Paradox Interactive, the developer of grand historical strategy games like the Crusader Kings and the Europa Universalis series, is preparing to release a futuristic grand strategy game titled Stellaris. It is an evolution of the grand strategy genre with space exploration and interaction phases as the core game mechanics.
In the universe of Stellaris, there is a large and diverse selection of alien races and rich stories behind them. Some are primitive and some are space empires. The gameplay can fall into two parts, exploration (or being explored) and interaction. At first, players will need to send exploration missions to other planets. During this exploration phase, players can colonize other habitable planets to expand living spaces and resources — and this increases their influence at nearby planets.
In the interaction phase, players can choose to simply leave “UFO footage”, initiate formal diplomatic interaction, or start an alien invasion. Before initiating diplomatic interaction with other species, players will need to learn their languages. Of course, there will be some violence when civilizations interact and all of the aliens understand this. Therefore, each race will be constantly improving technology so they won’t be wiped out.
It is up to the player to choose to their path — making peace or war with other aliens.
Screenshot for Alpha version of Stellaris
According to the official Stellaris webpage, players who pre-order before the game’s release on May 9 will receive following benefits:
- Creatures of the Void (Cosmetic DLC) – Five additional alien races exclusive to pre-order customers.They are Hydra/Xenomorph, Evil Porcupine, Dinosaur Bird, Shadowy Anthropoid and Fungoid Infected Mammalian, with which to populate the galaxy.
- Ringtones and Message Alert Sounds
- Send Your Name into (almost) Space
- Blorg Forum Avatar
Screenshot of a Blorg, an alien specie in Stellaris
Pre-orders are still available for $39.99.
