'No Man's Sky' On PS4 Still Awes Sony's Shuhei Yoshida Despite His Hello Games Slam

No Man’s Sky has had an undeniably rocky launch on PS4 and PC. A few weeks ago, Sony’s Shuhei Yoshida even offered a slight dig to the title’s developers at Hello Games. With a little more time to reflect, Yoshida has clarified his previous remark.

In a conversation with Eurogamer last month, Yoshida said he understands the fan backlash No Man’s Sky received because its lead architect, Sean Murray, seemed to have been promising features that didn’t make it to the final game. "It wasn't a great PR strategy, because he didn't have a PR person helping him, and in the end he is an indie developer,” Yoshida said.

Much of the press read the statement with a somewhat biting and demeaning tone that makes indie development studios like Hello Games appear too small to be taken seriously. Especially since Sony still has a hand in No Man’s Sky’s physical distribution and marketing, the quote was also characterized as a way of executives shifting blame for why many consumers feel mislead by what was delivered.

In the face of such criticism, Shuhei has responded. “If any of you have questioned, I have always been awed, amazed, inspired and energized by what Hello Games has accomplished with No Man’s Sky,” he clarified in a recent tweet. While this revised perspective doesn’t comment further on the game’s misleading tendencies, it at least softens the blow from what originally appeared to be one man’s attempt to throw his creative partners metaphorically under a bus.

Unfortunately, however, Shuhei’s encouraging words will likely do little to console Hello Games as its space exploration epic fails to retain players past its immediate launch period. After topping August’s PS4 digital sales charts days after its release, the game failed to crack the top 20 in September. The title was also named one of Steam’s lowest-rated games, as its PS4 retail pricing continues to plummet at the hand of sales. To make matters worse, Hello Games is currently under investigation by the U.K.’s promotional ethics board for false advertising.

Do Yoshida’s kind words come a little too late? Is his updated stance his sincere take on No Man’s Sky? Tell us in the comments section!