Quick Look: Stellaris - Console Edition

That’s a first opinionated description of a QL

I'm sure they will make it right on the console version

lol.

War3, war3 never changes.

Stellaris is a game that seems perfect for me. But after 100 hours of play time, it still doesn't click with me.

This port is just bad. I wouldn't mind the controller input option on PC, but why is it built off an ancient version of the game? Seems pointless that it exists in this state, it will probably never get all the DLCs and I doubt if the PC will get the controller input options. As a paradox game you need all the DLCs to plug the gaps and really get the depth and this has 0 DLC on release.

Stellaris has 3 major expansions and 3 story dlcs on PC at the moment and even that is still a little thin by their standards and as far as filling out game content goes. Its still missing espionage (and stealth ships), interesting galactic heroes and their lives/missions in a crusader kings style. More varied government styles (the latest dlc finally added MegaCorps and the possibility to be crimelords).

@chummy8: Wish I had that time for a thing I liked, let alone didn't like.

@curiosus: 2.x.x might not even have been started when they started developing Stellaris Console.

It is an inferior version of the game though, DLC aside. Pre-2.x.x is a worst game overall.

@chummy8: PC or Console?

And what specifically isn't 'clicking'? Have you looked at mods?

The combat. No matter how big or powerful my empire is, I have never gotten past the end game scenarios.

I get why Stellaris players on PC are dismissive of this port, but it's not really meant for them. There's really not any other game like this on console, so even though it's an outdated version of the game, it still succeeds at filling that niche.

They announced that it would be the 1.7 version way before release, so my biggest worry was porting the interface/controls to a gamepad, but all the reviews I've seen say it works surprisingly well to control. I've enjoyed all versions of Stellaris since launch, not just 2.0, so I think this is an easy recommend for console players who are interested and don't have a good PC.

What makes someone play stellaris on pc over endless space for example? Isnt endless space a better space 4x? I almost never hear praise for this game but a lot of complaining especially with the recent changes. I would like to play a space 4x and don't know if this is the one after seeing this.

@steveurkel: The real time aspect of Stellaris appeals to me a lot and contributes to more of a simulation-like feel, whereas turn based 4X games like Endless Space and Civ feel more like a board game to me in a way that's not my favorite.

Role playing is a big appeal as well for me, which is helped by the empire creation system that I think offers more replayability than the premade races/civs of other games in the genre.

I also like the random nature of the research in Stellaris, as again it helps with variety over multiple playthroughs, instead of a set tech tree that I'll always end up finding my ideal path for and always stick to.

@chummy8: I rarely finish the endgame, the Stellaris endgame is kinda there just to satisfy people who need an endgame. I would maybe suggest adjusting the crisis strength.

@benjaminolson:

I'm dismissive because I don't want console players to have an unnecessarily hobbled experience of the game, and i'd like to have the controller option in the PC build. This is also a game totally suited to crossplay as there is no major input advantage but that can never happen without being up to date with the PC. We shouldn't be seeing such ridiculous port disparity in 2019. They'd be better off playing stellaris on a bad PC than this version and I can't recommend against the console version enough.

XCOM took a PC game to console in 2013 and didn't mess it up like this.

Oh my god that grid system still in the game.

Haha.

This was a great QL, good show Vinny

I would love more Stellaris content on the site!

Now bring Crusader Kings 2 to the consoles!

I love Stellaris and would LOVE for Vinny to do a recurring feature, but not this version, unfortunately. I've enjoyed the MegaCorp expansion quite a bit.

Alex's immediate kinship with the Blorg is just adorable.

I'd totally be down for seeing a four-player GBeast Stellaris campaign on PC with Vinny, Alex, Abby and Dan all leading their own custom-built empires against/with each other to victory or ruin.

Oh man, this was awesome. Vinnie, please make a video of War4!

Abby, I just wanted to let you know I appreciated your D'Oh joke even if Vinny and Alex missed it

:D

This is just making me want to start a new game on PC, or try to win with my Cthulhu race again.

I played this with a steam controller so i could definitely see it playing well on console. My gripe with stellaris is I just lost interest after they got rid of all the other modes of travel, hyperlanes just seemed so boring. It was real fun to have all 3, made the game crazy.

This does actually seem like a pretty decent port.

@oursin_360: I always found it weird how they would change the game so drastically with some patches. Hyperlanes make for interesting strategic decisions. I just never understood why they didn't just make this sort of thing a choice you can do at the beginning of a game. You can pick other things about your galaxy, why not the mode of travel? Especially when people can just mod the other systems back in anyways, I assume.

Playing the crap out of stellaris on xbox one. It's been fun times.

I really liked the "D'oh" ship

@bladeofcreation: because the entire reason they moved to hyperlanes only was so that they could make an assumption about how you were getting around the galaxy, and therefore dedicate all their resources to balancing around that one type.

For instance the new border system post 2.0 was a fantastic improvement, but just wouldn't work with anything other than hyperlanes (how do you define in a fixed way which systems are adjacent otherwise?). Same with the effort they put into boosting the importance of fixed defensive structures; that made a huge difference in a hyperlanes game but would be entirely irrelevant in a warp or wormhole game.

So simply put, they realized that they didn't have the time or resources to simultaneously make three deep, strategic games - one for each travel mode - as well as all the other improvements they wanted to make.

Love Stellaris, I hope this lets more people get into it :D

This is one of my favorite games of all time. I'm glad console players finally get to play it. There aren't enough games like this in general on consoles and it's staggering that they made it work so well with the controller. No use complaining about it if you have access to the PC version, just stick to that. This does look better than having no version of it at all, even if it looks pretty dated next to the current PC patch.

@lemmox: That is a perfectly reasonable explanation. Thanks!

This just makes me want to reinstall stellaris

I thought the community (in general) hated the current version? I see tons of reviews on steam saying they wish the game could be rolled back to the ancient version...