Galactic Civilizations III has been available as an Early Access release for the better part of a year now, and it looks promising: "The pieces in place so far feel sturdy and well-implemented, and the charm and appeal of GalCiv is definitely there," was how our Early Access review called it. A lot has happened since then, and today Stardock announced that the game will be ready for full launch on May 14.
Stardock says Galactic Civilizations 3 is "the largest and most diverse sandbox strategy" game ever made, with an "effectively infinite number of ways to design and deploy starfleets" and numerous paths to victory. Rulers can conquer the galaxy with brute force, or take a more peaceful approach by creating a culturally-enlightened society that other races will line up to join. The game also offers extensive mod support, allowing creators to add just about anything they can think of, from new ships to entirely new races and tech trees.
In spite of the looming launch, Stardock is still releasing new beta versions of the game, most recently the 5.3 beta that came out just a couple days ago. The latest update adds pirate bases, improvements to the AI and game performance, and "a multitude of polish points, balance improvements, and fixes large and small." Full patch notes are available here.
For those who can't wait until May 14, Galactic Civilizations III is still available as an Early Access release for $50/₤30 on Steam.
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Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.
