Stellaris: Game Design Analysis

In-Game Galaxy View Scene

Description

Stellaris is a 4X grand strategy game set in space. Gameplay revolves around space exploration, empire building, resource management, diplomacy, and warfare. Players have massive freedom of customization for their empire, from high-level details such as government types, societal civics, and ethics, to the species type and evolutionary traits of their people.

* 4X: Explore, Expand, Exploit, Exterminate

Elemental Tetrad

Mechanics

  • The player customizes their empire’s key features (as described above) before starting a session.
  • The player must send science vessels to explore the galaxy in search of resources and colony ships to expand their territory.
  • The player must manage the various resources and upkeeps incurred by their expanding empire.
  • The player must contend with other spacefaring civilizations, either through cooperation (diplomacy) or competition (warfare).
  • The player must contend with internal politics and struggles in their Empire.

Story

  • All empire’s backstories are based on their traits which can be player chosen or randomly generated.
  • The story that the player experiences from then on is determined by the choices they make during special events and the policies they enact for their empire.
  • There are rich backstories and lore about the world to be discovered as the player explores the galaxy. They are randomly chosen from a pool, with certain events or choices being exclusive to certain empire archetypes.

Aesthetics

  • The game has 3D graphics with a free rotating camera which allows the player to view the galaxy from any angle.
  • The game has consistent science fiction themes and sub-themes, which are reflected in everything from celestial bodies and ship design archetypes to advisor AI voice lines and music.
  • The atmosphere and world-building of the game is very strong and immersive, with overall ‘mood’ and ‘feel’ of the game varying greatly depending on the empire archetypes the player chooses.
  • Through these aspects, the game strongly evokes a sense of wonder, excitement, and curiosity.

Technology

  • The game is very resource intensive and requires a strong setup to play smoothly, even on lower graphics settings.
  • In the late game, lag is not uncommon, causing in-game time to slow down. Multiplayer experiences more frequent desyncs as players’ systems struggle.

Lenses Referenced From: http://deck.artofgamedesign.com/#/menu/0/?lang=en

Lens #6: Curiosity

  • The game encourages and rewards curiosity through anomalies and special projects – points of interest found during exploration that may evolve into their own storyline if the player chooses to investigate them.
  • Even small/short events tell interesting stories in addition to impacting the player’s empire, creating a sense of satisfaction of having followed a curiosity to its (hopefully positive) end.

Lens #73: Story Machine

  • Stellaris is chock-full of events, most of which require the player to make choices. These choices are tailored to the player’s empire archetype, whether through flavour text or unique choices presented to specific empires.
  • Unique choices that are specific to the player’s empire create a sense of personality and identity for the player. The game essentially becomes a story machine, where the players write the stories for their empire.

Lens #74: Obstacle

  • The player is constantly presented with obstacles, chief among which are resource constraints and other competing civilizations.
  • The player may be forced to make choices that go against their goals for the sake of survival. E.g.: As a pacifist, I may be forced to divert resources away from my scientific research to maintain a standing navy to deter would-be aggressors.
  • As the game progresses, the player is challenged with even greater obstacles, from managing a burgeoning empire and its vast requirements to handling galaxy-wide threats that may overwhelm even the most powerful of empires.

Lens #83 Fantasy

  • Stellaris heavily appeals to the fantasy of empire building as players are given the freedom to customize and roleplay unique civilizations from their own imagination.
  • Players may roleplay as the ideal leader of their dreams, leading their ‘perfect’ society into the future and experiencing the joys and griefs their society brings.
  • Players may set their own fantasy goals and metrics for what they consider to be ‘success’ for their empire.

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