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Play Overview
Stellaris (2016) is a strategy game where you play a space-faring empire seeking to expand your territory. It offers complete customisation of your civilisation, with different sets of ethics and morals to choose from that change how you play, from limiting your interaction with robots to being unable to restrict their use and more. This freedom to choose how you play extends to the expansion of your dynasty, where you can befriend or enslave competing civilisations. It's a unique game that puts you and your choices at the forefront, offering countless winning strategies.
You can pick a starting species or create your own from scratch. You pick positive and negative traits for your species to possess, which affect everything from fighting to diplomacy. You then choose the ethics and guiding principles that govern your new empire. Each principle grants you certain enhancements, but also restricts how you play. A spiritualist empire, for example, can't use robots. You can also pick the origin of your empire, be it a fractured people's desperate escape from a dying world or a powerful dynasty built on slaves.
Play starts on a single world with a few resources and ships, but soon expands into the galaxy. Your final goals are dependent on your principles and ethics, be it peaceful coexistence with neighbouring systems, total domination or a small but wealthy colony bursting with resources.
As you progress, you fight other worlds in real-time combat, where the focus is on the bigger picture rather than individual ships. Each opponent requires a different strategy, or possibly a diplomatic solution. Finding ways to share power and resources with the other planets and civilisations is a great benefit. But don't forget to look after your current worlds, assigning governors, collecting tributes and more.
It's an incredibly deep and complex game, where the power is in your hands to forge a story of your own making; be it one of total domination or simple living.
Our examiner, Ben Kendall, first checked Stellaris 3 years ago. It was re-examined by Jo Robertson and updated 3 days ago.
You can pick a starting species or create your own from scratch. You pick positive and negative traits for your species to possess, which affect everything from fighting to diplomacy. You then choose the ethics and guiding principles that govern your new empire. Each principle grants you certain enhancements, but also restricts how you play. A spiritualist empire, for example, can't use robots. You can also pick the origin of your empire, be it a fractured people's desperate escape from a dying world or a powerful dynasty built on slaves.
Play starts on a single world with a few resources and ships, but soon expands into the galaxy. Your final goals are dependent on your principles and ethics, be it peaceful coexistence with neighbouring systems, total domination or a small but wealthy colony bursting with resources.
As you progress, you fight other worlds in real-time combat, where the focus is on the bigger picture rather than individual ships. Each opponent requires a different strategy, or possibly a diplomatic solution. Finding ways to share power and resources with the other planets and civilisations is a great benefit. But don't forget to look after your current worlds, assigning governors, collecting tributes and more.
It's an incredibly deep and complex game, where the power is in your hands to forge a story of your own making; be it one of total domination or simple living.
Our examiner, Ben Kendall, first checked Stellaris 3 years ago. It was re-examined by Jo Robertson and updated 3 days ago.
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Play Style
This is a Collecting and Strategy game with Action, Communication, Fighting, Role-Play and Shooting elements. You can play this by yourself or as a 4-player online game. You can set up a multiplayer game, where you give out a password to other players you want to join, and can either work together co-operatively or fight as bitter enemies.
Cross-Platform: Play between Mac and PC
Cross-Platform: Play between Mac and PC
You can play this game in the following styles:
Duration
Play Time: This game will take between 37 hours and 69 and a half hours to complete. Given its open-ended nature, you can play the game for as long as you want, constantly expanding your empire, and spend many hours at a time playing.
Benefits
Age Ratings
Content Rating
User-Generated Content: This game includes content created by other players, such as maps, outfits and items, that are not reflected in the game rating.
Users Interact: The game enables players to interact and communicate with each other, so may expose players to language usually associated with older rated games.
Account Rating
- You need be 18-years-old to to subscribe to Xbox Live Gold for online play, but can then configure family accounts for younger players to play online with Xbox One or Xbox Series X|S.
- You need be 18-years-old to subscribe to PlayStation Plus for online play, but can create sub-accounts for younger players of 7-years or older to play online with PlayStation 4.
Costs
Stellaris usually costs £0 to £34.99.
This game is free to play, but there are other costs associated with this game:
There have been several expansion packs to the game, which have added more content and ways to play.
On consoles, there is also the choice between the Deluxe and Standard Editions, the difference being that the Deluxe Edition comes with 3 of these packs (Plantoids Species Pack, Leviathans Story Pack, and Utopia expansion) pre-installed, but you can still buy them even if you get the Standard Edition.
It's important to set up your accounts and devices appropriately. More information is on our Financial Resources page.
Stellaris
 | PC | £33.49 | – | Free Xbox Game Pass |
| Xbox X|S | £33.49 | – | Free Xbox Game Pass |
| Xbox One | £33.49 | – | Free Xbox Game Pass |
 | PC | £34.99 | – | – |
| Mac | £34.99 | – | – |
 | PS5 | Coming Soon | – | – |
| PS4 | Coming Soon | – | Free PS Plus Extra |
 | Android | Free | – | – |
 | iOS | Free | – | – |
- In-Game Purchases: Additional in-game purchases are offered for items that enhance the experience.
- Advertising: Smartphone or Tablet version of this game includes adverts. This varies in form but watching ads is often incentivised by unlocking additional content and progress in the game. Note that these are not covered by the age rating and may include older-rated content.
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You need a subscription to play online:
- You need to purchase a PlayStation Plus subscription to play online with PlayStation 4.
- You need to purchase a Xbox Live Gold subscription to play online with Xbox One or Xbox Series X|S.
There have been several expansion packs to the game, which have added more content and ways to play.
On consoles, there is also the choice between the Deluxe and Standard Editions, the difference being that the Deluxe Edition comes with 3 of these packs (Plantoids Species Pack, Leviathans Story Pack, and Utopia expansion) pre-installed, but you can still buy them even if you get the Standard Edition.
It's important to set up your accounts and devices appropriately. More information is on our Financial Resources page.
Game Details
Release Date: 09/05/2016, updated in 2021
Out Now: Android, Mac, PC, PS4, Xbox One, Xbox X|S and iOS
Players: 1 (4 online)
Genres: Collecting, Strategy (Action, Communication, Fighting, Role-Play and Shooting)
Accessibility: 24 features
Components: 2D Side-On and Grid
Developer: Pdx Interactive (@PdxInteractive)
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Written by parents for parents, the database complements the in-depth discussion about video game addiction, violence, spending and online safety in the Taming Gaming book. We are an editorially independent, free resource without adverts that is supported by partnerships. |
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