The 4X strategy game Endless Space 2 moves from Early Access to full release on May 19, which as it happens is tomorrow. That doesn't leave a whole lot of time for things like preview trailers, so with that in mind we're going to have a look at the two remaining "X"-themed videos, following Explore and Expand—they being Exploit and Exterminate. 

The concepts involved are fairly self-explanatory: As the head of a multi-species empire, you're naturally going to be dealing with differing, sometimes conflicting, "political affinities." You have to figure out how to make it all work to your advantage: You can target or support political parties to strengthen your standing in the Senate, or you can drop the hammer to keep them in line (and serve as a reminder to the rest). Recruitable "heroes" can act as governors and senators, providing bonuses to your systems, while resources and research are vital to creating a "vast commercial empire, with networks of trade routes that benefit you and your allies." 

Of course, sooner or later you're going to run into a rival empire that doesn't want to play nice, which is when the final piece of the puzzle—Exterminate—comes into play. Military technologies will unlock new ships, weapons, and modules, and the heroes who govern your planets can also be used to lead your fleets. Ahead of battles, fleet formations can be changed and tactics chosen; once the choices have been made, the battles will unfold in explosive real-time.

The trailer ends on an ominous note: "You will learn the truth about the Academy, and you will have to face a terrible choice," it says. "For there are forces beyond science that have shaped the history of the galaxy—Forces that might shape your future as well." 

Endless Space 2 is out tomorrow, as mentioned, and we will have a review for you. You can find out more about what's coming at endless-space.com. 

One week ago, Amplitude Studios released the first of four trailers intended to showcase the pillars of the 4X strategy game Endless Space 2: Explore, Expand, Exploit, and Exterminate. With the exploration element covered off, it's now time to move on to Phase Two of the operation. 

Expansion is a slow and steady process, with inherent dangers: Moving people between worlds is a risky prospect, especially in rough neighborhoods. "Luxury resources" can help colonies "gain traction" by unlocking specific bonuses, but different races take very different approaches to colonization. The Vodyani, for instance, don't need to build outposts at all, because they live in massive ark ships orbiting around planets, leeching dust, resources, and "life energy" from the system. 

Technological growth plays a major role in the expansion of your empire, and so does "cultural influence," which enables the peaceful conversion of neighbors and allies, if that's your thing. You will also "come to realize that the secrets that have shaped the history of the galaxy might shape your future as well."   

Endless Space 2 is scheduled to go into full release on May 19, but can be had right now as an Early Access game on Steam for $30. If you want to see where it all began, the original Endless Space is currently on sale for $5 on the Humble Store.

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With the 4X strategy game Endless Space 2 just a couple of weeks from release, Amplitude Studios and Sega have released the first in a series of four new trailers, each of them showcasing one of the game's "X" features. First up, as determined by the traditional 4X hierarchy—that would be Xplore, Xpand, Xploit, and Xterminate—is "Explore."

At the beginning of Endless Space 2, your civilization has finally discovered the secret of "starlanes, the cosmic strings that connect planetary systems and form constellations," and more importantly, figured out how to use them. That means it's time to start flinging things into the void: Probes, perhaps, if you're a Nervous Nelly, or your one and only exploration ship if you are a Manly Man Interstellar Adventurer. Either way—destiny awaits! 

Endless Space 2 has been available in Early Access for a while now, and so far the response seems quite positive, although multiple players note that it does suffer from the sorts of bugs and technical wonkiness you'd expect from its pre-release state. Hopefully Amplitude will be able to sort them all out before the game goes into full release, but there's not a lot of time left: Endless Space 2 is scheduled for launch on May 19.