

Harmony fleets focus on the interrelatedness of all living things, and their bonus is repairing their ships at half the cost. Purity admirals are diplomats, and their emphasis on the heritage of humanity gives them double mission rewards. “The idea is that the affinity you choose is the affinity that led you to victory in a game of Beyond Earth, and now you’re ready to move outside your world, out into the rest of the galaxy.” “We use the affinity system as a way to customise your federation,” says Meier. Affinities, returning from Beyond Earth, will inform your play style. Replayability is something Meier and his team are striving for. That rolls together very nicely and is a lot of fun.” This creates a loop where victories in combat give you more strategic capability, which in turn makes you better at combat. “The strategy systems and what happens outside of combat directly feeds into your fleet and its capability. “Combat is really the heart of the game,” says Meier. Just like in a game of Civ, conflict is often unavoidable, and combat will be a big part of the Starships experience. It may be possible to exist peacefully in this galaxy, but it’ll be difficult.
