FAQ



General questions



Question: What is Endless Space?

Answer: Endless Space is a new turnbased 4X space strategy game, in development by Amplitude Studios, with state-of-the-art graphics and interface, and cinematic space battles, which take place in a believable and exciting universe.



Question: What platform is the game going to be released on?

Answer: PC and Mac.



Question: When is the game going to be released?

Answer: The retail release date is 24 August 2012.



Question: When are we going to be able to pre-order the game?

Answer: Pre-orders are now available on Steam!



Question: What are the game’s system requirements?

Answer: Alpha system requirements (these could very slightly change while we get closer to Gold):



Minimum

Operating system: Windows XP SP3 / Vista / 7

Processor: Core 2 Duo Processor or Equivalent

Memory: 2 GB RAM

Hard disk space: 2 GB free hard drive space

Video: 256 MB DX9 Compliant

Sound: DX 9 Compatible Audio

DirectX®: 9.0c



Recommended

Operating system: Windows XP SP3 / Vista / 7

Processor: Core i5/i7 or equivalent

Memory: 2 GB RAM

Hard disk space: 2 GB free hard drive space

Video: 512 MB DX9 Compliant with PS 3.0 support

Sound: DX 9 Compatible Audio

DirectX®: 9.0c



Question: Is Endless Space going to support modding?

Answer: Yes modding support is going to be included. Refer to this thread in the forums for more details: Link



Question: Is the game going to have multiplayer?

Answer: Yes, Endless Space can be played in singleplayer and multiplayer.



Question: What is Games2Gether?

Answer: Games2Gether (G2G) is new way to participate in the game development process by discussing and interchanging ideas and choosing art and game design elements. You can learn more about G2G here: Link



Question: What is the address of the official website of Endless Space?

Answer: Official website: http://endless-space.amplitude-studios.com/, official forums: http://forums.amplitude-studios.com/forum.php



Question: How can I redeem my steam code in order to get the extra G2G points from my pre-order?

Answer: Login to the official site (not the forums!), click on your name in the upper right corner and type/paste your steam code in the "Redeem G2G Code" field, then click the "Redeem" button.



Question: What game engine does Endless Space use?

Answer: Unity 3D



Question: Is there a manual and where can I download it from?

Answer: Find the game in your Steam Game Library and click on the "Manual" choice in the menu on the right side.



Game design related questions



Question: Can you engage in diplomatic relations with the other races in Endless Space?

Answer: Diplomacy is a vital part of the game and has a big impact on your military strategy, economy and research.



Question: How many playable races are there going to be in the game?

Answer: There are going to be 8 playable races in Endless Space, each having unique story, design and gameplay.



Question: Will there be minor, non-playable races to interact with?

Answer: For now no non-playable races to interact with, but hey there are 8 full factions + pirates. We'll however keep that in mind for future expansions



Question: Would I be able to create my own custom race?

Answer: Yes, you can create your own race and choose its traits and affinities, which along with the Galaxy Generation features makes for a unique gameplay experience every time you start a new game.



Question: What victory conditions are there going to be available?

Answer: Dust, Science, Population, Warfare, Building, King-of-the-hill, Best Score



Question: How do space battles play out?

Answer: Opposing fleets in the same system will engage in a fleet battle at end of turn. A 3D cinematographic battle ensues, in which the player go through 4 phases: Preparation, Long range, Medium range, Melee. In Preparation you choose your strategy and battle actions for the next 3 cinematic phases. Other factors play a role in determining the outcome of a battle such as Hero abilities, research, ship customization, etc.



Question: What are heroes?

Answer: Heroes are sentient beings that can boost the effectiveness of your planets and ships as governors/admirals. They have ability trees which you can unlock as they gain experience, to further improve their usefulness.



Question: How do character abilities work in the game?

Answer: There are 2 Hero roles and 5 Hero classes in Endless Space. Heroes start with a set of abilities and unlock more when they level up. The Hero statistics and Hero abilities affect different game elements like industry, science, warfare, etc. There are active combat abilities (fueled by Dust) which can be used in battles.



Hero Class:

Corporate

Commander

Pilot

Adventurer

Administrator



Hero Stats:

Labor - bonus for agriculture (Food) and Industry

Wit - bonus for Science and Dust

Melee - bonus in ground warfare offense/defense

Offense - bonus in offense

Defense - bonus in defense



Question: How large is the Galaxy map in Endless Space and how many opponents can you have?

Answer: You would be able to play against up to 7 opponents on generated galaxy maps with the number of star systems varying between 30 (Tiny) and 133 (Huge), depending on the selected galaxy map size. Though 30 stars and 7 opponents is not going to be a strategy Master Class...



Question: What is Dust?

Answer: Dust is a unique currency in Endless Space. Having use for trade, research and construction, Dust has an important place in the story and lore of Endless Space.



Question: Are there going to be any kind of cinematic videos in the game, intro, outro, important events, discoveries, interracial interaction (not of that kind ), etc.?

Answer: Hey, this isn't Mass Effect... but yes, there will be some cinematics. However please understand that we are a small, indie studio and in spite of our genius and vision we don't have the budgets to be doing any masterpieces of modern film...



Question: When traveling between systems can you only use the "starlanes" or can you go "off-road"?

Answer: There will be a tech advance permitting direct travel between stars without the use of the string induction drive (those things are cosmic strings that connect the stars...).



Question: I'd like to know what are the dev stance on the issue of intelligence. What will be available to players, what will be available through research ?

Answer: We removed intelligence from the game, as the system we have in mind is rather complex and we want to refine that for later, to have something solid on that area when we decide to implement it.



Question: Can you name your ships, planets etc.

Answer: Yes, for ship types. For star systems it's technically possible, but it isn't something we had planned so we're not sure we'll get it into the first version of the game.



Question: Is there any "cloaking tech" in the game?

Answer: No. It has been removed in early development.



Question: Would the AI be able to play a custom-created race?

Answer: Currently no, it is able to use only the default 8 races.



Question: Are there random events taking place in Endless Space?

Answer: Yes.



Question: Where can I find the Galaxy Seed number (replayability)?

Answer: If you want to generate the exact same galaxy, you will have to get that one seed in your previous game save, rename your .bin file to .zip, extract, open the file in notepad++ for instance, search for "seed" (CTRL+F), and copy the number you will find. Then, you will have to paste it in your new game: Advanced Game Settings > Galaxy Seed Generation.

General gameplay questions



Technology and research



Question: Is it possible to trade race-specific techs?

Answer: No you can’t exchange other faction’s technologies.



Question: How do I remove a tech from the research queue?

Answer: Left mouse button clicking on another tech removes the currently researched one from the queue.



Question: How do I add several techs from different tech trees to the research queue?

Answer: Left click, while holding down Left Shift, on the techs you want to add to the queue.



Diplomacy



Question: Do I need to research a specific tech in order to engage in diplomatic relations with other races?

Answer: By default, you actually don't need to speak the enemy's language if you want to declare war. However, you will indeed need to research Xenology (Diplomacy and Trading tech tree) in order to make a peace treaty.



Question: What are the diplomatic stances at the beginning of a game?

Answer: All players (human and AI) start in a state of "Cold War". In this diplomatic state you can fight in neutral systems but if you want to attack a fleet at a player's owned star system or invade a planet you will have to declare war. The Craver race has the "eternal war" trait and cannot engage in diplomatic relations with other races.



Galaxy Map



Question: When I set a ship to move a long distance, it doesn't move right away.

Answer: Ships in Endless Space use limited amount of movement points per turn to travel through the Galaxy Map. Once these are expended the ship cannot move until the next turn. Once you set the destination, you don't have to manually move the ship. The ships with remaining movement points auto-move, after you push the end turn button. When relying on auto-movement keep in mind that if you have given a destination which is less than a full move away, the extra move points are wasted, so you might want to manually command your ships when they are about to reach the end of their journey.



Question: How do I set a specific route for my fleet?

Answer: You can queue movement orders by pressing and holding down SHIFT and then right clicking the star systems you want your fleet to go through. Forcing a fleet to move through empty space can be done by holding down CTRL (you must have Warp Drive researched). In addition if want wish to queue movement and travel through empty space at the same time, press and hold CTRL+SHIFT.



Question: Do random worm holes appear to take you off to some far flung system?

Answer: Yes. Through wormholes you can instantly be transported far away from your constellation.



Question: Can you see the enemy move his ships between star systems you don't have any presence in?

Answer: You can see the movement of enemy fleets only if they are within the detection range of one of your systems or fleets. So you won't see enemies in systems you have explored but not colonized unless you have a ship, or radar station there, and you might see enemies at the edge of your detection range in systems you have not yet visited. Different ships have different detection range.



Question: What are the thick strings separating constellations, and how do I use them?

Answer: These are wormholes. Research Applied Casimir Effect (Exploration & Expansion tech tree, tier 2) and you can use them.



Question: How do I travel outside the strings and wormholes?

Answer: Use the Warp Drive tech. This will let you travel anywhere, although pathfinding may take you along strings anyway if it is faster.



Planets and Invasion



Question: What are the benefits from increasing the food production on a planet?

Answer: Food is only affecting population growth at first. Later on via the second to last tech in the Science Tech tree, it can be converted into industry by constructing a specialized building. Food has no effect whatsoever for systems with full population, so shifting your production towards Industry, Dust or Science is advisable for such planets/systems.



Question: How does population affect economy?

Answer: The larger the population on a planet, the more they will produce of that planet’s FIDS. The population number is global for a Solar System. At any time, the player can transfer population points from one planet to another, as long as it doesn’t exceed the population capacity of that planet.



Question: Will we be able to select the star and planet type of of our custom faction's starting point, or will the starting planet be influenced by the traits we selected earlier?

Answer: At the moment you faction affinity decides your starting planet type. You can find detail on custom faction creation here.



Question: I designed my own colony ship, but when it arrives it cannot colonize.

Answer: Any ship can colonize, as long as it has a Seed Module. You can find this in the support tab, by scrolling down. If your custom ship does not have this, it cannot colonize.



Question: How do sieges/invasions on enemy planets work? Is there any indication on how long it is going to take to claim a planet?

Answer: Having any ship (not only colony) in the enemy star system will allow you to invade his planet. First, you have to click the button with the two fists to start the siege. If you have clicked it and go back to the system, you will see a seconds-hand animation on the button and the hover help will say "click to *stop* attacking". A progress bar under the name of the system shows how long will it take for the invasion to be completed. You can improve ships invasion capabilities through research. Invasion strength takes in a measure of invasion power combined with military strength. Having modules that increase invasion power will increase the invasion strength substantially more than military strength alone. Heroes can give bonuses to invasion power.



Question: How do I build ships? I've designed a ship, but I find no way to start and build it.

Answer: In the System Screen there are actually two different build options. One for improvements/buildings, and one for ships. You just have to find the right button on the lower left.



Question: How can I speed up construction?

Answer: "Buyouts". At the systems screen, there's a round shiny coin symbol on the right side of your buildings in the queue. If it is not grayed out you have sufficient dust to speed up the construction of that building.



Question: I have colonized a planet in a star system, but there's another planet in the same system, do I have to get another colony ship to be able to colonize it?

Answer: No, another ship is not required as long as you have a colonized planet with at least two population and there's another colonizable planet in the system. In this case colonization happens by transferring population from the colonized to the to-be-colonized planet.



Combat



Question: Do battles take place in 3 dimensions?

Answer: The battles are certainly 3D. Yet we want the players to enjoy the show and not have to find his way in space, so we have an AI Director who handles the camera for you, to make sure you are always right in the midst of the action.



Question: Before a battle begins, is there a way to see what weapons and defense modules the enemy ships are equipped with?

Answer: Yes, this info is accessible at the first dialog box that appears (the "Approaching fleet" one with the automatic/manual battle choice options) before each battle. Hover the mouse cursor over the enemy fleet icons and you would be able to see their strength, weapons and defense modules installed.



Ships and Fleets



Question: How many ship classes are there in the game?

Answer: Each of the races has access to 6 ship classes. Each class has a unique visual and has its own advantages.



Question: How do you get larger fleets?

Answer: You can get more command points, thus larger fleets, from research in the Diplomacy and Trading tech tree. The first tech giving you more command points is called "Fleet Improved Management". Search for C3, C4, or C5 in the tech tree. Those should lead you to the science discoveries that unlock the necessary techs.



Question: How do I repair damaged ships?

Answer: Ship repair themselves a certain percentage each turn they are in a friendly system, Hero Abilities and Battle Actions can also be used to repair. Installed ship repair modules do repairs both in combat and on the Galaxy Map. Specific tech can increase ship repair rate.



Question: Is it possible to upgrade already built ships?

Answer: Yes. Go to the fleet menu (little icon left top corner that looks like a ship). It will list your fleets, you can select your fleet and as long as it is in a home system there is a visible icon bottom middle left side of the screen that says retrofit and shows a price in dust to upgrade your ships.



Question: Do ships level up?

Answer: Ship do level up and gain a permanent increase of hit points (calculated as a percentage of their total hit points) for every level.

Regions of Influence (colored disks on map)



Question: I cannot move my ship through the enemy region of influence

Answer: You must be at peace and have an open borders treaty or be at war with the enemy AI. Normally you will have status "cold war" which prevents movement. Even if a tiny part of the colored disk covers a string, you cannot use the string.



Question: What makes my region of influence expand?

Answer: For 30 turns after colonization, your new planet is an outpost and has no region of influence. After that it grows a small one. Population is the biggest component in the size of your region. Sophons have an option to grow the region much faster. The Camouflage Projector under Particle Scanning in the Diplomacy and Trade tree can help.



Heroes



Question: Can Heroes die?

Answer: Heroes can be injured in ground assault or space battles. When this happens, they are unavailable until they have recuperated. Additional Dust can be used to speed the process, and there may be Hero abilities to make them more resilient as well. At the moment Heroes do not die. They are not immortal, just very clever...



Question: Can I have more than 3 Heroes at the same time?

Answer: Yes, there are several techs in the Diplomacy & Trading tech tree which increase the max number of Heroes you can hire.



Trade



Question: How do I create trade routes?

Answer: Trade works like this: If at least one of your systems has available routes, and another empire you are at peace with has available trade routes, you will automatically trade with them. You don't need a string of trade buildings between systems to set up a route. As long as you have a system with an available route and the empire you are at peace with has an available route, you will trade. The value of the trade route is determined by the distance between them (based on length of connections) and the bonuses to trade your buildings provide. The longer the distance between the two trading systems, the more Dust you gain. Trade income is affected by tax setting.



Other



Question: How do I select a different starting race?

Answer: Click on the portrait of your race.



Question: What can you tell us about the AI intelligence?

Answer: We are putting a lot of effort on the AI, right now we have quite a complex system running, but which requires lots of tuning, with hundreds of parameters to affect it. With all that tuning, one day the AI can be overly aggressive the next day it can be sweet as a lamb, finding a balance is no simple task. We still have lots of work ahead regarding managing military campaigns, diplomatic behaviors, and fleets organizations.



Question: I'd like to know what are the dev stance on the issue of intelligence. What will be available to players, what will be available through research ?

Answer: We removed intelligence from the game, as the system we have in mind is rather complex and we want to refine that for later, to have something solid on that area when we decide to implement it.



Question: I'm playing with the Cravers, what are the Locust points?

Answer: Locust is the Cravers' affinity, it provides a 25% bonus to FIDS for the first 50 turns, then no malus for the next 50 turns, and then the planets get a permanent malus of -25% to FIDS. This race is over-consuming its planets, and a sign for that is the tag "depleted" on them.



Question: How much Dust do I need to collect in order to achieve an Economic Victory?

Answer: You don't need to collect Dust to achieve this victory type, the total amount of Dust generated since the beginning of the game is calculated and the first player (human or AI) to generate 300000 Dust is awarded an Economic Victory.



Question: How do I achieve a Wonder Victory?

Answer: You need to research the "Endless Empire" tech (Exploration & Expansion tech tree) and then build 5 "Invulnerable Empire" system improvements.



Question: How do I change my map starting position?

Answer: Yours and that of the enemy starting positions depend on the color chosen for the players (human or AI). Each color has a predefined starting area in each galaxy shape, therefore by changing your faction color you can choose different starting location. You can see the colors and positions by looking at the graphics in your directory \Endless Space\Public\GalaxyGenerator\Regions.



Question: I conquered a system, but the AI keeps changing the build queue in the system. How do I make it stop?

Answer: In the empire overview screen, the rightmost column contains a dropdown. This is the "AI Governor", where you can set what that system should focus on. When you conquer a system, the governor is not changed. Set the governor to the "none" or off symbol, and this behavior will stop.