No Man’s Sky AtlasPass guide

Progress in No Man’s Sky is usually rewarded — a better Mining Laser means you get new elements or a better Warp Drive means you can visit new systems. Similarly, the blueprints you receive as you play (either by finding them or as rewards) will let you unlock new things to build or new technologies for your gear.

The blueprints for the AtlasPass (well, three blueprints for different versions of the AltasPass) will let you literally unlock things. Below, we’ll talk about how to use the three kinds of AtlasPass as well as how to find their blueprints.

What an AtlasPass does

Hello Games via Polygon

The point of AtlasPasses is to get past a lock. The AtlasPass V1 lets you into the locked crates and debris you find on planets — this usually gets you something useful (or at least something worth selling). The next version, the AtlasPass V2 will get you through the locked doors in a planet’s buildings where you’ll find some rare elements and a few useful items. The AtlasPass v3 will get you into a storage room on every Space Station where you’ll find even rarer elements and better items.

You won’t just be handed a completed AtlasPass, though. You’ll have to find a blueprint and build it.

Finding AtlasPass blueprints

There are two ways to find the blueprints for the three AtlasPasses — receiving them from Polo on the Space Anomaly or receiving them randomly from a Manufacturing Facility.

Polo

On one of your first visits to the Space Anomaly, Polo will give you the blueprint for the AtlasPass V1. This is the most consistent way to find it. You’ll have to have reached a certain Milestone to get it, but it’s a very early one. If Polo doesn’t give up the plans in your first couple visits, just knock out a couple Milestones (you can check your progress in your menu) and check back with them.

Hello Games via Polygon

Check back with Polo often as you progress through the game. After a few Milestones, they’ll give you a new upgrade to help your explorations and adventures. As you progress with Polo, you might receive the next AtlasPass blueprint.

Manufacturing Facilities

Finding Blueprints at Manufacturing Facilities is a little more intense (both in terms of action and resources), but more consistently rewarding. Successfully solving a Facility’s puzzle will always get you a blueprint, and there’s no downside to that.

Hello Games via Polygon

You might stumble onto a Manufacturing Facility by wandering across a planet, but to find one on purpose will take a little work. You’ll need at least one Navigation Data and a (portable) Signal Booster. You can craft a Signal Booster in your Portable Technology menu by pressing up on the D-pad. Navigation Data can be found all over — check for brightly colored blocks on tables in Space Stations or in buildings. There’s a good chance you already have a few without noticing you picked them up.

Place your Signal Booster, then choose Input Data (1 Navigation Data) from its menu. On the next screen, choose Scan Secure Frequencies. This will find the nearest Manufacturing Facility. When you get there, you’ll have to blast open the door. Doing so will alert the Sentinels, and they’ll attack you. Once inside, you’ll be safe from the Sentinels. Make sure you’re up on the local language so you can solve the puzzle at the Facility’s console (or just, you know, save before you go in and reload the game if you guess wrong). You’ll get a blueprint as a reward.

The blueprint you receive is random, so this is going to take a few tries. Searching for a Manufacturing Facility will consume the Navigation Data you put into the Signal Booster, but there’s a good chance you’ll find another one inside the Facility on the table.