Sins of a Solar Empire

Building a space empire sure is a tough task. One must concurrently maintain an efficient economy, develop industries and living standards, build a awe-inspiring space fleet whilst fending off enemies and pirates. The resources on each planet system are barely sufficient and offers only a small amount of developmental space. So venturing forward and the need for expansion quickly becomes a prerogative. Scouting for fertile colonies is often a challenge because the enemy will also be seeking the same interests. But conflict often occurs in this struggle for new colonies and new and more powerful fleets of spaceships are needed to fend them off. This brings the conundrum back full circle as new technologies cannot be developed without first expanding. This is the mainstay of any 4x game (eXplore, eXpand, eXploit & eXterminate), and Sins of a Solar Empire packages it together very nicely, offering an accessible entry into the genre.

What I did like about the game is its accessibility. The developmental cap on your home planet quickly points you in the direction you need to go; to expand and develop colonies to support an ever-growing economic and military machine. Exploration, colonising and developing has been simplified/abstracted to enable the player to manage to multi-frontal expansion. Building new planetary and orbital structures, and new military units is also a simple process as each item will highlight which resources and technologies are needed. And researching upgrades and new technology is also a simplified/abstracted process. Combat has also been simplified, as it only occurs on a 2D plane; one assumes that maneuvering and tactics have already been taken into account in the game engine.

As many of the game's mechanics have been abstracted, it offers a high level of automation. Automatic placement of new structures can be turned on. Planetary defenses operate by themselves. Military units engage enemy fleets automatically as well, based on parameters set by the player. Individual units join the most suitable fleets and use their special abilities on the optimal targets without prompting.

There were a couple of things that I did find frustrating. Firstly, the research and logistical requirements for units can be very convoluted. For example, building a Hoshiko Robotics Cruiser requires research in the Hoshiko Prototype, which in turn requires research in Superior Repair Bots, which requires research in the Repair Platform, which requires a Military Lab to be built first. And the ship is only a mid-level unit, and does not include any other general upgrades such as hull reinforcements (which can again be further upgraded).

Secondly, the pirate element in the game is extremely annoying. Pirates will attack periodically, which begin as small annoyances but quickly become credible threats. Repelling them either requires a commitment of troops or offering escalating bounties on enemies. Either way, it's a drain on precious resources.

What I haven't seen is the ability to win the game peacefully through diplomatic or cultural means. It seems that the game has a predilection towards military victory, and I can't yet tell if any other means of victory is possible. There are structures in the game that increases cultural imprints, but I'm not sure exactly what this does. It will become apparent as I explore the game further.

While I do have my gripes, I believe I can overcome them as I become more familiar with the game. Knowledge of the research tree is a key to mastering the game, and it's knowledge that I haven't yet acquired. The other problem I have just requires careful management of time and resources. Overall, I like the game very much. It offers a lot of depth in a very accessible manner. Coupled together with an intriguing storyline and an easy to use interface, Sins of a Solar Empire easily gets a recommendation from me.