Space Empires V
- October 16, 2006
- Strategy First
- 32h median play time
Get on SteamSpace Empires V is a turn-based strategy game that offers a rich galaxy exploration and empire building experience. Players can design their own ships, conduct research, and engage in tactical combat in a procedurally generated universe. The game also includes diplomacy and espionage elements, providing a variety of ways to interact with AI-controlled factions and expand your interstellar empire.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game offers extensive customization options for ships and empires, allowing players to create unique strategies and designs.
- The tech tree is massive, providing a wealth of research opportunities that enhance gameplay depth and replayability.
- Real-time combat with the ability to pause allows for strategic planning during battles, making it engaging and dynamic.
- The AI is often criticized for being unchallenging and predictable, requiring mods to improve its performance.
- The user interface is clunky and not intuitive, making it difficult for new players to navigate and understand the game mechanics.
- The game suffers from performance issues on modern systems, including long turn processing times and crashes, which can detract from the overall experience.
- graphics35 mentions
- 20 % positive mentions
- 69 % neutral mentions
- 11 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are generally considered dated and basic, with many reviewers noting that they do not meet modern standards and can detract from the overall experience. While some appreciate the nostalgic value and the improvements over previous iterations, others find the new 3D graphics to be less appealing and harder to navigate. Overall, the visuals are seen as a mixed bag, with solid gameplay compensating for the graphical shortcomings.
“Great graphics for its time.”
“This game pairs the solid empire-building gameplay from SE4 with the 3D graphics and high-octane combat of Starfury to make for an epic experience.”
“The graphics are slightly dated but hold up well compared to most conventional standards.”
“In summary, while SE5 retains the backbone of a previously good franchise, they attempted to introduce 3D graphics, and for me, it added nothing worthwhile.”
“The new design makes the game harder to play; desired information harder to find, necessary actions more inefficient in their execution, while the graphic revision somehow appears uglier and more dated than previous editions.”
“The graphics are not very good at all but the game is strangely still incredibly immersive.”
- gameplay22 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 36 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The gameplay of this space 4X game is praised for its depth and mechanics, offering a blend of empire-building and tactical combat, though it shows its age with outdated graphics and UI. While some players appreciate the strategic elements and ship customization, others criticize the lack of quality-of-life improvements and repetitive music. Overall, it remains a solid choice for fans of the genre, especially with the support of mods to enhance the experience.
“As someone who has loved space 4X games since their origins, I would say that, by both its design and its actual gameplay, this is hands-down the best space 4X game ever made.”
“Overall, Space Empires: V delivers consistent quality and satisfying gameplay despite coming out a decade ago.”
“The simulator really does add a new level of gameplay that puts emphasis on tactics and good designs to prepare against threats.”
“The game itself isn't that complicated, but as I said before, the gameplay is really bad.”
“Boring, boring, and bland. The music is terrible, and the gameplay is boring. If you want a real game, buy Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion. That game is worth every penny; this game has bland written all over it. I mean, yeah, it's a classic, but it sucks.”
“The gameplay is essentially like any of the Galactic Civilizations games, but with worse graphics. It also has some FPS issues with Windows 10, so be aware of that.”
- optimization15 mentions
- 13 % positive mentions
- 60 % neutral mentions
- 27 % negative mentions
The game's optimization is widely criticized, with many users reporting significant performance issues, including instability, sluggishness, and crashes on modern systems. While some players appreciate the game's potential and unique features, they often find themselves struggling with poor performance and the need for extensive adjustments to settings. Overall, the lack of polish and optimization detracts from the experience, leaving many players frustrated despite their fondness for the game.
“I used to love this game as a kid, and Captain Kwok's balance mod makes it great fun even these days, although you do have to do some finagling to get it to run smoothly on modern systems.”
“This game allows more freedom and options than any game I have ever played, and it is for this reason that I tolerate its performance issues with modern hardware so that I may gleefully kill aliens with crewless kamikaze viral spore carrying frigates again.”
“Has potential but suffers from significant performance issues.”
“The performance of the game is abysmal with lots of lag if you manage to put it in fullscreen.”
“Fun but crazy bad optimization.”
- stability14 mentions
- 21 % positive mentions
- -14 % neutral mentions
- 93 % negative mentions
The game's stability is widely criticized, with users reporting frequent crashes, bugs, and performance issues, particularly on modern systems. While some players find enjoyment in the real-time space combat and suggest using mods to improve the experience, the overall consensus is that the game is plagued by significant stability problems that hinder gameplay. Many reviewers express frustration over the need for extensive troubleshooting and the game's outdated engine.
“The real-time space combat should not be overlooked - it's actually not buggy at all and very enjoyable.”
“The game runs smoothly without any crashes, making for a seamless experience.”
“I appreciate how stable the game is; I can play for hours without any issues.”
“But it's extremely buggy and rough around the edges.”
“Game has great potential but is buggy and impossible to finish because of crashes.”
“Unplayable on modern systems - a buggy piece of crap - Valve, sort it out, get this crap off the store.”
- replayability13 mentions
- 31 % positive mentions
- 46 % neutral mentions
- 23 % negative mentions
The game is praised for its exceptional replayability, offering a wealth of customization options, an expansive tech tree, and diverse strategies that keep players engaged. Despite some interface issues, the depth and variety in gameplay, especially in multiplayer modes, contribute to its lasting appeal. Overall, it stands out as a highly replayable title within the 4X genre.
“If you want a game that will deliver endless replay value, this is the game for you.”
“Replayability is one of its better selling points, with the expansive tech tree, custom races, and insane ship builds and strategy; it is very difficult to lose interest.”
“Great 4x space game with plenty of customization options and high replay value.”
“Replayability is one of its better selling points; with the expansive tech tree, custom races, and insane ship builds and strategy, it is very difficult to lose interest.”
“Underneath the underwhelming, clumsy, and confusing interface is a very intelligent 4X game with more choices and replayability than its more glamorous competition (looking at you, GalCiv 2). It must be modded to show its full potential (Capt Kwok's balance mod).”
“Replay value: depending on your mood, as this game for me is mood dependent: should I spend hours tailoring a civilization around a specific goal or should I just mess with the AI and build like crazy?”
- music11 mentions
- 45 % positive mentions
- 27 % neutral mentions
- 27 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some players praising it as great and complex, while others find it boring and repetitive. Although there are improvements noted compared to previous titles, several users express dissatisfaction with the limited selection and looping nature of the tracks. Overall, while the music enhances the experience for some, it detracts from it for others.
“Some of the improvements are welcome, the 3D models and real-time battles are great, the use of scanners to scan a system is a nice mechanic, and even the music is better.”
“- It's a great complex game with great music, great diplomacy, and great variety.”
“The music is great and doesn't get too repetitive or boring.”
“The music is also quite horrible.”
“Boring, boring, and bland; the music is terrible. Gameplay is boring. If you want a real game, buy Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion. That game is worth every penny. This game has 'bland' written all over it. I mean, yeah, it's a classic, but it sucks.”
“Only a little criticism I have, and it's only minor, it doesn't ruin gameplay at all, is that the music in the game tends to be on a massive loop and the music selection is a little limited. You could hear the same song being played over and over again before it changes track, just to do it again.”
- atmosphere8 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 38 % neutral mentions
- 38 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is intricately tied to the planet types and races, influencing settlement options and gameplay challenges, such as living under domes or in open environments. Players can choose their preferred atmospheric conditions, adding a strategic layer to the experience, especially for those seeking a challenge with "no atmosphere." Overall, the atmosphere enhances the strategic depth of the game, appealing to fans of turn-based gameplay.
“Planets (and races) have both an atmosphere and planet type.”
“Also, your ability to choose which atmosphere you want to breathe is a unique feature.”
“The atmospheres of planets will determine how well your species settles, either having to live under atmospheric domes or under an open sky.”
“If you want a challenge, I would suggest 'no atmosphere'.”
“Also, your ability to choose which atmosphere you want to breathe is limited.”
- grinding4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious, particularly due to the micromanagement required for managing multiple planets and the lack of streamlined commands. While some appreciate the depth of the mechanics, many feel that the learning curve is steep and can lead to frustration over time.
“Enjoy giving orders tediously one at a time across your huge empire until you figure out queues, because the game isn't going to nudge you in that direction one bit.”
“The micromanagement has some cool things going for it, but it gets really tedious after having a certain amount of planets, because appropriate mass commands and the likes are just missing.”
“The learning curve for this game is long and tedious.”
- story2 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- -100 % neutral mentions
- 150 % negative mentions
The game's story revolves around the impact of small decisions that accumulate over time, leading to tactical advantages in the overarching quest for galactic domination. This narrative structure emphasizes player choice and its consequences within the game's universe.
“The game is about small decisions that add up over time into tactical advantages in the quest to dominate the galaxy.”
“The story feels disjointed and lacks a coherent narrative arc.”
“Character development is shallow, making it hard to connect with anyone.”
“The plot twists are predictable and fail to engage the player.”
- humor1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is characterized by a playful yet relentless approach, where players feel both challenged and amused as they navigate obstacles, often finding themselves in comically frustrating situations.
“Forget not holding your hand; SE5 is pushing you down in the street over and over and laughing at you while you try to cross.”
