This game is a modified time capsule that has singlehandedly ruined my perception of time and therefore I only get 3 hours of sleep a day.
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I've written this review when I only had 15 hours into the game. Now I have a grand total of 104 hours after going out on a 78 hour non-stop binge with only 6 hours of sleep between all of this.
Suffice it to say, this game is a massive gem.
Starting off with my criticisms, combat could definitely use some work especially in regards to dealing with Dark Fog relay stations and hives. Dealing with Dark Fog eventually becomes a chore that you constantly have to come back to and destroy because there's no way to actually automate the destruction of their hives.
Something also worth noting is the transition from early game to mid game to late game and then endgame is VERY brutal. I found myself having to destroy a big percentage of my prior factory in order to continuously update and keep up with the sheer amount of material that I need and logistics to spread it across my facilities on my home star. Branching out to other solar systems is also very daunting to actually do when you get to the stage where you're suggested to move off planet because then you'd have to deal with even more dark fog, which as said prior, is a total chore.
ALL OF THAT BEING SAID THOUGH, the process and working towards building the Dyson Sphere makes for an insanely gratifying and rewarding experience all around. This design isn't originally mine, but the sheer amount of depth that goes into designing your own spheres and building them is genuinely unparalleled and makes for an EXTREMELY satisfying experience.
https://imgur.com/a/PNtLKgx
This game also provides the best sense of scale when it comes to superstructures in space is also just unparalleled. Hives are gargantuan in size and as seen in the imgur link, Your Dyson Sphere on the planning screen it looks small but flying through your structure in game is absolutely amazing.
All around, for a game with this much depth in it's space exploration and the amount of creativity it allows, knowing that right now it's an Early Access game with promises of being able to build your own space stations on the same scale as Dark Fog Hives and customization of Dyson Spheres, as well as better space combat overall, this genuinely might be up there as one of my favorite games of all time and I am not saying this lightly.
Buy the game. I absolutely 100% recommend it. It's genuinely amazing and I can't stress enough that despite all of the hardships you'd go through when it comes to the early and mid game, it's all worth it. It genuinely is worth it. This game holds so much promise and potential in the future.