Persistent and shared warfare across the stars is one of Helldivers 2’s defining features, but what if we applied such an ambitious online structure to traditional RTS battles and large-scale strategy? ZeroSpace aims to do that while also delivering a sprawling cinematic story campaign with RPG elements, and it’s out now on Steam.
Following a highly successful Kickstarter campaign, Starlance Studios, with the help of Ironward (Atre: Dominance Wars), launched ZeroSpace into Steam Early Access on July 20 for £32.17 / $35.99 / 36,89€ (-10% launch discount).
The bulk of its campaign introduces players to the universe through the eyes of Aster, Commander of the Protectorate, who is “tasked with saving humanity from losing access to interstellar travel and receding into an age of darkness and ignorance.” The core of the experience is a traditional RTS with battles and base-building on a massive scale, yet decisions and light RPG elements give the story a unique touch that’s frankly refreshing.
Outside of the campaign, which will be updated over time with new content, the game also offers access to four factions: the human Protectorate, the plant-like Grell, the fanatical empire of the Legion, and the Xol, a civilisation of robots struggling to survive. They’re all linked by classical sci-fi universe-building, yet their uniqueness comes from how differently they play across PvE, PvP, and co-op modes. Whether you plan to jump into the action solo or with friends, ZeroSpace appears totally committed to reliving the glory days of sci-fi RTS.
The current list of planned features and content goes as follows:
- A singleplayer campaign with 15 main story missions, 10 hero loyalty missions, and 15 side story arc missions. With choices and dialog trees similar to Mass Effect and Baldur’s Gate.
- Hours of cinematic cutscenes and interactive dialogs where your choices dictate the game’s outcome.
- 10 specialist heroes from various factions in campaign mode to build relationships with, or select from over 14 to lead your multiplayer games.
- A separate, persistent Galaxy map with multiple game modes that contribute towards shared conquest. (Co-op, Single-player, PvE, 2vAI, 2v2, Scenarios and 1v1)
- 4 main factions - From a plant species to organic robots.
- 7 mercenary factions - Delivering even more specialized battle groups.
“The Early Access version is fully playable featuring 13 campaign story missions alongside interactive dialog with your crew. It also includes 10 co-op missions with procedural generation of enemy factions and compositions and objectives. There is also a skirmish mode that will allow you to play vs. AI against 8 AI difficulties, or against other players. There are 4 available main factions, 6 mercenary factions and 10 heroes to choose from - totaling over 90 unique units and heroes.”
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