No Man's Sky

Hello Games' August 2016 launch became synonymous with broken promises after Sean Murray's ambitious pre-release interviews. The game shipped without multiplayer, base building, or most advertised features, though its redemption arc is now legendary. Compared to Cyberpunk 2077's launch, No Man's Sky had a smaller player base but a bigger trust gap—only 10% of pre-orders stuck around after month one, versus the industry average of 40%.