Endless Space 2 is a turn-based strategy, science fiction 4X game developed by Amplitude Studios. It is the sequel to Endless Space, which was released in 2012. The game had been made available through Steam's early access program since October 2016. It was released on May 18, 2017.
Gameplay
At the beginning of the game, the player can choose from one of several races, each with their own perks and traits. They are then given control of a fledgling empire, which they must expand by conquering systems. Each system has up to 5 planets, with their own environments, climates, stats (i.e. production, food, etc.), and sometimes anomalies. Anomalies can be explored using an explorer ship, and give buffs or debuffs to the entire system. Planet stats decide how effective planets are at what, while environments decide whether a planet is colonizable or not. The ability to colonize different environments is unlocked through research. Each planet can also be given a specialization, which give buffs, with additional buffs being granted based on climate. Finally, the player can construct different structures, which give system-wide buffs and can be built an unlimited number of times, with a few exceptions. To reach different systems, players must follow established star lines, unless they have special technologies researched.
Research is key to progressing through the game. It unlocks new constructions, ship hulls, weapons, modules, upgrades, tactics, abilities and other useful things. The game has currently 10 factions (including DLC ones).clarification needed There are four different categories of research trees: military, science and technology, business and trade, and empire development. Each tree has four levels, which are only unlockable by researching different subjects in the level before. Politics are also important for different reasons. Each race has different parties, such as industrialists and scientists, which can have different statuses, such as entrenched and established. There are also different types of government.
There are also a certain number of law slots, where the player can pass bills associated with a certain party that give buffs. However, bills require the party to have reached a certain status, and parties can pass "forced bills" without player interaction. Increasing party status/representative counts can be achieved by reaching certain technologies, constructing different buildings, and performing certain actions (one example is how declaring war, building bunkers, and researching weapons increases militarists count).
In order to expand their empire, the player must colonize systems throughout their galaxy. They are also competing with various other empires, who are also attempting to win the game. The player can interact with them, by declaring war, sending tributes, or forming alliances. Each empire has their own territory, and different relationships with the player (i.e. Cold War, War, Wary, etc.). There are also minor civilizations, who players can improve their relationships with to get them to send resources, or declare war on. They can also be assimilated into the player's empire if their relationship is good enough. However, enemy empires can interact with these civilizations as well.
To fight against other empires, players require ships and ground troops. Players can engage in ship battles against enemy fleets, with the outcome being entirely random, although greater fleet strength increases chance of victory. Different battle tactics can be used, which give bonuses and change the range of engagement. Players can also retreat from battle, saving their ships at the cost of taking some damage. Players can also invade by sending their ground troops to fight against defenders for a system. The player's ground troops can be upgraded, and the player can decide what percentages of the army they make up. Replenishing ground troops requires manpower, a special resource, and each ship can only carry so many soldiers. Players can also weaken an enemy system's defenders by waiting by the system for several turns, which decreases the number of enemy troops. The player can also use certain battle tactics as well, which give certain bonuses but also certain negatives.
The player can design ship designs. There are three classes of ship hulls: small, medium, and large, with small and medium hulls having multiple types. Larger hulls have more health, manpower capacity, and module slots, but lack the mobility of smaller ships, require more resources and time to build, and take up more space in a fleet. Each ship has support and weapon modules, where player can equip certain weapons and buff-granting support modules. Each weapon has different stats and ranges. There are three ranges: short, medium, and long. Each weapon has a certain effectiveness at certain ranges, with lower effectiveness reducing weapon damage and accuracy. Certain weapons have special properties; for example, kinetic weapons, while ineffective at long range, can attack incoming missiles, fighters, and bombers. Beam weapons, on the other hand, have generally low damage output but is unaffected by range.
Development
The game was made available through Steam's early access program on 6 October 2016. The full game was released on the 19 May 2017.
The game received its third major update on the 23 March 2018. It added the Vaulter civilization, pirate bases, and an Early Access version of multiplayer mode along with several new visual elements.
