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Video Blog: Evolution of Sins II Pt.5 - eXterminate

Mighty warships, deadly defenses, superior strategies… Welcome to the universe of Sins of a Solar Empire II! In this latest installment, we delve into the heart of the game’s eXterminate phase, where tactical brilliance and strategic foresight are your greatest allies. eXterminate: The Ultimate Objective In Sins of a Solar Empire, the 4X elements—eXplore, eXpand, and eXploit—culminate in the ultimate goal: to eXterminate your rivals. This involves winning decis... [read more]

7/17/2024 By redskittlesonly in Sins Dev Journals

The Political Machine 2024 v1.11 Now Available

The Political Machine 2024 v1.11 brings Game Balance Changes and Quality of Life Adjustments Buy Now | Full Changelog As the political landscape continues to evolve, so does The Political Machine 2024. The latest update, v1.11, is here, and it’s packed with changes that directly address player feedback, game quality, and balancing. Here’s a look at the highlights of this update. Core Improvements The core of this update focuses on refin... [read more]

7/16/2024 By redskittlesonly in Political Machine News

Sins II: Dev Journal 17 - The Vasari Kortul Devastator

The Kortul Devastator battleship class has been the backbone of the Vasari military since the days of the old empire. Within the Exodus Fleet, the Kortul still performs as a powerful sustained combat ship, but also houses many civilians as well. The Kortul’s high powered weapons are designed to make short work of armored targets and its special abilities allow it to remain in combat for a prolonged period. Armaments 3 x Fixed Wave Cannons 7 x Phase Missile Launchers 6 x Beam C... [read more]

7/10/2024 By Yarlen in Sins Dev Journals

GalCiv IV: Supernova Dev Journal #66 - Grab That Space Junk!

Following on from last week where we gave some advice on game settings to new players coming into Galactic Civilizations IV for the first time, this time around we’re going to examine a crucial 4X game feature that often goes overlooked by new players: the “goodie hut”, or Anomalies , to give them their proper GalCiv name. The 4X gameplay staple mechanic of collectable resources randomly scattered across the map goes way back to the original Sid Meier’s Civilization at least, and is so ingr... [read more]

7/9/2024 By BATTLEMODE in GalCiv IV Dev Journals

Video Blog: Evolution of Sins II Pt.4 - eXploit

Sins of a Solar Empire II: A Deep Dive into the eXploit Mechanics The galaxy is a vast and treacherous expanse, teeming with opportunities for those bold enough to seize them. Welcome to the intricate world of Sins of a Solar Empire II, where the eXploit mechanics of 4X gaming take center stage. From resource management to economic strategies, this game offers a rich tapestry of choices that will shape the destiny of your empire. Let's delve into the complexities of Credits, Metal, Crys... [read more]

7/3/2024 By redskittlesonly in Sins Dev Journals

GalCiv IV: Supernova Dev Journal #65 - Who to Play First?

Galactic Civilizations IV: Supernova has had a large influx of new players in recent months and the game can be a little overwhelming to first time players. We’re going to take a look at a good game setup for a first time player. Before we do though, let’s look at some of the key ingredients that go into shaping a playthrough. There are 23 prebuilt playable factions in the game, that we call the Core Civilizations, and while the AlienGPT custom civilization builder ensures these aren’t your ... [read more]

7/2/2024 By BATTLEMODE in GalCiv IV Dev Journals

Save up to 80% during the Summer Sale

The Steam Summer Sale is Here - Get Up to 80% Off* STEAM KEYS ARE PROVIDED WITH PURCHASE FEATURED TITLE: Sins of a Solar Empire II Coming this Summer to Steam - Wishlist Now Galactic Civilizations IV $49.99 Now $34.99 The Political Machine 2024 $19.99 Now $15.99 Star Control: Origins $29.99 Now $10.19 Galactic Civilizations III ( Includes FREE: Crusade and Ret... [read more]

6/27/2024 By redskittlesonly in Stardock Entertainment Announcements

GalCiv IV: Species Pack Update and Feature Breakdown

Last week we released the Species Pack DLC and today we've made updates to that pack that include; more species, multi-selecting portraits, and adding the ability to 'copy species' . All GalCiv IV players will see minor tweaks to the base species, improved AlienGPT image generation, and some bug fixes. See the full changelog below. For clarity on what's included in Galactic Civilizations IV versus what's exclusive to the Species Pack, please r... [read more]

6/27/2024 By redskittlesonly in GalCiv News

Sins II Dev Journal 16 - The Jarrasul Evacuator

Most of the Vasari population reside aboard Jarrasul Evacuator class capital ships, making them vital to the race’s survival. Though the Jarrasul has been modified over the millennia, its key role has never changed. During the empire’s height, the Vasari would rarely establish surface colonies on occupied worlds, preferring instead to rule from orbit in these floating cities. Armaments 1 x Light Wave Cannon 4 x Medium Beam Cannons 2 x Point-Defense Pulse Guns Planetary ... [read more]

6/26/2024 By Yarlen in Sins Dev Journals

Now Available: v1.1 Command & Conquer Update

v1.1 Command & Conquer Update introduces the War Room & Enhanced Endorsement System Today, Stardock Entertainment released the v1.1 Command & Conquer Update for its political strategy game, The Political Machine 2024. This update includes the introduction of the War Room, a revamped Endorsement System, and several quality-of-life improvements aimed at enhancing the player experience. The v1.1 Command & Conquer update introduces two major features designed to de... [read more]

6/25/2024 By redskittlesonly in Political Machine News

GalCiv IV: Supernova Dev Journal #64 - Species Pack Playstyle Ideas

We’ve examined the Citizens in Galactic Civilizations IV: Supernova quite a bit recently, and I’m hoping that one important point was made loud and clear: when added to the myriad of other player selectable or customisable game features, Citizens provide you more options in building your own unique playstyle for that particular playthrough. This week we’ll take a look at the reasoning behind the variation in Species Traits between Core Species, the generic types and some of the new ones we a... [read more]

6/25/2024 By BATTLEMODE in GalCiv IV Dev Journals

NOW OUT: Species Pack DLC & v2.7 “Taxonomy” Update for Galactic Civilizations IV

New DLC Introduces Unique Alien Species, Customization Tools, and Community Sharing Features Stardock has released the anticipated Species Pack DLC for its popular space 4X game, Galactic Civilizations IV, along with the major free update, v2.7 "Taxonomy." This latest DLC and update bring a wealth of new content and features that promise to enrich the gameplay experience for all space strategy enthusiasts. The free v2.7 "Taxonomy" update introduces significant enhan... [read more]

6/20/2024 By redskittlesonly in GalCiv News

Video Blog: Evolution of Sins II Pt.3 - eXplore, eXpand

Welcome, spacefarers! Today, we embark on an interstellar journey through the highly anticipated sequel to one of the most beloved 4X real-time strategy games: Sins of a Solar Empire II. Buckle up as we explore the galaxy, expand our empires, and delve into the improvements and new features that make this game a must-play for strategy enthusiasts. What is a 4X Game? For the uninitiated, 4X stands for eXplore, eXpand, eXploit, and eXterminate. This genre of empire-building strategy ga... [read more]

6/19/2024 By redskittlesonly in Sins Dev Journals

GalCiv IV: Supernova Dev Journal #63 - v2.7 Taxonomy & Species Pack

AlienGPT is a remarkable system in terms the technology that runs it, and its ability to rapidly generate a believable custom civilization with minimal input from the player. Given a simple prompt, and tweaking a few extra settings, AlienGPT generates a unique faction to play, with its own name, background lore, selectable leader picture and Civilization Abilities and Traits to match. Not so long ago, AlienGPT was updated to include the generation of a unique Citizen name and background,... [read more]

6/18/2024 By BATTLEMODE in GalCiv IV Dev Journals

Livestream: Species Pack DLC and v2.7 Taxonomy Update

Attention all Galactic Civilizations IV fans! We are thrilled to announce an exclusive livestream event that you don't want to miss. Dive deep into the Species Pack DLC and v2.7 Taxonomy Update. When? June 20, 2024 at 1PM ET - 3 PM ET Where? On our Steam page . What to Expect? We'll showcase live gameplay of the new Species Pack DLC, including the new species, customization tools, and phenotypes. We'll also explore the v2.7 "Taxonomy" update fea... [read more]

6/17/2024 By redskittlesonly in GalCiv News

Sins II: Dev Journal 15 - The Vasari Exodus Vorastra Titan

From the depths of deep space where the Dark Fleet dwells comes the Vasari Exodus' Vorastra-class titan. Originally designed as a means to keep insurgent elements deterred in the old empire, the Vorastra continues to serve as the Exodus faction’s most lethal weapon. At a glance, the Vorastra may seem under-powered compared to the Vasari Alliance’s Kultorask titan class, but this would be a mistake. The Vorastra’s strength comes from being highly mobile and from its ability to deal massive... [read more]

6/12/2024 By Yarlen in Sins Dev Journals

GalCiv IV: Supernova Dev Journal #62 - We Are Not Just Numbers!

I was reading some interesting feedback from a community member on Discord the other day, and that feedback read something along the lines of “Citizens seem like a superfluous system, they don’t really add much to the game and could probably be removed without much loss to the gameplay.” I considered that statement for a while, and it was an interesting thought experiment to consider what GalCiv would be like without the Citizens. I thought I’d talk today about why they’re important and ... [read more]

6/11/2024 By BATTLEMODE in GalCiv IV Dev Journals

Video Blog: Evolution of Sins II Pt. 2 - Game-Changing RTS Features

Real-Time Strategy (RTS) games are undergoing a transformation, and at the forefront of this evolution is *Sins of a Solar Empire II*. This highly anticipated sequel promises to blend the strategic depth of 4X games with the tactical intensity of RTS, just as its predecessor, *Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion*, did so masterfully. But what exactly sets Sins II apart? Let's dive in. A Hybrid Masterpiece: RTS Meets 4X Is Sins of a Solar Empire II a classic RTS or ... [read more]

6/5/2024 By redskittlesonly in Sins Dev Journals

GalCiv IV: Supernova Dev Journal #61 - Pressure vs. Sandbox Playstyles

There’s good news and bad news. The good news is that a lot of really exciting new content for Galactic Civilizations IV: Supernova is coming very soon! The bad news is that, unfortunately, I cannot talk about any of it quite yet. Frogboy has been disseminating bits and pieces over on our GalCiv Discord channel, though, so I invite you all to take a look and get involved in the discussions going on there. As an apology for teasing you, I’ll make amends by showing off a core game featu... [read more]

6/4/2024 By BATTLEMODE in GalCiv IV Dev Journals

Creator Spotlight: Sins of a Solar Empire II

Hello, Sins of a Solar Empire II fans! Today, we're excited to shine a spotlight on some YouTube and Twitch streamers who have been diving deep into Sins II. Whether you're looking for strategic insights, entertaining gameplay, or just some quality space-faring fun, these creators have got you covered. Check out their channels and be sure to follow them: Colonel Damneders A content creator specializing in lists, guides, insights and tips. A huge fan of Warhammer 3, wi... [read more]

5/29/2024 By redskittlesonly in Sins Dev Journals

GalCiv IV: Supernova Dev Journal #60 - Trade Routes & Diplomacy

We’ve recently released a large update to Galactic Civilizations: IV Supernova called v2.6 “ Reinforcements” , and for more information you can read the patch notes linked. This update focused mostly on bugfixes, balance, options to allow you to further customize the user-interface and some awesome new ship designs for the Terran Alliance and Terran Resistance, which we covered last week. This was one of the bigger patches we’ve released in a while and should improve the overall experie... [read more]

5/28/2024 By BATTLEMODE in GalCiv IV Dev Journals

WXYZ Detroit Interviews Stardock

Plymouth company's 'The Political Machine' game lets you run a presidential campaign By Sarah Michals PLYMOUTH, Mich. (WXYZ) — Plymouth-based software development and game company Stardock is launching a 2024 version of its computer game "The Political Machine." In the locally-made game, players are asked to stretch their political strategy muscles, playing as real-life presidential candidates vying for the White House. Game creators tell us that in past elections, t... [read more]

5/24/2024 By redskittlesonly in Political Machine News

Now Available: Galactic Civilizations IV v2.6 Reinforcements Update

Galactic Civilizations IV v2.6 Reinforcements Update Brings Visual Overhauls and Gameplay Enhancements The latest update for Galactic Civilizations IV, v2.6 Reinforcements, is now available, and it's packed with a host of changes aimed at enhancing both the visual appeal and gameplay mechanics of the game. Get GalCiv IV Now Visual Overhaul on Ships and New Ship Parts One of the most notable changes in update 2.6 is the major visual overhaul of the Terran Alliance a... [read more]

5/22/2024 By redskittlesonly in GalCiv News

Evolution of Sins II Pt. 1 - Top New Features

Deeper strategy, enhanced tactics, and an all-improved game experience... This is Sins of a Solar Empire II. Wishlist on Steam Now A Look Back at Sins: Rebellion The Sins of a Solar Empire series has long been a staple in the real-time strategy (RTS) genre, blending elements of 4X gameplay—explore, expand, exploit, and exterminate—into a seamless and engaging experience. The stand-alone expansion, Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion, set a new benchmark with its intr... [read more]

5/22/2024 By redskittlesonly in Sins Dev Journals

GalCiv IV: Supernova Dev Journal #59 - New Terran Ships

There’s a new update incoming for Galactic Civilizations IV: Supernova and with it we’ve got some really cool new ship models to show you for the two human civilizations in the game: the Terran Alliance and the Terran Resistance. Taking a quick peek at the Galactic Civilizations IV Metaverse game statistics page, the Terran Alliance and Terran Resistance are the most popular Core Civilizations in GalCiv4, although the AlienGPT custom civ system currently draws the most players of all! Eve... [read more]

5/21/2024 By BATTLEMODE in GalCiv IV Dev Journals

NOW OUT: The Presidential Pioneers v1.01 Update for The Political Machine 2024

The Presidential Pioneers v1.01 Update brings New Candidates, Mac Support, and Game Quality Improvements Today we released a significant update for their strategy game, The Political Machine 2024. This update introduces an array of past presidential candidates, extends compatibility to macOS, and implements various bug fixes and balance adjustments. Buy Now | View Changelog New Faces in the Political Arena The latest update enriches the game's roster with ... [read more]

5/16/2024 By redskittlesonly in Political Machine News

Sins II: Dev Journal 14 - A Post Mortem Playthrough Adventure

A number of fans have asked us about how Sins II plays, both from a new and returning user perspective. This past weekend, we played a 10-player dev FFA bout where I took the role of a TEC loyalist empire. Let’s walk through how things went! [NOTE: Please forgive the quality of these screen shots. For some reason my capture software messed up the brightness/contrast on all of them. I’ve adjusted them manually to be closer to the in-game experience.] As a TEC player, I start the game wit... [read more]

5/15/2024 By Yarlen in Sins Dev Journals

GalCiv IV: Supernova Dev Journal #58 - Doctrine: Targeting Priority

Since v2.5 “Ares” and the Warlords expansion were released, we’ve put out a short series of developer journals describing the new features added to the war system in Galactic Civilization IV: Supernova. Today we’ll look at the last component of the Doctrine system we’ve not covered yet, Targeting Priority. I’m aware that I’ve already indirectly discussed this feature three or four times over since the updates landed, as it’s a core component of the new Ship Class and Doctrine mechanics... [read more]

5/14/2024 By BATTLEMODE in GalCiv IV Dev Journals

Video Blog: History of Sins of a Solar Empire

Sins of a Solar Empire exploded onto the real-time strategy scene in 2008 and wowed genre enthusiasts with its seamless blend of RTS and 4X gameplay, amazing graphics and deep strategy. Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion is still well loved today with thriving modding and multiplayer scenes. Now, Ironclad Games and Stardock return with Sins of a Solar Empire II, a long awaited and much anticipated sequel to the hit series. With all new strategic and tactical gameplay elements, reworked mec... [read more]

5/8/2024 By redskittlesonly in Sins Dev Journals

GalCiv IV: Supernova Dev Journal #57 - Doctrine: Operational Abilities

As we’ve seen in the past couple of developer journals, Ship Classes in Galactic Civilizations IV: Supernova consist of a Ship Type plus a Doctrine. I’ll summarise it again in case you didn’t read those. The Ship Type is a kind of model organised around its hull size and suggested combat role: for example, a Cruiser is a medium hull-sized Type and has an inherent bonus of +10% Weapon Range, as opposed to the Destroyer, the new medium hull-sized Type added in Warlords with its -10% Weapon ... [read more]

5/7/2024 By BATTLEMODE in GalCiv IV Dev Journals

Sins II: Dev Journal 13 - Gameplay Trailer Breakdown

We thought it might be helpful to point out some details in our gameplay trailer that illustrate some key differences between Sins 2, Sins: Rebellion, and other strategy games (especially of this scale). You can view the full video below: The Planner This scene shows how planets orbit and phase lanes change. The speed is accelerated to exaggerate the feature but it actually occurs very slowly giving players time to plan their defensive and offensive strategies. Planets close to t... [read more]

5/6/2024 By Blair Fraser in Sins Dev Journals

Create your own political strategy with The Political Machine 2024

PLYMOUTH, Mich. (FOX 2) - A Plymouth-based developer and publisher of games and desktop software just unveiled this year’s version of a political strategy game. "The Wall Street Journal pointed out in 2016 that only Stardock and FiveThirtyEight predicted Trump would win," said Chris Kowal. And 2024 is no exception. This iteration according to Erdman delivers one of the game’s most significant updates, including political action cards. . . read the entire article here. ... [read more]

5/3/2024 By wasabi_md in Political Machine News

Stardock Releases The Political Machine 2024

New political strategy game puts players in this year’s race for the White House Buy from Steam | Buy from Stardock Stardock Entertainment released The Political Machine 2024 , the newest edition of its popular political strategy game series today. The game allows players to step into the shoes of presidential candidates , including Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Nikki Haley, Bill Clinton and countless other candidates from history, or create ... [read more]

5/2/2024 By redskittlesonly in Political Machine News

‘The Political Machine 2024’ is latest in long strategy lineage

by Lillian King PLYMOUTH, Mich. — If you’re not happy with this year’s election polls, turn to 2024’s The Political Machine . Out for PC on Thursday, this turn-based political strategy game from Plymouth, Mich.-based Stardock Corporation lets players choose from an array of bobbleheaded versions of real-life candidates before siccing them against each other in a duel for the presidency. “The presidential campaigns make for a perfect vid... [read more]

5/2/2024 By wasabi_md in Political Machine News

Real data backs Plymouth-made presidential campaign game

by Annalise Frank A video game created in Wayne County has had some success predicting outcomes of U.S. presidential elections, including seeing former President Trump as the winner in 2016, its makers say. The big picture: On Thursday, Stardock Entertainment, a 30-year-old game developer based in Plymouth, launches the 2024 election edition of The Political Machine . The company is known for strategy games , including Sins of a Solar Empire. How ... [read more]

5/2/2024 By wasabi_md in Political Machine News

Sins II: Dev Journal 12 - Advent Rising

For this blog post, I want to give our fans an update on what we’re working on for this summer. We recently announced that the Advent would be arriving for summer, but there’s a whole lot more that we have in store for everyone. I’ll start off with what everyone’s been clamoring for…. The Advent “The Advent , whose society is known collectively as “The Unity,” is a highly advanced pseudo-religious civilization that relies heavily on spiritualism, psychic prowess and cybernetic technolo... [read more]

5/1/2024 By Yarlen in Sins Dev Journals

Sins of a Solar Empire II to Release on Steam this Summer

Sequel to beloved strategy title features new asymmetric playstyles, dynamically changing maps, deeper tactical combat, expanded strategic depth, and more Wishlist Sins of a Solar Empire II on Steam The battle for galactic supremacy continues as Stardock and Ironclad Games will bring Sins of a Solar Empire II to Steam this Summer. Sins of a Solar Empire II seamlessly combines real-time strategy and 4X depth, delivering sprawling empires, huge tactical fleet battles, an... [read more]

5/1/2024 By redskittlesonly in Sins of a Solar Empire News

GalCiv IV: Supernova Dev Journal #56 - Ship Types

Ship Types are a way of classifying the base model hull that a Ship Class is built upon, and hold their own special bonus too. We took a look at Ship Classes last week , but today we’ll go through the various Ship Types available in Galactic Civilizations IV: Supernova, including those added in the new Warlords expansion. While Colony Ships, Constructors and Miners are all technically Ship Types too, we’re just going to focus on combat vessels this time around. Ship Types can be organ... [read more]

4/30/2024 By BATTLEMODE in GalCiv IV Dev Journals

GalCiv IV: Supernova Dev Journal #55 - Ship Classes

Excluding more abstract notions of war (such as dominating the economy, culture flipping planets with Influence and so on), when the protagonists of Galactic Civilizations IV: Supernova engage in kinetic warfare, there are two main theatres: planetary invasions and fleet battles, the latter of which we’re going to cover today by examining how we now approach ship design. The core of the new and improved fleet combat mechanics, added in v2.5, is the introduction of the Ship Class, replacin... [read more]

4/23/2024 By BATTLEMODE in GalCiv IV Dev Journals

NOW OUT: Warlords Expansion & v2.5 “Ares” Update for Galactic Civilizations IV

New Features Include: War Aims, Combat Doctrines, Invasion Tactics, New Ship Components, New Technologies, A New Battle Viewer and much more Get GalCiv IV Now | Warlords Expansion Stardock has released a major expansion pack for its popular space 4X game, Galactic Civilizations IV. Galactic Civilizations IV: Warlords adds a host of new features including War Aims, Combat Doctrines, Invasion Tactics, New Ship Components, New Technologies, a new Battle ... [read more]

4/18/2024 By redskittlesonly in GalCiv News

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