Hi, devs! I'd like to thank you A LOT for Endless Space 2. Really a masterpiece, which I enjoy a lot, and which made me abandon Civilization franchise for good.


And exactly because of noticing all the love and effort put into this work of art, I decided to write you this. By late 19th Century, England promoted Opium use by China just because they wanted to collect taxes with this market. There were even 3 wars called "Opium Wars" concerning this market. People largely used the drug in dens called "opium houses", a true public health problem. A sad story indeed. A whole country addicted because of another country greed.


Well, sadly I found a very close reference to this in the game: the "High Serenity Program" system improvement image, which grants happiness, has an image which is a clear reference to photos taken in Chinese Opium Houses (see attached images). Don't get me wrong: I'm not one of those snowflakes who gets offended on any thing - which I'm not - but I think ES2 is such an awesome game that it's sad it contains a reference this sad... and historically heavy.


My suggestion: changing the image or even the name of this improvement to something more convenient. There are so many great ideas, like "Augmented Reality Parks" (with a gleaming park image), or "Intergallactic Shows Arena" (which could portray a mega event with bright colors), or even "Interplanetary Behavioral Program" (if a distopian high-tech psychotherapist office - if you're mood is more into "Happiness control"), or "Mood Surveillance AI" (which could show a cybernetic Illuminatti-like pyramid), you name it... I'd just think it is more adequate and respectful to this two countries history to change the way this improvement is at the moment.


Thanks a lot :)


The Improvement I mentioned


A chinese opium house photo.