No Man's Sky is out on iPhone and iPad, free to start and $19.99 for the full universe

A whole galaxy fits into a 3.8 GB download on iPhone, and the first steps of No Man’s Sky cost nothing. Here’s when it came out on iPhone, what the full game costs and which devices run it.

When did No Man’s Sky come out on iPhone?

On Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026. Hello Games opened pre-orders on Oct. 12 as part of the App Store’s Indie Games Week and named Oct. 28 as the launch date. The pre-order listing had shown Oct. 29 in the US and other countries, but the game unlocked on the date Hello Games had announced, together with the Forsaken update.

Patch 7.10.4 fixed an iCloud sync error loop that hit players whose iCloud storage was full, plus two crashes, one with the teleporter in the Anomaly and one while warping to another system.

How much does No Man’s Sky cost on iPhone?

The one-time purchase unlocks the full game with its 10 years of updates, and Hello Games made the start free to bring in as many new players as possible.

Which iPhones and iPads run it?

The game needs iOS 26 on iPhone or iPadOS 26 on iPad, and an A12 Bionic chip or later. Hello Games names the iPhone 11 and the third-generation iPad Air as the oldest supported models. The App Store listing asks for 4 GB of RAM and 4 GB of free storage, and names the sixth-generation iPad mini, the fourth-generation iPad Air, the 10th-generation iPad and the third-generation 12.9-inch iPad Pro as starting points.

Planetary Settlements need an iPhone 15 Pro or later. Hello Games says the widest possible range of devices was the goal, instead of only the newest iPhones.

What’s in the iPhone version?

Hello Games is direct about it: “This is not No Man’s Sky Lite.” You get:

• the full procedurally generated universe, with no loading screens between space and planets;
• more than 40 major updates, from Foundation to Voyagers, which added big rig starships, and Cosmos, version 7.0, from Sept. 9, 2026;
• Forsaken, the Halloween update released on Oct. 28, with haunted salvage from derelict freighters, biomechanical corvette parts, postal missions, a radial weapon menu, a minimal HUD and seamless warping to nearby stars;
• fighting, trading, exploring and base building, the same as on PC and consoles.

Multiplayer isn’t supported. Hello Games compares the iPhone release to the first Switch version, which grew from player feedback, and says it will support the iOS version based on how many people play.

Controls, controllers and battery

Touch controls were rebuilt from scratch for walking, flying, vehicles and mechs, with quick inventory and crafting menus. The game also supports controllers, casting to a TV and mouse and keyboard on iPad. Hello Games says it put a lot of work into battery life and heat, for long play sessions, and Forsaken added dozens of accessibility tweaks as part of the iOS work.

Download size and languages

• Size3.8 GB, since the universe is generated on the device.
• LanguagesEnglish and 12 more, including French, German, Japanese, Korean and Spanish.
• Game CenterSupported, with achievements.

Hello Games' next game is the fantasy survival title Light No Fire, still without a date. For the rest of the week’s launches, see our new games this week page.

This page is updated as soon as Hello Games adds multiplayer, releases a new iOS patch or changes the price of the full game.