Sins of a Solar Empire II

Whole thing feels like a money grab

Sins of a Solar empire 2 is, as it stands, very similar to Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion. As far as I'm concerned, this is a very good thing, as that game is nearly 15 years old at this point and Rebellion is, while still good mechanically, rather dated in the effects department. If you liked SoaSE:R, you'll almost certainly like this game. Faction flavor is on point, the effects are flashy but not distracting, and the game is recieving regular updates and balance patches. Performance wise, I haven't had any issues with it except on 10 player maps in the extreme late game while modded, but as you can see by my specs it's not exactly helpful to say "works great on my machine". Now for a very significant USP, the ARES system. The developers are working on the computer opponents being actually difficult and smart, rather than just giving a 100%+ stat bonus and calling it a day. Their goal for doing this at the moment is to take their individual systems (which are still fairly good IME) and put them under a single guiding system. This is, as far as I can tell, the greatest bit of difficulty in building a proper strategic computer opponent. It is still in testing at the moment, however in a genre that is saturated by "lets just make it do stupid harder", even the attempt is something that should be praised and rewarded IMO.

Sins2 isn't that much different than Sins1. It really feels like an old game with a fresh coat of paint. Even the sounds are the same. There are a few enhancements, such as minor factions and a resource system that limits some construction in the early game. If you liked Sins1 you may like Sins2. At least modern computers don't bog down so much in the late game.

It's already way better than Sins of a Solar Empire Rebellion which is saying a lot because they nailed it with the original game and all the DLC. You can tell the devs are passionate about this game and they want to get it right no matter how much work that entails. It launched in a very rocky state on Steam but I bought it to show my support anyways as I loved the OG Sins Rebellion so I had trust in Ironclad and that trust paid off. They have overhauled basically every system since the steam launch and are finally in a place where everything for the foundation of this game is solid and now they can start building out which is really exciting. If you liked the original then you'll love this one and if you didn't play the OG then if a space 4x RTS made by a passionate developer sounds like something that's up your alley then this will not dissapoint.

its an alright space sim at best get it on sale or free, it has mods like star wars that make the game worthwhile and enjoyable. steep learning curve typical of 4X games, its harder to learn and much different than Stellaris in terms of complexity of gameplay, although there's a lot more political government/species customization in paradox games; which means i haven't really played this game as much but likely will someday.

A very barebones and streamlined 4X especially if you don't have the DLCs. But a good looking one. Worth a good few hours if you are interested in just dueling it out in space combat with everything else, most noticeably the diplomacy, being largely subsidiary. 7/10

A glorious follow-up to Sins of a Solar Empire Rebellion. Truly one of the best games in my library; I hope to sink as many hours into this game as I have in Rebellion.