Endless Space 2 Welcomes The United Empire - Playable Faction Count Now At Five

Endless Space 2 only hit Steam's Early Access program early last month. Bringing 4 factions - one of which was a launch secret - it apparently wasn't enough to appease Amplitude Studios. Pressing on with continued development into the 4X sequel, they've just added 4 more to the mix.

Through the trickery of the minor faction system, the update brings the playable race count up from 4 to a respectable 5. Where are the others, you might ask? They're minor factions; a type of NPC group you'll potentially run into during your space-focused conquest.

The 'United Empire' joins the game's 4 other major factions. Focusing on economic play, the United Empire rely on the use of 'Influence' to stay ahead of the game. The 'Pilgrims' and 'Amoeba' from the original Endless Space make a return as minor factions, while the brand-new 'Z'vali' also makes the cut.

Want to know what Michael thought of Endless Space 2? Read his preview here.

With the update in place, campaigns can now run up to 200 turns before triggering the score-based victory system while the 'Marketplace' will allow players to trade in 'Dust' for hero units and assorted resources. Amplitude has introduced a fourth era to the current Tech Tree and there's a few 'Deeds' to carry out in-game for some additional rewards. Those looking for a little more freedom will be pleased to hear ships will no longer be limited in their weapon options and truce will no longer be forced upon the player.

That's a lot of changes in a relatively short amount of time. And if Amplitude manage to stick to their plans, we'll see a total of 8 playable factions before the game is considered complete.