Endless Space 2 is set for a full release in May

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Amplitude Studios announced today that the 4X strategy game Endless Space 2, which debuted on Steam Early Access in October, will go into full release on May 19. The game will be available in both a standard and a Digital Deluxe edition, and box collectors will also be able to take advantage of a proper retail release, which will come with a double-side Pathfinder Academy poster and a printed version of The Last Flight of the Gray Owl, a "community-driven" origin story that was written in 2015 for Endless Legend.

We dug into Endless Space 2 last fall ahead of its Early Access release, and it sounded like a really interesting take on the 4X genre. There's a heavy RPG element to it, and its factions aren't just varied, they're fundamentally different: Creative director Romain de Waubert de Genlis said the studio decided "it would be better to have an unbalanced game with crazy factions all being different, than to have a perfectly balanced game with all the factions looking alike."

And if you haven't got time for that, you can get a crash course in what it's all about in this four-minute "first look" trailer.

The final price for Endless Space 2 will be $40/£35/€40 for the standard edition, or $50/£45/€50 for the Digital Deluxe, which will include the soundtrack, Pathfinder Academy heroes, and Hero ship skins. Both editions are available for Early Access purchase on Steam at a 25% discount until launch, and if you've previously sprung for the regular release and now wish you'd gone all the way, a deluxe upgrade offer is now available as well. And finally, if you'd like to get a taste of where it all began, the original Endless Space is on sale in the Collection bundle for $1 until April 17.

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.