Endless Space 2
Dust off and begin your long journey to the stars.
After six months in Early Access, Amplitude’s game of conquest enters a competitive field with much to distinguish it. It isn’t the deepest space strategy game, but it might be the most pleasant to spend time with.
It really is gorgeous. There’s a sense of style here that’ll appeal to anybody who loves the fantasy of a 4X strategy game but finds the presentation dry. Amplitude knows when a bit of flare is necessary. Atmospheric cutscenes accompany colonisation and each battle can be viewed with a well-implemented 3D spectator system.
The soundtrack is great, too, as is much of its writing. Each of its eight factions is different, not just in how they play but the attitudes and themes expressed through their background and their questlines. There is a militaristic human faction, but it’s hard to get excited about them when your alternatives include pacifistic space treants, time-bending robot refugees from a different universe, or a race comprised of clones of a single extremely vain man. Each race engages with a mysterious substance called Dust and a vanished race called the Endless, which ties them into the history of not just this game but its predecessors – including Endless Legend, the fantasy spinoff.
At its core, this is a game about managing resources, research and fleets to expand your empire beyond its initial star system. The landscape of the generated galaxy you occupy has the potential to steer your progress, encouraging you to invest in particular tech pathways. You can begin a game with a plan, but that plan tends to be shaped by the type of galaxy you find yourself in. Each of our four playthroughs has felt meaningfully different as a result of this variety.
Endless Space 2 is a pretty traditional 4X game in that, if you’re familiar with the genre, there’s little to surprise you about the game’s basic structure. Amplitude’s skill, however, is in ensuring that you never interact with the game at that level without encountering a complicating factor arising from your faction or situation.