Everspace 2 developer Rockfish Games is emphatically not a big fan of Epic Games Store exclusivity, taking the opportunity to drag developers and publishers over "broken promises" in a Kickstarter update. Not surprisingly, Everspace 2 won't be an Epic exclusive—it's launching on Steam first. 

Due out next year, Everspace 2 will be released on GOG, the Epic Games Store and Steam, but it looks like it will appear on the latter before it hits other platforms, initially via Steam Early Access. 

Rockfish reckons that Epic exclusives have eroded trust in developers, claiming it's at an "all-time low" because some developers have made a timed deal after doing a Kickstarter. With its Kickstarter, however, Rockfish says it's doubling down on its promise to launch on Steam first, no matter what. 

It's still technically a timed exclusive, then, just not on the Epic Games Store. Steam is the developer's most important store, though backers will still be able to choose between a Steam, GOG or Epic Games Store key before the full release. 

The Kickstarter launched last week and is already more than a quarter of its way to its goal. At £400,000, it's a small target for what's shaping up to be an ambitious space shooter, but Rockfish says the main reason it's going down the crowdfunding route again is to get the community involved.

Everspace 2, announced back at Gamescom, is shaping up to be an ambitious sequel to the excellent roguelike space shooter. Developer Rockfish Games has made some significant changes for the second game, but one thing it's keeping the same is crowdfunding. The Kickstarter launched today and is already well on its way to meeting its goal. 

Rockfish has been working on Everspace 2 for more than a year, but now it wants to get prospective players involved to help with feedback, ideas and testing. The extra £400,000 will probably help, too, though the original Everspace was a commercial success. The team's plans for this one are much greater, however, and more costly.

Instead of a roguelike with a FTL-like structure, the sequel is an open-world romp with lots of RPG elements, from ships that work like character classes to a loot system inspired by Diablo. It remains staunchly singleplayer, you'll be glad to know, and should give you around 20-30 hours of story, along with lots of room for exploration. 

According to Rockfish, it's essentially an action RPG with spaceships, which sounds very much up my street. And it will be one that will let you do lots of fiddling around as you perfect your build, with ship classes, subclasses, perks, skills, weapons and modules to worry about.

The galaxy's a mix of hand-crafted and procedural elements. The locations are bespoke and permanent, but they're not static. Structures might be destroyed, others might get rebuilt, and the changes range from fleeting to permanent. Loot and resources will change on repeat visits, too, so you won't be done with an area after flying through it once.

As well as flitting about in space, you'll be able to fly inside huge capital ships to blow them up from the inside or engage in dogfights just above a planet's surface. One thing that Rockfish isn't changing too much is the combat—it's still an arcade shooter with mouse and keyboard controls inspired by the likes of Freelancer. This time, however, there will be more support for gamepads and flight sticks.

It sounds promising, but we'll be able to see for ourselves next year, when it's expected to hit Steam Early Access. A full release, however, isn't planned until 2021.