No Man’s Sky is still going strong nearly a decade after launch, and Hello Games just dropped a big new patch. The Beacon Update Patch 5.73, released on July 1, 2025, brings a long list of bug fixes, quality-of-life tweaks, and platform-specific improvements. It’s the latest step in Hello Games’ steady mission to keep improving the game for both newcomers and veterans.
Beacon Patch 5.73 Brings Major Fixes
Last month’s Beacon update was a major milestone for No Man’s Sky. It expanded settlement gameplay in a huge way. Players can now run multiple settlements across different planets, including new Autophage settlements populated by robotic citizens with unique buildings and stories. The Beacon update also added new structures like starship dealerships, community areas, and other improvements that made settlements feel more alive.
But big updates often come with bugs, and Beacon was no exception. That’s why Hello Games rolled out Patch 5.73—to squash lingering issues and fine-tune the experience.
What’s New in Patch 5.73
1. New Settlement Tools and Features
- Starship Fabricator: One of the coolest new features is the Starship Fabricator, now added to S-class landing pads at settlements. Players can craft or modify ships right at their settlements instead of trekking back to a space station.
- Distress Signal Scans: Settlement tower buildings can now scan for distress signals nearby. This lets players find emergencies and new encounters without leaving home base.
- Better Settlement Info: Terminals in settlements now show the name and class of the building when scanned with the Analysis Visor. This helps keep track of all your structures, especially if you manage several settlements.
- Improved Utility Menus: The UI for handling settlement tower utilities is now clearer and easier to use.
2. Fixes for Settlement Data and Management
This patch tackles a ton of settlement bugs that were frustrating players:
- Settlement data now loads correctly every time, preventing blank screens or missing info.
- Downloaded settlement data no longer messes up local saves, so settlements stay consistent across sessions.
- Unowned settlements won’t show empty or broken overview pages anymore.
- Happiness, production, and maintenance stats now update as they should when making settlement decisions.
- Settlements no longer stay listed in the Settlements Register after you quit as Overseer.
- Mission logs for settlement management won’t show duplicate or incorrect objectives anymore.
- Medium dwellings now always generate with the terminals they’re supposed to have.
3. Improvements to Autophage Settlements
The robot-run Autophage settlements got plenty of attention in this patch:
- Sentinels Spawn Properly: Sentinels will now show up during Autophage settlement attacks as intended, instead of leaving settlements unprotected.
- Cloaked Settlers Easier to Find: Overseers only need one scan now to spot cloaked settlers, instead of scanning repeatedly.
- Visual Fixes:
- The central monument in Autophage settlements no longer causes movement glitches due to collision problems.
- Internal roof sections in these buildings display the right textures and render properly even from a distance.
- Medium dwellings now include all their interior terminals when created.
4. Mission Fixes That Keep Players Moving Forward
Many important missions were bugged after Beacon. Patch 5.73 fixes several issues that blocked progress:
- A Trace of Metal now starts properly again.
- In In Stellar Multitudes:
- Specialist Polo correctly offers the Reality Anchor blueprint.
- The “Collected Knowledge” page populates as it should.
- A bug where the first purple star system appeared outside the game universe’s boundaries has been fixed.
- In Ghosts in the Machine, the marker for the Korvax facility no longer disappears in multiplayer.
- In the Collect Planetary Data mission:
- Progress no longer stalls after finding all hotspots.
- The Signal Booster works again in Abandoned Mode.
- Fixed an issue where the Galaxy Map sometimes showed “Mission Target in Another Galaxy” by mistake.
- HUD markers now stay visible even after changing your system clock, fixing a frustrating bug.
5. Other Game Improvements
Patch 5.73 fixes plenty of smaller but annoying problems:
- Older saves that limited the Exo-Skiff to only 10 storage slots now load with the proper capacity.
- The Looping Grass base decoration can finally be placed again.
- Vile Spawn enemies now drop Wormskin Folios 2–5 and the Writhing Manuscript as they’re supposed to.
- Squadron pilot menus won’t randomly close anymore.
- Ships with broken launcher technology can now still be summoned if Free Crafting mode is turned on.
- Mods that remove items from data arrays now do so safely, avoiding crashes due to index errors.
6. Platform-Specific Fixes
Players on consoles and handhelds get some special attention in this patch:
- Nintendo Switch 2:
- Players can now take screenshots using the base computer again.
- The warp tunnel graphics are back to high resolution.
- The player’s torch no longer shows weird textures.
- Several UI overlap and clipping issues have been resolved.
- Xbox:
- Fixed issues where parts of Autophage settlements and certain base items appeared partly invisible.
- General UI Fixes: Across all platforms, overlapping menus and display glitches have been cleaned up for a smoother experience.
7. Crash Fixes and Stability Improvements
This update fixes several crashes:
- Crashing when warping out of a system with a player-owned settlement has been resolved.
- Crashes while browsing the Wonders Catalogue are now fixed.
- Sentinel drone battles and some modded saves no longer cause rare crashes.
These fixes should help players enjoy longer and more stable play sessions.
Hello Games Keeps Rolling Out Updates
No Man’s Sky is one of gaming’s biggest comeback stories. Hello Games turned it from a controversial launch into a highly praised sci-fi sandbox. And they’re not slowing down. Developer Martin Griffiths said in late 2024 that No Man’s Sky is “not even close to being finished yet,” and this latest patch proves the team is still committed to keeping the game fresh and playable.
Patch 5.73 might look like just another bug-fix update, but its long list of changes makes a real difference for players. From smoother settlement management to reliable missions and better platform performance, the galaxy feels more solid than ever.
No Man’s Sky Patch 5.73 is live now on PC, PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch systems. Whether you’re a seasoned explorer or just jumping in for the first time, there’s never been a better time to explore the stars.
Related Articles You Might Like:
