority of those settings whenever you like, even mid-save.

That flexibility is great news for newcomers. You're not locked into a punishing run if you chose Survival on a whim, and you're not stuck in an easier mode if you want more challenge after mastering the basics. Think of presets as a starting point, not a contract.

The Preset Game Modes

Relaxed

Relaxed is the recommended starting point for players who want to focus on exploration, base building, and the story without wrestling with survival systems. Resources are more abundant, technology drain is reduced, and the early game presents fewer desperate scrambles for oxygen and sodium.

Relaxed still plays like the full game. You earn units, unlock blueprints, fight Sentinels, and warp between star systems. It simply turns the tension down so you can enjoy the journey. See the survival guide for what those survival systems actually involve.

Normal

Normal is the original No Man's Sky experience. The baseline the game was designed around. Survival elements are fully active, resources are at standard yield, crafting costs are standard, and death means dropping your inventory at the spot you died and racing back to retrieve it. Most guides assume you're playing Normal unless otherwise stated.

Survival

Survival cranks the pressure significantly. Resources are scarcer, hazard drain is faster, enemies are tougher, and the penalty for dying is harsher than Normal. It's best suited to players who have already completed at least one Normal playthrough and want a more intense challenge. If you're new to the game, consider starting on Normal or Relaxed and bumping the individual survival difficulty sliders up once you're comfortable.

Permadeath

Permadeath, configured in Custom mode by setting Death Consequences to "Save Deleted", means your save file is permanently erased when you die. This is the ultimate challenge mode. Permadeath saves share a separate player pool and base registry from all other modes, so the community you'll encounter there skews toward experienced players.

Crucially, Permadeath must be selected at save creation; the Death Consequences setting cannot be changed to "Save Deleted" on an existing save. If you want this experience, you must commit to it from the start.

Before you do, read the Permadeath and Survival survival guide. Runs almost never end to something dramatic. They end to hazard protection running dry in a storm, or to a Sentinel fight the player chose to have. Knowing which margins to protect is most of the difficulty.

Creative

Creative Mode is a sandbox with no barriers. Every blueprint and construction part is unlocked and free to build from the beginning. Environmental threats (hazard drain, oxygen depletion, Sentinel aggression) are all removed. You can focus entirely on designing bases, exploring the universe, and experimenting with game systems.

The trade-off: achievements and trophies are disabled in Creative Mode. If earning the platinum trophy or Steam achievements matters to you, start on a different preset. Creative is ideal for players who want to learn base-building mechanics before committing to a survival run. You can later start a Normal save and apply everything you learned. Check out the base building guide to see why a Creative sandbox can be so useful for planning.

Expedition Mode

Expedition Mode is fundamentally different from the others. It's a time-limited, community-wide event run by Hello Games, typically lasting a few weeks, where all players start at the same fixed point in the universe and work through a shared set of milestones.

Expedition rewards are unique cosmetics, ships, multi-tools, companions, and base parts that are often unavailable anywhere else. When an Expedition ends, rewards you've claimed can be retrieved on any save through the Quicksilver Synthesis Companion on the Space Anomaly. You can enter an Expedition by starting a fresh save, or by using the Expedition Terminus on the Space Anomaly from your primary save, which lets you transfer a limited number of items and technologies back when you finish.

Expeditions are excellent for veterans and newcomers alike. They direct your goals clearly, connect you with the wider community, and deliver some of the game's most sought-after cosmetics. For more on how they work, see the Expeditions guide.

Custom Difficulty: The Full System

Custom difficulty is also the game's de facto accessibility layer — hazards, fuel, combat and death penalties can each be switched off independently, mid-save. The accessibility and comfort settings guide covers it from that angle.

The real power in No Man's Sky's difficulty system lies in its 24 individual settings, organized across four categories. You can access these from the pause menu on any save at any time, with four exceptions noted below.

Survival Settings

Setting Options
Survival Elements None / Health Only / Hazards & Health / Full
Survival Difficulty Relaxed / Standard / Challenging
Natural Resources Abundant / Standard / Scarce
Sprinting Infinite / Relaxed / Standard
Scanner Recharge Very Fast / Fast / Standard / Challenging
Damage Levels None / Minimal / Standard / Challenging
Technology Damage None / Minimal / Challenging
Death Consequences No Item Loss / Standard / Items Destroyed / Save Deleted

Survival Elements controls which systems actually drain (life support, hazard protection, and so on). This is one of the four settings locked at save creation.

Crafting & Items Settings

Setting Options
Fuel Usage Free / Discounted / Standard / Expensive
Crafting Free / Standard
Recipes & Blueprints All Unlocked / Learnable
Purchases Free / Discounted / Standard / Expensive
Availability Abundant / Standard / Scarce
Inventory Stack Limits Standard / Restricted / Harsh

Recipes & Blueprints is locked at save creation. Choosing "All Unlocked" at the start is what Creative Mode does, and it cannot be reversed later.

Combat Settings

Setting Options
Enemy Strength Weak / Standard / Challenging
On-Foot Combat None / Minimal / Standard / Hostile
Space Combat None / Minimal / Standard / Hostile
Creatures Passive / Defensive / Predators On

These are all adjustable after save creation, so you can raise or lower combat difficulty freely as you progress.

Ease of Use Settings

Setting Options
Tutorial Missions Enabled / Disabled
Inventory Transfer Range Infinite / Nearby
Hyperdrive System Access Unrestricted / Specialised
Base Power Free / Standard
Reputation/Standing Gain Very Fast / Fast / Standard / Challenging
Starting Slots Maximum / Standard

Tutorial Missions and Starting Slots are both locked at save creation. If you want maximum inventory slots from the beginning, skipping the process of buying exosuit slot upgrades, choose "Maximum" before you start.

Which Mode Should You Choose?

  • New to No Man's Sky? Start with Relaxed or Normal. Relaxed removes the early frustration; Normal keeps the intended tension. Both let you adjust settings later.
  • Experienced player wanting a challenge? Start a Survival save, or use Custom mode to set Death Consequences to "Items Destroyed" without going full Permadeath.
  • Want to learn base building or explore freely? Creative Mode is a no-pressure sandbox, but remember achievements are off.
  • Hardcore player? Build a Custom save with Death Consequences set to "Save Deleted" at creation. That's Permadeath.
  • Want community goals and unique rewards? Jump into the current Expedition whenever one is active.

How Much Time Will This Take?

Mode choice changes pace as much as difficulty. For playtime ranges and an honest look at whether the game suits you, see how long No Man's Sky takes.

FAQ

Can I change my game mode after starting a save?

Yes, mostly. You can adjust the vast majority of the 24 custom difficulty settings at any time from the pause menu. The four exceptions are: Survival Elements, Recipes & Blueprints, Tutorial Missions, and Starting Slots. These must be set before you create the save.

Does Creative Mode block achievements?

Yes. Achievements and trophies are disabled in Creative Mode. If you want to earn them, play on any other preset (Relaxed, Normal, Survival, or a Custom save that doesn't replicate Creative Mode conditions).

Can I convert a Normal save to Permadeath?

No. "Save Deleted" (Permadeath) cannot be enabled on an existing save. It must be selected at save creation via the Custom difficulty menu. You can, however, raise the Death Consequences setting to "Items Destroyed" on an existing save for a harsher-than-Normal experience.

Is Expedition Mode available all the time?

No. Expeditions are time-limited events that run for a few weeks at a time. Hello Games announces them on their website and social channels. When an Expedition isn't active, the mode is unavailable for new starts, though rewards from past Expeditions can be obtained through the Quicksilver Synthesis Companion on the Space Anomaly.

Do achievements work in Custom Mode?

Yes, in most cases. Custom Mode supports achievements as long as your settings don't replicate Creative Mode conditions. A difficult custom configuration, or a Permadeath run built in Custom mode, still earns achievements normally.

What is the difference between Relaxed and Normal?

Relaxed is Normal with survival systems toned down: resources are more abundant, hazard drain is slower, and early-game resource scrambles are less severe. The full game content (story, milestones, economy, combat) is identical. Relaxed simply reduces the friction so exploration and creativity take center stage.

Key Takeaways

  • Spend your thinking time on the four locked settings, since they're the only decisions you can't revisit: Survival Elements, Recipes & Blueprints, Tutorial Missions, and Starting Slots. Everything else is a pause-menu toggle later, so don't agonise over the preset name.
  • Choose "Maximum" for Starting Slots at creation if buying exosuit slot upgrades isn't the part of the game you're here for. It can't be changed afterwards.
  • Settle the Permadeath question before you press start or leave it alone entirely. "Save Deleted" can't be switched on later, while "Items Destroyed" can be raised on an existing save when you want a harsher run without the full commitment.
  • If achievements matter to you, don't live in Creative. Use it as a sandbox to learn base building, then apply what you learned in a separate save where trophies still count. A Custom save can be brutally hard and still earn them.
  • Raise the difficulty in pieces rather than restarting. Enemy Strength, On-Foot Combat, Space Combat, and Creatures are all adjustable mid-save, so a Relaxed or Normal start can grow into a Survival-grade run.
  • When an Expedition is live, you can enter from your existing save through the Expedition Terminus instead of starting fresh, and anything you claim is retrievable later from the Quicksilver Synthesis Companion.