When comparing Limbo vs No Man's Sky, the Slant community recommends Limbo for most people. In the question“What are the best indie games on Steam?” Limbo is ranked 3rd while No Man's Sky is ranked 82nd. The most important reason people chose Limbo is:
Since there are no cutscenes or loading screens, Limbo makes you fully immerse yourself in the puzzles and atmosphere of the game.
Specs
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Immerses the player fully
Since there are no cutscenes or loading screens, Limbo makes you fully immerse yourself in the puzzles and atmosphere of the game.
Pro Does not become frustrating even if you die a lot
Most players die a lot in Limbo. fortunately this does not translate to a frustrating experience while playing the game. If you die from a trap, the game immediately reloads and takes the character right before reaching that very same puzzle. This way you can try again immediately and find a solution.
Pro Quite addictive
Limbo manages to keep your attention all throughout the game by consistently presenting new, interesting things for you to solve. It starts out simple, but increasingly gets more intricate and grows into smart multi-part puzzles.
Pro Unique black and white aesthetic
Limbo uses (what was once) a very unique monochromatic color scheme to give an atmospheric feel.
Pro Good for people who don't want to waste too much time on a game
Being a relatively short game (five or six hours long), it's perfect for people who love interesting puzzle games that don't overstay their welcome.
Pro Astonishing sound design
The sound design is simply great. Even though there's virtually no soundtrack to speak of, the sound effects do a great job of creating the perfect atmosphere in which the players immerse themselves.
What's more is that if you pay close attention to the sound cues while solving a puzzle, you will find out that the sound effects are quite helpful in reaching your objective.
Pro Manages to communicate circumstance and casualty in a unique way
Being completely devoid of text, dialogue, and explanation Limbo manages to communicate circumstance and casualty to the player in a simple way not found in other games.
Having a game completely devoid of those three things is hard but Limbo manages to pull it off perfectly.
Pro Artistic puzzle
Limbo has very unique environment with highly creative puzzles that offer a great experience with monochrome, b/w and other dim colors.
Pro Endless procedural generation
This game procedurally generates almost everything. Your spaceships are procedurally generated, so are the planets, moons, every animal on these planets, the resource nodes, trade routes, languages, etc. When discovering new species or planets, players get to rename these and leave their mark on the galaxy.
Pro Good graphics
The art style of this game is very colorful and saturated and uses hues in a way that it gives you an otherworldly feel. Graphics like these tend to remain good for a much longer time than classic 3D graphics.
Pro Massive galaxy to explore
Thanks to the fact that the entire galaxy of No Man's Sky is procedurally generated, the amount of planets to explore is almost endless. The number of planets would be 18,446,744,073,709,551,616. However, the fact that 2 players managed to find each other in game on the first day, seems to make this number quite questionable.
Pro Seamless space to planetary flight
Pro Freedom to choose how you want to play
Ally with factions, trade or just be a pirate. When trading with NPC aliens, you build up a positive reputation with the faction they belong to. Alternatively you can also be hostile and attack trade ships, or even be attacked by NPC pirate spaceships. Both can be ways to get what you need, so do whatever suits your play style.
Cons
Con Ending comes somewhat abruptly
There's little lead up to the ending so it comes a little too suddenly and unexpectedly.
Con May be too dark for children
The game, by design, has the main character dying quite a bit, often very gruesomely, and so may not be appropriate for younger players.
Con Somewhat short
Limbo can be finished in about 5-6 hours on average.
Con Has some pacing issues
The first half of the game is filled with interesting creatures that you as a player encounter on the journey. While in sharp contrast, the second half of the game takes place in a deserted industrial area devoid of any lifeforms and even though puzzles become more and more interesting as you approach the end of the game, this sharp contrast between the two halves of the game creates some serious pacing issues.
The pacing issues are even more evident as you reach the ending, which while good comes quite unexpectedly.
Con Keyboard controls not that good
Movement is locked to the arrow keys instead of wasd.
Con No clearly defined missions
The objective of the game is to ultimately reach the center of the galaxy. However, the player is completely free and unguided from the beginning. You figure it out for yourself as you start mining, crafting and upgrading your ship and gear. This game doesn't have a big story to tell.
Con Expensive
No Man's Sky is a pretty big production for an indie game as the team of devs and artists consisted of 14 people in the later stages of development. The game stands out above most indie games in size, features, technology and graphics. Along with the amount of enthusiasm from the gaming community, this has allowed the studio to set the launch price at $60 (or €60).