So I was thinking... even the Huge maps feel a bit small to me. It would be kinda cool to be able to go to other galaxies...



No no, hear me out; I know that's completely crazy. So I was thinking about this, and I had an idea:



What if there was a tech which was something like "build a super-colony ship with super-warp drives" or something, and it would be a crazy-to-research end-game tech (possibly even worked into a type of victory).



The effects of completing this tech would be that when (or if) you won the game (either through that tech, or whatever other means), you'd get a kind of "New Game+" option?



Basically, how this would work is that once it's game over, you get to create a new game, with all the usual options (faction selection, galaxy type & size, difficulty, etc., everything). The difference is that you get to "take something with you": you're basically colonizing a new galaxy (starting a new game) with that super-fancy-colony ship you built with that tech from the end of your other game.



I guess for the sake of consistency, maybe you'd have to stick with the same race. But maybe this could be overlooked for the sake of gameplay & fun, or some "(semi-)logical" reason could be given as to why it's not the same race anymore (maybe the new race boarded your old race's super-colony and stole all their toys!).



What you "take with you" (the "New Game+" aspect of this idea) is that you'd get to choose some kind of bonus. Think of it as a legacy from your old empire. It could be starting with extra tech, some dust, maybe an extra ship or two (scouts, colony, basic combat ship, whatever), maybe even your favorite hero (they'd be reset to level 1, of course; you could explain this with "brain damage from too much cryo-sleep" or whatever... details... I'm just brainstorming, here--leave me alone!). Perhaps a bonus to industry, science or economy due to "the incredible wisdom of your mother empire" or whatever. Things like that.



Not a huge bonus, mind--nothing game breaking. But a nice reminder of your roots, if you will, something to mix things up a little. You could even link the type of bonus to the type of victory you had. If you won a scientific victory, you get to pick an extra low-level tech, if you won a military victory, maybe you start with a crappy fighter or two, if you won an economic victory, you start with some extra Dust in your pockets, etc.



What one does with this new game will vary from player to player. Maybe you just feel like a simple and easy game after a hard one; pick a small map with an easy difficulty, and you start with a leg up. Perhaps you can try that harder difficulty setting you've been meaning to for a while but have been afraid of; the bonus will help you ease into it.



Basically, overall, nothing big, just a small token (a free colony ship, +10% to industry, a free level 1 hero, 100 dust, things like that). It could give a certain sense of continuity. And yes, these could add up over time!



Even a not-very-good player could tackle a Huge galaxy on Impossible populated entirely by Cravers after enough stacked bonuses!

Good for a specific senerio or a type of scripted game with some more of the games storyline, it could be fun!



But it might make more sence if it were to like, the other spiral arm of our galaxy then a totaly diffrent galaxy (Becuse the galaxy is really really big you know)

I vaguely considered something more complex, along the lines of a campaign or something, but discarded that idea...



I see what you mean about keeping some consistency in the shift, but two things about that:



1. The maps, as they are, are already supposed to be entire galaxies.



2. I was trying to find a balance between in-game logic and gameplay fun.



Logic issues (such as how would you manage to go to another galaxy?!? as big as a galaxy is, the space between them is mind-bogglingly huge--and if you can manage to travel from one to another, why would you start off as a "crappy regular faction" without any of your old knowledge?) can be circumvented with some careful (and liberal) application of suspension of disbelief and creative license, so I'm not too worried about that. I was basically just brainstorming and gave a couple of rough ideas of how things could kind of be handled. Details would have to be hammered out and polished, of course.



But the underlying theme/concept is to give a little something extra, without making it a huge thing.



If something more along the lines of a "real" campaign, scenario or whatever was made, then certain details could be more scripted, and perhaps bonuses given could be bigger (since they would be within a much more constrained and less random context).



But my suggestion is more about "just a little somethin'-somethin' on the side" than a full-blown campaign. Mostly because it would be (relatively) simple and probably not too hard to implement.



Then again, if the devs want to make a full-blown intergalactic campaign, I'm certainly not gonna complain!

Thank for ideas and suggestions however alot of suggestion have been already and listed on summary list (linked on my signature panel) for the Creative Director and Dev team consideration. Please keep them coming !!!

Well thats because galaxys look cooler!



But yeah i think its a cool idea.