Finally, players can share and return to planets you’ve found in the wide-wide universe of No Man’s Sky, thanks to the brand new “Atlas Rising” free update. The system is pretty limited, and there are some huge drawbacks, but if you want to take a quick trip back to a planet you’ve only visited for a short amount of time, or if you want to mark a planet to share with everyone in the world, that’s totally possible now — even if the system is more than a little strange.
Let’s start with the biggest downside to the new portal system. You can’t bring your starship with you — that includes ground-based vehicles too. You won’t be able to leave whatever planet you zip back to through a portal.
The portals are found on planet surfaces, and as you learn the language of portals, you’ll be able to write down the symbols and input them like an intergalactic password. It’s all ground-based, so your ship will have to stay behind.
How To Fast Travel | Portals Guide
Portals are appearing on random planets all across the galaxy after downloading the 4GB “Atlas Rising” update. These special structures have three major features;
- Portals can be used to travel to other planets / bases in the galaxy.
- Document mysterious glyphs to learn the language of portals to travel.
- The portal glyph password can be shared with friends, allowing them to travel to your planet.
- Portals can also send players to a random location.
The biggest breakthrough of the Ancient Portal system is that it allows you to share your planet discoveries with other players in the galaxy. Share the glyph “password” so friends can input the code, and travel to see the same locations.
While multiplayer has been included in a -very- limited capacity, you won’t be able to interact and fly around with friends. Co-op partners look like blue orbs with a name tag, but they can still wander around planets with you.
It’s important to know that ships cannot travel through portals. After traveling through a portal, your ship will be left behind. Go back to your origin point to recollect your ship before wandering too far away. Don’t forget that ships can also be called back in the quick menu — just not always.