How to Rename Planets and Wildlife in ‘No Man’s Sky’

No Man's Sky

(Hello Games)

No Man’s Sky is one of the most ambitious video games ever created, boasting billions of planets to explore and wildlife to examine. You are an explorer, tasked with discovering new worlds, regions, and creatures while you work your way closer to the center of the universe. One of the most interesting features is that you are actually able to rename anything you find that has been previously undiscovered.

This means if you land on a planet that no one else in the game has you can rename it and anyone who visits it will know you’re the one who found it. Now with billions upon billions of planets in the universe it may be rare you run into another player (if at all), but others still have a chance to discover your little marking of history. However, No Man’s Sky doesn’t directly explain to you just how to rename your discoveries, since the game automatically gives a default name upon your uncovering a certain species or area.

In order to discover a planet, you simply need to fly to it and actually land on the surface of the world. Once you do this the game will recognize that you’re the first to do this and show a randomly generated name along with a date. When you want to research animals or plant life, simply use your Multi-Tool’s Analysis Visor when you’re zoomed in. Make sure to keep a safe difference from any wildlife you’ve yet to analyze, because they could be hostile.

After you’ve discovered an item, go to your Main Menu and head over to the “Discovery” tab at the top right. Once you’re there, you will see a master list of all the planets you’ve discovered, along with the creatures/plants you’ve found on each one. After you’ve selected a planet you should see three options: “Rename,” “Upload,” and “View.” Select “Rename” and put in whatever you want to call your planet or wildlife of choice than “Upload” your discovery.

If you don’t upload your No Man’s Sky discovery than other explorers won’t be able to see the new name that you’ve given your alien of choice, which does take some of the fun away of being an adventurer. Also, uploading findings can net you some serious credits, so make sure to always log and upload everything you come across. Just try and be responsible with your namings, we can only have so many Planet Harambes or Planet Arthurs in the galaxy.

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