Endless Space 2

Endless Space 2 is a beautiful and capable 4X game, with memorable personality that's seemingly calculated down to the pixel level. It doesn't deviate much from the genre's norms, but it delivers a generally satisfying 4X experience with only a few missteps in combat and diplomacy. Provided you're also okay with tackling a steep learning curve, it's also a satisfying entry point for the genre.

Endless Space 2 provides loads of 4X strategizing and space-opera-styled storytelling in this epic about building an intergalactic empire.

Gorgeous grand strategy with atmosphere, depth and replayability—but it needs more time to reach its potential.

From the interface to economics, it sports some of the best systems I've seen in a 4X game, and like Endless Legend, it's simultaneously confident and experimental, finding new ways to spice up a genre that can too often be bland.

Come prepared to learn and Endless Space 2 will impress, then sink its claws deep.

I had a lot of fun with Endless Space 2, and I'm looking forward to putting more time in with it. Despite my initial reservations about diving into the deep end, I soon found myself invested in the stories that came from my triumphs and failures. There's a lot to like here if you give it a chance, and even if strategy isn't your preferred genre, you might find that it's worth your time to give ES2 a shot.

Endless Space 2 is now one of the real standard-bearers in the 4X space. While some of its more direct elements come up short, its implementation of politics is a masterstroke, adding depth and complexity to part of a game that often feels like an arbitrary chore.

Endless Space 2 is a great 4X strategy game that is almost guaranteed to improve. While not free of bugs, including a few large ones, it's a title that oozes character. Each and every game offers the flexibility to play the way you want to and adapt as you please, while offering some excellently told stories with every game also offering a fresh emergent story to boot.

Endless Space 2 is a standard 4X that happens to contain some of the most artfully constructed lore and environment we've seen in years. Marred by strange design choices and often cookie cutter empire management, Endless Space 2 will nonetheless leave you thinking about the various characters you meet for a long time.

I consider myself a fan of the genre, and whilst discovering new systems and tactics was compelling at first, it didn’t take long to turn into something completely aimless, thus losing its ability to hold my interest.