Stellaris

[Steelgrave]

This looks amazing. Just added it to my "must buy" list. Coolness.

[PAK]

Well, so many ideas known from Paradox games put into the space 4X game, that is really amazing. Although lack of proper tactical space combat is a bit underwhelming. Wonder how they treated planetary invasions...
Anyway, a title worth buying, that's for sure!  O0

[sandman2575]

I'm more and more starting to think of Stellaris as the spiritual successor to Distant Worlds -- anyone else getting a similar vibe?

[Huw the Poo]

My anticipation for these 2 is so great that I'm having trouble staying interested in the games I currently own. I open my Steam library and think, "Man, really wish I could play Stellaris or HOI4 right now..."  OOTP17 is coming out soon though so that will tide me over til May...

I'm exactly the same mate.  I've bought some really good games this year but I just can't bring myself to get stuck into any of them.  I'm not even logging into Wurm Online at the moment.

It's going to be a long couple of months!

[FarAway Sooner]

I'm impressed by all the features that they talk about.  I worry a little bit about how the different mechanics feed together to make a cohesive goal, but I do like the notion of a 4x that isn't a "god game" where you have absolute control over every little decision that gets made.  The trick is making sure that the AI decisions that do get made aren't so idiotic that they ruin immersion (e.g., "Why did my Space Patrol Frigate chase that damaged enemy pirate ship back into range of the Pirate Star Base that sensors tell me will wipe him out in a single shot?").  I think the games that are most successful do that through abstraction (e.g., you have to pick from a couple techs to research, rather than being able to map out your progress on the whole tree), but we'll see how it goes.

I hope that they get a good PvE component baked into the game.  One of the things that made Distant Worlds such an awesome game was the elegant pirate mechanics, where you could set them to start out as far more powerful than the "homeworld races", but with all sorts of limitations that you could hopefully overcome over time. 

I share Ghost's concerns about a potential lack of lore in the setting.  The visual depictions (e.g., is that a hampster wearing a spacesuit or a crocodile?) aren't as important to me as the back story and the conduct of the rival AI players, but few space 4x games seem to get either of those right. 

The notion of "quest like" story lines offers intriguing possibilities to develop great lore, and puts it above Galactic Civilizations 3 or some of the other Space 4x titles I've seen recently.  But those quests need to be more flexible and narrative-driven than the interstellar equivalent of "kill the giant rats infesting my basement to earn 100 Gold" or the equally tiresome "invest x resources over y turns and you'll get z as an eternal bonus after that".

I'm very impressed with this overall, but it's not a Day 1 buy.  I've got too many other unfinished titles for that!  I'll let you guys be the guinea pigs...

[vyshka]

Being streamed right now by Paradox:

https://www.twitch.tv/paradoxinteractive

[ghostryder]

I'm more and more starting to think of Stellaris as the spiritual successor to Distant Worlds -- anyone else getting a similar vibe?

This looks to be a Distance Worlds killer to me. Distance worlds had lot of stars and some cool things but it remained somewhat shallow when you got the the meat of the game. Races for example--we're just reworked stats of minus and plus's to abilities. There was no mechanic for say, A true fanitical race or a true persausive race--those mechanics just were not there--in in turn this made the diplomatic part just as hollow-- Stellaris on the other hand seems to rely on "Ethics" as well as "government types" in the same way EUIV would play out-and what I appreciate is that each planet isn't just made up of one race with one core government and belief system-but rather like CK2 will have races with it's own ideas on these things and will have to be managed as such. The later never made much sense to me concidering our own planet has 190 countries with a huge amount of different sub-races with thier own core beliefs and government types--why would alien planets be so simplified? I think it takes a company like Paradox to pull that off having had so much experience with it in their other games- and frankly Distant Worlds just does not do that in any way.

I'm pretty happy as well they went with a different art direction than they have used in their other games. Going into this with a CK2 type art style I think would have hurt the game. Other things I'm exicited about is how each planet can have pre-space flight levels but may during the game evolve to it--or in other words, unlike all other 4x games which use independent races as place holders for power ups- these will have a life of their own with meaningful roles.

Space wars also seem to managed much more believably-if you didn't watch the whole video--these wars are not unlike our wars in the past-where taking a planet doesn't mean owning a planet anymore than taking a town does in a WWII game. That is decided after the war in the treaties of who gets what and who loses what---again not seen in any 4x game I remember.

I like the fact there seems to be many ways to gain tech---and how you have to logically research to continue on certain tasks--like meeting another race or finding an anomoly--

We didn't see it but it was discussed--some of the late game features look exciting--and all seen totally new ideas to the gendre.

Overall I was impressed with what I've seen so far--and this might be just what the 4x gendre really needs to breath new life into it. In fact if this plays out and everything goes as presented I think this title could be as big as any 4x release and series---Imaging the DLC and expansion list of a ck2 being applied here?

I don't think Distant worlds will have anything on this game.

[Father Ted]

Hey!  I already did that joke!

[Ian C]

Hey!  I already did that joke!

Did you? I'm too drunk to notice.

[OJsDad]

One thing that looks disappointing (yes, I'm probably the only one who thinks this) is that there doesn't seem to be a real reason to build mission specific combat ships, escorts, area defense, missile ships, carriers, direct fire, etc.  This means that your fleets are just blobs, no formations that mean anything. 

[ghostryder]

combat has always been an afterthought in paradox titles--but 4x deserves more I agree. Perhaps we're see it in an expansion--

[Grim.Reaper]

This will be a purchase for certain, even if I am not great at these types of games...love the idea of all the assistance you can have without needing to micromanage.  With this and HOI, going to be a couple of good months...

[OJsDad]

combat has always been an afterthought in paradox titles--but 4x deserves more I agree. Perhaps we're see it in an expansion--

Just for the record, I'm looking for something similar to what MOO3 had, where you were forced to build specific roles.  I'm not wanting a space based tactical naval game.

[OJsDad]

Watching the Paradox video, as soon as he said you could only do FTL outside of the system I immediately thought of Honorverse.

It also sounds like you can build defense bases a the entry points into your systems.  Should make system assaults expensive. 

[bbmike]

^That reminds me of what Kirk said in Star Trek: The Motion Picture:

In order to intercept the intruder at the earliest possible time, I must now risk engaging warp drive while still within the solar system.