No Man’s Sky’s Relics update (Update 5.6) turns planetary fossil hunting into a creative building activity: collect bones, assemble them into imagined alien skeletons, and display, move, trade, or sell the finished exhibits. Hello Games announced the update on March 26, 2025, and made it available to existing players on PC, console, and VR.
How the fossil-to-skeleton loop works
Relics centers on planetary fossil beds, where different bone formations provide parts for your displays. Hello Games describes the update as offering “hundreds of unique bones”; that is the developer’s description of the variety, not an independently audited item count. Hello Games’ Relics update page outlines the feature.
| # | Preview | Product | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
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No Man's Sky - PlayStation 5 | $23.28 | Buy on Amazon |
| 2 |
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No Man's Sky (PS5) EU Version Region Free | $23.85 | Buy on Amazon |
| 3 |
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No Man's Sky Standard - PC Steam [Online Game Code] | $59.99 | Buy on Amazon |
| 4 |
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No Man's Sky Beyond PS4 Playstation 4 | $36.50 | Buy on Amazon |
- Find fossil beds and collect bones. Search planets for fossil formations and gather the parts you want to use.
- Choose how to display each find. Individual bones can be placed as base decorations or mounted on display plinths.
- Assemble a creature. Larger plinths let you arrange bones into a complete skeleton, designing an imagined extinct creature rather than reproducing a prescribed species.
- Package or share the result. Completed displays can be packaged into modules so they can be redeployed elsewhere, traded with other players, or sold.
A new planetary dig-site building acts as a hub for fossil collectors, while a short tutorial and a guide section help introduce the activity.
Trading, hazards, and other Relics additions
Exchange surplus finds
Fossil collectors aboard Space Stations let you exchange surplus discoveries and seek particular skeleton components. That gives players a way to pursue missing parts as well as display or trade the bones they already have.
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#1 Best Overall
- Embark on an epic voyage, find your own destiny in this epic space adventure
- Includes 6 years of updates
- An entire universe to explore on the go in the palm of your hands
- For the first time ever, PlayStation 5 physical edition as well as Nintendo Switch (physical & digital)
Expect guardians and unusual fauna
Fossil beds bring guardian encounters, and the update adds rare skeletal lifeforms, including skeletal sandworms. The collecting activity therefore sits alongside exploration and hazards rather than being only a base-building feature.
Cook fossils and collect expedition rewards
Relics adds fossil-related recipes for the Nutrient Processor, additional decorative placement options, and expedition rewards. The launch notes said Expedition Eighteen: Relics was planned to run for approximately six weeks. That was the announced duration at launch, not confirmation that the expedition remains available now.
Rank #2
- Embark on an epic voyage, find your own destiny in this epic space adventure
- Includes 6 years of updates*
- An entire universe to explore on the go in the palm of your hands
- For the first time ever, PlayStation 5 physical edition as well as Nintendo Switch (physical & digital)
- Please note that although this game is Region Free or Region Unlocked and will work on all systems, this is the international version and may differ from the local version in age rating, labeling or instructions.
Platforms and launch context
Hello Games announced Relics on March 26, 2025. Its launch announcement said: “We’re calling it RELICS and it is available to download for PC, console and VR free to existing players from today.” The dated announcement establishes the launch context; it does not confirm present-day availability of the expedition or a specific store edition.
Hello Games’ release log lists the Relics entry for PC, PlayStation 4 and 5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and Xbox Game Pass. Check the current store listing for your platform and edition to confirm compatibility, availability, and price.
Quick Recap
Rank #4
- Region Free Australia
- 100% Compatible With USA Playstation 4 Console
- Region 2 (AUS) or 4 (EUR) Required for DLC Redemption or Purchases
- Playstation VR Compatible (optional)
Rank #3
- Play with all major updates since launch
- And now with added Cross-Save! No Man’s Sky now supports Cross-Play and Cross-Save between a huge number of platforms including PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 5 Pro, Xbox One and Series X/S, Game Pass, GOG, Nintendo Switch, Steam Deck, PlayStation VR 1 & 2 and PCVR.
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