A modest 10,000 euros was what a new Stellaris-inspired 4X strategy game wanted to collect from fans. Goal achieved! Now Beyond Astra is setting its sights higher.
We’ve just played Beyond Astra for the first time and liked it, and the 4X space strategy game with chic graphics and up to 300 simultaneously simulated planetsis already making a name for itself again.
This time, however, it’s not about the Steam demo, but about a Kickstarter campaign that was started at the same time.The French developer wants to use crowdfunding to collect donations before the release to make Beyond Astra better and bigger.
So far, it seems to be succeeding: The first (modest) goal was exceeded within 24 hours of the campaign starting.
How much money is at stake and what you get for it
The 10,000 euros that Nebule Games asked for Beyond Astra may not seem like much compared to the millions raised during the biggest Kickstarter hypes. But these days video games have a hard time on the platform; board games dominate the market.
In the meantime, the project has reached over 14,000 euros, which around 200 donors have pledged to Nebule Games. The money is intended to help implement numerous ideas that are too big for Beyond Astra’s current budget.
The first stretch goal will integrate three additional biomes for the fully 3D modeled planets starting at 35,000 euros. It’s impressive how you can jump from the celestial bodies to the galaxy map and back:
The Kickstarter campaign is still running until November 13, 2024 Of course, there are rewards for backers, such as a physical collector’s edition with a small spaceship model starting at 350 euros.
Why you should look forward to Beyond Astra
Even if you don’t donate any money to the project: Beyond Astra could become a very exciting game for fans of 4X games and people with a penchant for science fiction. You start by creating your own civilization in a modular system and set out from your home world to the stars.
You then colonize other planets, build cities, research technologies, build up your military, and establish diplomatic relations with other species.To win a game, you have to come in first in one of seven categories, including culture or founding the defining religion of the galaxy.
As in Stellaris, you can create your own faction or take over and customize one of the pre-made species.
A political system with laws and parties and the needs of your population should keep you busy even when a space battle is not demanding your attention. But of course there are also space battles, and they take place in real time. Unlike in Stellaris, you can give orders yourself.
(There’s currently a demo of Beyond Astra on Steam,)
The release of Beyond Astra is planned for 2025. Developer Nebule Games currently consists oftwo permanent employees; the programming work rests on the shoulders of a single person.
A special feature of the game: Instead of battles taking place in a fully three-dimensional space like in Homeworld, spaceships move on one of three horizontal planes. This allows turrets to intercept individual torpedoes and subsystems to be targeted.
