More fleshed out details here:
A NEW STORY
In the Atlas Rises story, the fabric of existence is starting to falter. A mysterious new interdimensional race have appeared. Glitches are causing ancient portals to activate. Our story brings a new context, quest system and branching narrative to No Man’s Sky. 30 hours of new story content. Double the lore and interactions of the existing game. Discover the truth behind the Abandoned Building logs, the World of Glass, the Sentinels, the redemption of the Gek, and the meaning of sixteen… After Waking Titan, Atlas Rises.
NEW WORLDS
The variety and visual quality of planetary biomes has been improved. Explore rare new exotic planet types as you journey toward the galactic core.
CRASHED FREIGHTERS
Discover and scavenge lost cargo from gigantic crashed Freighters on planetary surfaces.
Use the terrain manipulator to excavate buried resources in the region.
Complete Salvage missions for Guild rewards.
MISSION SYSTEM
Visit the new Mission Agent in Space Stations to pick up unique and rewarding new tasks.
Missions are constantly generated, and cater to all play styles (scanning, trading, combat and exploration).
New NPC guilds have been introduced, each with standing and objectives.
Build your standing with numerous NPC guilds and unlock more difficult, more rewarding missions.
INTERSTELLAR TRADING
New economic variables bring new depth to trading between star systems.
Star systems are now classed based on their economic strengths and weaknesses.
New trade goods have been added. Meet supply and demand by purchasing goods at a low price, and hauling them to economically favourable systems.
A tiered crafting system allows increasingly valuable products to be crafted by combining harvestable materials.
Gas harvesters have been introduced, allowing explorers to extract valuable elements from a planet’s atmosphere to use in crafting.
Combine crafted products to create increasingly valuable items that can be sold on the Galactic Marketplace.
New maintenance interactions have been introduced for all harvesting equipment, bringing more depth to farming, mining and harvesting.
ANALYSIS VISOR
Analysis Visors have been re-calibrated to show more information and offer better rewards for scanning.
Analyse resources before harvesting for to gain alternative resources from mining.
See more information about each discovery.
Scanning Flora and Fauna now yields increased rewards.
Specialised analysis visor upgrades can be equipped to further improve effectiveness.
TERRAIN EDITING
Transform the ground beneath your feet using the new terrain editing Multi-Tool enhancement.
Add or remove terrain to mould the landscape as you see fit, anywhere on any planet.
Choose from a number of materials, shapes and sizes to sculpt your unique creations.
Form terrain around your base to make it feel like part of the environment.
PORTALS
Ancient portals can now be activated. Revisit previous planets, others bases or jump randomly to new worlds.
Learn the language of portals by unlocking mysterious glyphs as you journey through the universe.
Interact with a portal and input a specific combination of glyphs to quick travel to a specific planet.
Share glyph combinations with the community to help others travel quickly to specific planets and points of interest.
SPACE COMBAT
A number of improvements have been made to space flight and combat.
Enemy artificial intelligence has been overhauled, and new difficulties have been added.
Ship manoeuvrability has been improved, bringing more skill to dog-fighting.
Devastating rockets can be equipped to ships and upgraded for even greater firepower.
A new HUD has been introduced to improve the experience of space combat. This includes a communicator, which can be used to advance mission steps, or even to hail pirates before they attack.
LOW FLIGHT
Atmospheric low flight assist now allows players to cruise above the terrain.
Low flight and improved flight control make in-atmosphere dog fighting more likely and exciting.
Warning: crashing into obstacles will cause damage to your ship. If your ship is destroyed, you’ll need to repair it before leaving the planet.
JOINT EXPLORATION
Glitches in the simulation have begun to appear.
Visualised by strange floating orbs, up to 16 players can see and communicate with one another, and explore the universe together.
While interaction with others is currently very limited, this is an important first step into the world of synchronous co-op in No Man’s Sky.
While interaction is very limited, VOIP (Voice over IP) allows proximity based voice chat with other nearby explorers.
Use portals to quickly travel to more populated planets, or to meet up with friends.
NEW SHIPS
New Class S ship designs have been introduced, and can be found roaming the galaxy. Interact with their owners to view, and offer to buy their ship.
Wealthier systems have more expensive, higher class ships.
QUALITY OF LIFE
Temperature measurement has been converted from Celsius to Fahrenheit based on locale.
Summon your ship from anywhere on a planet’s surface using your quick menu.
Specific Technology and Cargo inventories have been added to improve inventory management.
Playstation 4 players can now adjust their field of view via the options menu.
Jump between systems from the comfort of your Freighter. Just interact with the hologram on your bridge, and select a location to travel to.
Landing your ship no longer auto-ejects you from the cockpit. Take time to survey the planet before exiting.
