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Space 4X strategy game Stellaris launched in 2016, but Paradox can’t stop adding to the universe. Last time I checked in, it was school trips to other dimensions. Now, it’s Cosmic Storms. Due for release alongside the Stellaris 3.13 Vela update on September 10th, these are a paid “mechanical expansion” (priced at a rather chunky £11, $13 or €13, and available as part of the current season pass) that builds upon the game’s existing Space Storms, “providing a deeper experience with strategically meaningful gameplay and beautiful upgraded visuals”. Wash that down with new civics, precursor narratives, anomalies, archaeology sites, techs, edicts, a new Ascension perk, and new galactic community resolutions.
As detailed on Steam, there are eight of these new and violent instances of space weather, ranging from more straightforward Electric Storms to Nexus Storms of “unparalleled magnitude”. Each may have positive and negative effects upon ships, worlds and civilisations caught in their path. When they sweep over your planets, they may reshape the geography and expose long buried treasures.
The developers are adding a “weather map mode” so you can play, er, whatever the interstellar equivalent of a meteorologist is, forecasting storms and predicting their motion. Ah yes, Astrometeorologist! You can also research technologies and buildings that let you attract, repel and (with an Ascension Perk) even create Cosmic Storms. There’s also a new Storm Chaser origin seemingly consisting of nutters in Speedo goggles, who live for the thrill of running face-first into a cyclone the size of a solar system. As for the additional Precursor narrative chains, these “weave tales of civilizations long lost to the cosmic winds, with untold secrets buried beneath the stars”.
Storm chasers, eh? It could almost have been timed to intersect with the new Twister movie, which I haven’t watched because I think the new male lead is unbearable. Go munch on a hurricane, you smug macho berk. If you enjoy storms but prefer a more hands-on experience, maybe try OUTBRK – it’s an early access simulation of North America’s legendary tornado alley.