Target Sweep Mode bug

[Aria Rain]

I noticed this first when I returned to No Man's Sky during the last two weeks of the first expedition. I would use the sweep as it told me to and it would lead me in merry circles going absolutely nowhere. After a few minutes of that, I gave up and logged out. When i logged in later to try again, it worked that time. I just had the same thing happen again in normal mode. I started a new character (cause why not) and was following the sweep to the target signal. I had been running for fully 15 minutes before i realized that the sweep took me all the way around a mountain range in a giant circle ending back where I started with my ship. then it wanted me to follow the same path again. Instead of small circles going nowhere, this time it was a giant circle going nowhere. Once again I had to relog to correct the issue. and it turned out the thing i was looking for was not even 100u from my ship's position. I really hope this one can be fixed soon. It caused me problems during both expeditions and it's causing me problems still now.

[Mr. Bufferlow]

Sounds like a bug, but be aware that I have never seen a target more than 1000u from the approximate location. Typically, I see the location from the air and will just land there, assuming it is a building.

For the scanning missions, as long as you are close it should not matter...I actually don't think those missions even use the target sweep.

On those times I do not see the target on landing, I just just the target sweep to give me a general direction. I use my eyes more than the scanner. Once you find it, it will mark the location so there is that. That usually starts any hostile NPCs so I actually like to call in my ship if I can before the fun begins.

[Aria Rain]

Originally posted by Mr. Bufferlow:

Sounds like a bug, but be aware that I have never seen a target more than 1000u from the approximate location. Typically, I see the location from the air and will just land there, assuming it is a building.

For the scanning missions, as long as you are close it should not matter...I actually don't think those missions even use the target sweep.

On those times I do not see the target on landing, I just just the target sweep to give me a general direction. I use my eyes more than the scanner. Once you find it, it will mark the location so there is that. That usually starts any hostile NPCs so I actually like to call in my ship if I can before the fun begins.

It did use target sweep. And it wasn't a building. I looked for one at first but there wasn't one near. It was one of those little debris pods that are scattered all cross the landscape and it wasn't marked. the mission literally told me to use my visor to track the signal and so I did when I failed to find a building nearby.
Keep in mind I have been playing for a while and just decided to start a new character for the fun of it. I'm still on the very first planet. Now imagine this happening to someone who's never played before and has no clue what to look for. The beginner is told to use the target sweep to find the signal, just as it told me to. And they run in circles forever until they give up and leave. Yea...it's not a nice bug. If it HAD been a building, it would have been easier for me, but still not so easy for an actual beginner. As it was, it wasn't a building but one of the countless damaged components that crop up every few feet on the planet's surface.

[76561199467533461]

Now March 2023 and this still occurs often

[KKaiSlate]

Got the same problem looking for sentinal thing

[Geldric™]

... and the link to submit bug reports hasn't changed: https://hellogames.zendesk.com/hc/en-us

[strawwmann]

April 2025 and this visor 'approximate location' deflection angle bug still hasn't been fixed.
It's very annoying, especially in rough terrain, sending you in large circles, back to where you started without ever pointing you to the actual mission target location.
I have screenshots with the target structure clearly in front of me, but the visor scanner still missing with an offset of almost 45 degrees.

(EDIT: I have submitted a detailed report to HG's 'ZenDesk', hopefully that will help - this bug wastes so much time on missions with 'approximate locations'.)