For some reason, I have never heard of this game before
After watching some screenshots (and being a sci-fi RTS fan), this looks amazing though. Here's to hoping it gets a summer sale on steam.
Hilariously it's the weekend deal. 66% off.
-
Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.
Endless Space |Intel Thread| 4X Space Strategy by ex-Ubi/EA devs
- Thread starter Alex Connolly
- Start date
Hilariously it's the weekend deal. 66% off.
Hah, that's coolio.
Is this a difficult game to get into though? I got Crusader Kings II the other day and despite me being a pretty big strategy gamer, I just can't get past those walls of text lol.
Crusader Kings II is far less approachable than Endless Space is. If you're into turn-based strategy, I can't think of a finer game than Endless Space.
Awesome. It also has steam trading cards... welp, that sealed the deal!
Yes the tooltips are really not clear cut enough. You have to think far to long and hard before grasping what most of the techs really do.
exmachina64
Banned
Started playing this once again after Disharmony came out. I've logged 300 hours into it.
bonesmccoy
Banned
For some reason, I have never heard of this game before
After watching some screenshots (and being a sci-fi RTS fan), this looks amazing though. Here's to hoping it gets a summer sale on steam.
It's not an RTS. Beware.
A bit more turnbased like Civ and XCOM? Because I love that genre even more. Doesn't really matter though, sci-fi and strategy are still the biggest reasons I want this. Real-time etc doesn't matter that much.
Yeah, turn-based like Galactic Civilizations or Sid Meier's Civilization.
RumblingRosco
Member
Anyone here ever play Master of Orion 2? If so, how does this compare?
It compares pretty well, although it lacks the "Choose the tech between three" feature that i really liked.
It's far more polished and streamlined, but not as feature-rich. Multiplayer rocks.
So, this game awesome? Watching the GB quicklook right now. Certainly looks awesome. The DLC any good? Tempted to grab it while its on sale. Looking to jump into another game right after marathoning Rogue Legacy.
Seems a bit intimidating though. And not because of details, which i like, but just overall learning what the hell to do. I dont play these games often.
Seems a bit intimidating though. And not because of details, which i like, but just overall learning what the hell to do. I dont play these games often.
Its awesome and I consider it a gateway drug to these kind of games because it definitely is the most accessible good 4X game I have ever played. They have a very helpful tooltip system in place that should tell you about most things you need to know. Just watching a video doesnt convey that the game is really damn good at conveying the basic mechanics if you are paying attention to the game when starting
Cameron122
Member
Is the combat still shit?
Yeah im getting it. Plus the music sounds like Battlestar Galactica and Homeworld so i needs that.
In the dlc it says they improved the combat system but i dont have a basis as i havent played it yet. Im more into the strategy shit.
Since I was just searching it out anyway:
http://gameaudiofactory.bandcamp.com/album/endless-space-soundtrack
Its free.
I was playing the game for a few dozen hours without ever manually touching combat, so dont worry about that.
Free as in pay 50 cents? Seems like you have to enter CC info to get it. But i might do it anyway its good stuff.
Free as in free free. Just enter 0 and click download. No CC info needed. I am using bandcamp releases since 4 years for my free music website:
http://wasfuersohr.blogspot.com/
They are definitely trustworthy, even if they require your email in some cases.
Lol oh wow, i cant believe i just got FLAC for nothing. Now i feel bad lol.
Meh im buying the game anyway so they get some money.
I played this for 7 hours today. I only have like 7 star systems, but i have a lot of upgrades and a healthy fleet. Think im ranked 2nd right now. Im only on a medium galaxy too.
Game is addicting as shit. I love the population details they add to the planets. Its really neat seeing a planet with tiny little ships hovering over it as it builds population. Wish there was more of that actually.
Game is addicting as shit. I love the population details they add to the planets. Its really neat seeing a planet with tiny little ships hovering over it as it builds population. Wish there was more of that actually.
exmachina64
Banned
I think the Harmony have replaced the Sophons as my favorite faction.
That's the real shortcoming of ES, I think. The devs manage to do a decent job setting up the different factions. Most of them seem interesting when you first start out, but once you get into the game it seems like they all are basically the same. Interacting with one species is almost identical to interacting with any other species.
I'd personally like to see more changes or faction-specific eye candy that surrounds the worlds you colonize. Games like GalCiv 2 and Alpha Centauri just oozed with personality. I do like all of the Endless Wonders - it'd be cool if they did more than just add stat bonuses, but what I want is probably outside the scope of 4x game.
Kind of torn between this game and Crusader Kings II (which I have yet to play.) I downloaded the A Song of Fire and Ice mod and want to try it, but I'm feeling the call for some more ES.
super-famicom
Member
Man, I totally want to get this, but I currently live in Japan and Steam does not want to accept my U.S. credit card. I get an error when trying to check out. C'mon Steam, don't you want my monies?
Do any of you guys know a workaround? Maybe use a VPN? Is that against Steam TOS? I guess I can wait for an Amazon sale since the codes from there work for me...
Do any of you guys know a workaround? Maybe use a VPN? Is that against Steam TOS? I guess I can wait for an Amazon sale since the codes from there work for me...
I don't really know anything about games like Sins of the Solar Empire or Endless Space, but I absolutely love the Civilization series and have been playing those games for close to twenty years now. I also love space sims like the old privateer and freelancer games and have really been itching for something to scratch my space itch. Does this sounds like the game for me?
If you love Civ, you should like this too... the main gameplay is very simlilar, but there's a lot of differences too..
Lysander518
Banned
I've never played a Turn Based 4X game before besides Civ IV. I couldn't really get into Civ IV, since I've always been more of an AoE guy. I love the Total War series and SoaSE and I'm looking for another 4X space game to replace Sins since I'm starting to get a bit bored of Sins. I'm a bit fearful that I won't like this game. Is it worth the $10 risk?
For CK2, I'd just recommend taking a look at a quick LP to learn how to play. That's basically what I did before the game released and I pretty much knew how to play immediately.
Then again, I also played their other games
Yeah same here. I can reccomend SeeKayEm99's guide for newbies if completely new to Paradox grand strategy games.
That guide helped me alot, but it goes into all the small details, so if your a seasoned EU player or something like that TekkorGJC's guide might be better.
ES is alot more approachable. The UI alone makes this game very easy to get into and understand the basics off.
You could have someone gift you the game in exchange for the cost of the game via PayPal or an Amazon gift card. Ask in the Steam thread.
super-famicom
Member
A friend of mine just gifted it to me! Now I can get my 4X on!
UnluckyKate
Member
I like the game but I'm still struggling at it. Can you increase your fleet size ? I am stuck at 5 points per fleet (this is small ! I get attacked by 14 ships sometimes !) can you do multiples fleet attacktng at once ?
Also, I struggle with victories : I cant go for war because pirates kick my but (I just never get powerfull ship), diplomatic victory is so obscure, what is marvel victory ? And scientific victory is out of reach (it takes forver, 300+ turn) and the AI usually win (even on newbie) by points before I can even research all the tech
Also, I struggle with victories : I cant go for war because pirates kick my but (I just never get powerfull ship), diplomatic victory is so obscure, what is marvel victory ? And scientific victory is out of reach (it takes forver, 300+ turn) and the AI usually win (even on newbie) by points before I can even research all the tech
Just look for techs that incree your command points to increase fleet sizes. Not sure if you are playing the expansion or not - in the original agame command point increases are all in the left hand tree. In the expansion they added some very easy to reach increases in the top tree as well so you can have bigger fleets quite early on.
The faction interaction screen would do nicely with some changes to make it feel like you are communicating with a race of different culture. Stardrive did a excellent job with its faction screens where the races have personalities that comes through when talking with them, even have some flavor discussions that are just there to flesh out the race.
In my first game of using the Harmony all the events I got were dust related. Free dust after free dust and I just couldn't use it. The Haromy have a lot of benefits it seems but the no heroes/rushbuying is hard to wrap around.
I agree with the points made about wanting some more Race-specific events and personalities and visuals. Like a planet owned by different races looks different. They already do that with the population increases. Its nice that the fleets look different but they dont have a lot of variation within it.
The starting premise of the different races is awesome but then they all blend together unfortunately. Mostly everything about the game is very slick and well done, it just seems a shame they couldnt push it farther. Id really like an expansion that does this.
Are there any Space-type games that excell at all these things? I know Civ probably does and ill get into that later but im in the mood for galaxy stuff that still manages to look good. I do like the graphics of endless space.
Edit: Actually i have my eye on Sins Rebellion. How is that? Is it on sale anywhere? Damn canceled summer sale gg
The starting premise of the different races is awesome but then they all blend together unfortunately. Mostly everything about the game is very slick and well done, it just seems a shame they couldnt push it farther. Id really like an expansion that does this.
Are there any Space-type games that excell at all these things? I know Civ probably does and ill get into that later but im in the mood for galaxy stuff that still manages to look good. I do like the graphics of endless space.
Edit: Actually i have my eye on Sins Rebellion. How is that? Is it on sale anywhere? Damn canceled summer sale gg
Sins of a Solar Empire does exactly this. Each race has a completely different tech tree, so end game is very interesting. It's not turn based though.
Was investigating it. Looks interesting at an RTS level. But it doesnt seem to have the same ambiance as Endless Space which i love. ES has a very Eve-type feeling. Also turn based im starting to like more in my older age since it lets me have a more chill pace to things. Dont feel rushed and i can take my time.
exmachina64
Banned
Events are the same. Nothing different than before Disharmony. The description text seems more fleshed out, but I'm still getting occasional bugged events where you merely choose between three options with no text (I'm assuming that's a bug).
No heroes isn't hard to live with for me, but I miss rushbuying when I get into the middle of a war.
I've just learned to live with that disappointment. I bought ES when it first went up for early access on Steam. I loved Alpha Centauri back in the day, but GalCiv 1 and 2 wore out their welcome too quickly. Spent a lot of time with them, but to me they don't have the long-lasting appeal that Alpha Centauri or Imperium Galactica 2 had. I tried replaying GalCiv 2 a few months back and it didn't feel like it aged well.
Amplitude Studios hasn't stopped development on ES yet, so anything's possible.
If you haven't started playing CK2 yet, I'd hold off and collect more of the DLC during the Amazon Summer Sale in the meantime.
CK2 is more like a lifelong investment. I've put 60 hours into it and I feel like I've only just scratched the surface.
Never even really knew about Crusader Kings 2 until you guys talked about it. Seems like its pretty big. Might get it during a steam sale...good god at all that DLC.
Anyway, Im still gonna enjoy Endless Space. I have a 4 day weekend so i can spend some time playing it. Difficult to play this type of game after work.
Anyway, Im still gonna enjoy Endless Space. I have a 4 day weekend so i can spend some time playing it. Difficult to play this type of game after work.
exmachina64
Banned
It's experiencing a pretty good sale at Amazon right now. It might be a while before the next one because Valve just had a big Paradox sale on Steam.
I did some analysis on the changed FIDS numbers for planets over at the game forums here:
http://forums.amplitude-studios.com...tary-values-and-analysis-which-planet-is-best!
Basic summary is that:
1) all class 1 worlds (Terran, Ocean, Jungle) now produce the same amount of food.
2) the lower the class of world, the lower the overall output but the higher the specialist output. E.g. A lava world will always generate more industry than an equivalent sized Jungle world, but far less of everything else. Even taking into account the higher population levels on higher class worlds this remains true.
3) gas giants produce insane amounts of their specialist output (Industry, Dust or Science) but almost nothing else. A tiny Helium world produces more science than a giant Ocean world for example.
They changed the function of some worlds as well so it now goes:
Industry: Methane > Lava > Tundra > Jungle
Dust: Hydrogen > Desert > Arid > Terran
Science: Helium > Arctic > Barren > Ocean
For those specific outputs.
Note the bug with Arctic & Barren - currently the numbers make Arctic better in both science and overall output. Am sure this will get changed at some point however.
http://forums.amplitude-studios.com...tary-values-and-analysis-which-planet-is-best!
Basic summary is that:
1) all class 1 worlds (Terran, Ocean, Jungle) now produce the same amount of food.
2) the lower the class of world, the lower the overall output but the higher the specialist output. E.g. A lava world will always generate more industry than an equivalent sized Jungle world, but far less of everything else. Even taking into account the higher population levels on higher class worlds this remains true.
3) gas giants produce insane amounts of their specialist output (Industry, Dust or Science) but almost nothing else. A tiny Helium world produces more science than a giant Ocean world for example.
They changed the function of some worlds as well so it now goes:
Industry: Methane > Lava > Tundra > Jungle
Dust: Hydrogen > Desert > Arid > Terran
Science: Helium > Arctic > Barren > Ocean
For those specific outputs.
Note the bug with Arctic & Barren - currently the numbers make Arctic better in both science and overall output. Am sure this will get changed at some point however.
This game is so good. Totally addicted. Im actually not put off by the combat system neither. I maintains the chill pace of the rest of the game but allows some interaction.
Although two things that i think would make it more awesome.
-Show the invasion combat on a planet as a different battle scenario
-And have more intense camera views and action in the actual battle. It isnt very exciting to look at, although i havent utilized bombers or fighters at all....but maybe those are just invasion units so you never get to see them.
Although two things that i think would make it more awesome.
-Show the invasion combat on a planet as a different battle scenario
-And have more intense camera views and action in the actual battle. It isnt very exciting to look at, although i havent utilized bombers or fighters at all....but maybe those are just invasion units so you never get to see them.
Any tips on what are the early things to do first in a new game?
I've found a lot of it must come down to hitting the right research nodes and exploiting them. I got good at exploring quickly, building a small fleet and then sending missionary ships out to snap up the choke points to try and grab a large sector early.
The only research node that seemed clear to grab was the warp drive node. Then i get lost a bit. Things work out until i realize i havent researched enough military, and somehow the other team has a massive invasion fleet.
I've found a lot of it must come down to hitting the right research nodes and exploiting them. I got good at exploring quickly, building a small fleet and then sending missionary ships out to snap up the choke points to try and grab a large sector early.
The only research node that seemed clear to grab was the warp drive node. Then i get lost a bit. Things work out until i realize i havent researched enough military, and somehow the other team has a massive invasion fleet.
Rush Isotope Refineries. That'll help - And also spots Titanium. Actually, you should have that in your race traits.
Get Alien Grafting tech, and head straight for wormhole tech if you're technology-specialized: Else, grab first two military techs before doing that, and get ready a fleet of 4 ships before going anywhere.
Colonizing like crazy now only works with Optimistic + Naive, though.