Space themed 4x strategy game StarDrive harkens back to the golden age of RTS and space colonization in a new and improved way
StarDrive is not without its faults however, and quite possibly the biggest one I noticed is the sheer amount of time it can take to finish one game. If you play a game involving all 8 races and just a medium size map, it can take multiple hours just to get through it and that is usually only if you speed up the game for long periods of time. Although this is probably of no concern to veterans of the genre, the tediousness of going through one of these endurance games began to wear me down to the point of boredom and wanting it to end at times. Along with this, the parameters for victory are essentially either unite the entire galaxy or exterminate everything which when dealing with massive galactic empire and constant shifting of colonization can take way too long. Graphical and audio customization is nearly non-existent which became annoying when large battles took place and I couldn’t adjust the graphics to avoid lag.
Despite its shortcomings, StarDrive offers a new and improved take on the long running 4X strategy genre by offering up nostalgia for the veterans of the genre while at the same time catering to players who may have missed these games of the past and wish to find out what made them so special. The removal of turn based gameplay creates a vibrant galaxy that is ready to be colonized and the openness to mods shows just how dedicated Zero Sum Games is to the community and what they have to offer for StarDrive. The game retails on the Steam story for $30 USD so unless you're a fan of the genre it would probably be best to wait for a price drop. If you're ready to take on the galaxy, then get out there and explore where no man, or space bear, has gone before.
Score: 7.5 / 10
