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Core survival loop
Light No Fire is a survival sandbox, and resource gathering is the foundation of that loop. The Steam page describes "valuable resources to discover" across different biomes. You gather materials, you craft things with them, you survive longer, you explore further. Standard survival game progression, but applied to an Earth-sized planet.
The scale changes everything about resource gathering. In most survival games, the entire map is a few square kilometers and you learn the resource layout within hours. Here, the map is a planet. You could walk for months and still not have seen the same biome twice. Resources are not conveniently clustered around a starting area for your benefit.
Confirmed materials
Wood and stone are visible in the trailer as building materials. Structures shown in the footage are made from timber and rough stone blocks. Beyond that, specific resource types have not been named by Hello Games.
The fantasy setting suggests organic and natural materials: wood, stone, animal parts, herbs, ores, and potentially magical components. There are no sci-fi materials like carbon nanotubes or plasma cells. Everything fits the low-tech, medieval aesthetic. The glowing weapons visible in the trailer hint at magical resources of some kind, but their gathering method is unknown.
Biome-specific resources
The Steam page mentions that biomes contain different resources, which means you cannot find everything in one location. If you need a material that only appears in frozen mountain regions, you have to travel to a snowy biome. If you need something from the ocean floor, you need to swim for it. This encourages exploration and makes biome diversity matter for gameplay, not just aesthetics.
The implication for multiplayer is interesting. If certain high-value resources only exist in specific regions, those regions become natural gathering points. Players might establish trade routes or build bases near valuable deposits. On an Earth-sized planet, controlling access to a rare resource could become a social dynamic.
Comparison to No Man's Sky
In No Man's Sky, resource gathering involves a multi-tool that laser-mines rocks and plants. Resources are categorized by rarity (common, uncommon, rare) and used for fuel, crafting, and trading. Light No Fire will likely have a different system given the medieval fantasy setting, but the core loop of "find resource, harvest resource, use resource" will probably feel familiar to No Man's Sky players.
The key difference is permanence. In No Man's Sky, you mine a planet and move on. In Light No Fire, you mine your home and live with the consequences. Whether stripped forests regrow or quarried mountains stay bare could significantly affect how the shared world looks over time.
Unknown details
The full list of resource types beyond wood and stone
Gathering tools and whether they require upgrades
Whether resources respawn or are finite in a given area
Resource rarity tiers
Inventory management and storage systems
Whether resource gathering has a skill progression
How magical resources (if they exist) are obtained