SpaceEngine

Really good game if you just wanna fly around and explore space. The game itself doesn't require the best of PCs either so it's very nice.

Richly detailed, expansive, procedurally generated, realism-focused viewing glass into the cosmos.

There have been intense moments where I would swoosh out of the milky way at thousands of lightyears per second, only to be confronted by the camera slowly adapting to the darkness of the void, countless tiny specks, each a galaxy, twinkling before me, both real discovered galaxies and procedurally generated ones to populate the unknown stretches of space.

Then there's that moment, looking behind me, where I am feeling the vertigo of seeing the entire milky way, its spiral structure clear as day, staring at me, titanic in size compared to me, and yet here I am floating above it all, like I'm skydiving in the universe and I really feel like I should be falling back down, lest I float into the void for good.

Other times, I'm going around, finding new systems, looking for interesting stars, planets, you name it. Each and every one of them having full scientific explanations as to their class, their physical properties, atmosphere, temperature, whether life exists on it. I land on a planet, and see rivers, mountains, seas, lakes forming before me. I see alien landscapes, one of trillions, stretching before my eyes, and stars completely unlike our sun rising and setting over it.

Somehow, approaching black holes incites a feeling of fear in my stomach as I watch the light bend around them, going deeper and deeper, past the event horizon, looking up and seeing all light that would ever enter the black hole race past you at such high speeds that everything blue-shifts. It feels strange, like you're in some kind of unfathomable danger, witnessing events no being should ever witness and escape from. Sometimes you briefly forget you're in a simulation, and just stare in awe at the universe staring back at you, before remembering that escape is trivial in here.

Anyway, cool game!

I used this lot back when it was free, it's more of a proper simulator and not a game but it really makes you ponder reality and while most of the stars, planets, galaxies, etc are procedurally generated it's to scale making one realize just how grand our own reality is. To give you some examples if you don't use the faster time features and travel slower than light speed (assuming the game doesn't crash) your ship or no clip at current space tech capable speeds your computer would probably be on it's last legs by the time it reaches Pluto and it would never reach Alpha Centuari in your lifetime. The flight simulator in this is decent enough to but if you actually want to fully experience the sim you have to do currently fictional FTL travel which I recommend using the regular mode first before diving into flight simulator.

Read in the past that a portion of people developed astrophobia due to this simulator, hopefully if you dabble with this you'd be more humbled and amazed than fearful of the universe.

You go around in camera mode and explore the universe. It's awesome

Peak game, used it allat for my school projects, pretty dope to explore around n stuff, defo worth it if ur a die hard space enthusiast

Dude, this game is Bloody crazy! It's so unbelievable how it can go to absolute anything, Stars, Planets Etc. It's expensive, but it is so damn worth it. Please, if you looking for a space sandbox game that can go to ANYTHING! Please try this game out. Round of Applause to the creators for making this beast. 1000% PERCENT RECOMMENDED!

after awhile of not playing it and when i tried to launch the application it just doesnt run it says that its running then it just closes and i have tried everything deleting the game and steam and redownloading but it doesnt work and my system is compatible i have played it on this device when i first bought it i am upset since i spent money on this and it doesnt lauch please either give me a solution or fix this bug

Good Game but i find really bad that after the 28,99€ to make videos you need to spend another 60€, i don't recommend to buy the pro version because it doesn't add much

Great simulator of space mechanics. Using it for my sci-fi book - big time

I have literally cried playing this game lmao.

I am a huge astronomy geek. Having an entire model of the observable universe to scale on your computer is absolutely astonishing. I promise you do not have a sense of scale of how big our existence is and how small we are until you launch this game. Lovely soundtrack as well. It really helps convey how ridiculously large cosmic distances and objects are. I think that's the coolest part.

Space is truly the most unnervingly beautiful thing humanity will ever witness.

I've always loved to stare at the few dots of light in the night sky. And there is something so beautiful about actually seeing space. There is no word for it that I can think of.

May it only be a simulation.

The images Space Engine bring are mesmerizing.Space Engine must realy shine on a big 4k OLED screen

Beautiful scenery, although no J1407b because it doesn't exist but cool if it was there (J1407b is Super Saturn).

w game, fun and have a lot to do in it, very interesting

This simulator has truly humbled me. With the right music, it creates an experience unlike anything else on my computer. I’m seriously considering purchasing the pro version just to support its development and show appreciation for this masterpiece.

Great product, but not for my needs. I'm glad to have read the EULA before picking up the PRO DLC.

If you are looking to pay the 95 bucks to make content using SpaceEngine PRO, make sure you understand their usage agreement.

You have to put "SpaceEngine PRO © Cosmographic Software LLC" in the credits or acknowledgements section at the beginning or end of a video. If you fail to do so once, your rights to use recorded footage of Space Engine commerically will cease.

I 100% recommend the game, however, I keep experiencing frequent crashes when opening up the game; most likely because of my computer. But, I managed to play bits of it before experiencing crashes. 9/10

Space engine has given me purpose, and shined light on my true inner-self. I now have a positive self-concept, and I have achieved true peace and prosperity.

This is a really good and interesting space game. Really educational and you can explore every inch of the universe. I would really reccommend this. I give it a 10/10

cool game i like the detail and its a really big game also every time i move now it wont stop moving or my camera wont stop moving i don't know if it just my game or its a glitch but still a good game

i absolutely love this game! i really have no complaints with it other than these: spiral galaxies should have some more variation in my opinion, this only really applies to procedurally generated galaxies. a good example of variation would be ngc 2623, its one of the few galaxies that look unique. my second recommendation would be for stars to look a bit more realistic, as they kinda just look like cobblestone imo. other than these, this game is amazing and really captures the vast feeling of exploring the universe!

i love the graphics and the info about each and new plant i havent even knew of

The game is highly detailed, realistic, and generates detailed and realistic surfaces and atmosphere, I recommend all Astronomers play this game

Although I prefer Garry's mod, this is also very enjoyable, Space, Black holes, Predict Solar eclipse, Ect

Me: Lets go to mars

Universe Sandbox: NAH

Space engine: 👑 Come my child 👑

What a game, this is the only game like this, and it is definitely worth 30 dollars. The graphics are beautiful, the controls are easy to learn, this is an awesome game, and is honestly kind of underrated! Highly recommend for anyone who likes space.

You can explore space, and you can discover every single planet in the observable universe, including nebulas, galaxies, and more.

game is very cool but theres alot of issues with the planets
- 1 The planets turn blue after a while like there fully blue or they dont load at all
- 2 planets also become low quality after a while (i have alot of vram)
- 3 some spacecraft drop to like 20-10 fps
overall the game is good but im giving it a negative review due to these issues
if u guys know how to fix these please let me know
edit: i refunded the game because i couldnt fix it so. yea

The scale and awe of this game is unparralled, While I cant really classify this as a "game", its a pioneer of modern technology and should be played by everyone if possible

This is highly recommended for anyone interested in space. I grew up with the beginnings of Celestia, and it's good to see similar projects continuing.

The possibility for exploration is endless if you enjoy that sort of thing. It often becomes quite disturbing, for example when a planet suddenly leaps at you out of the darkness as you travel, but I don't mind especially. There is enough content here to never leave the Solar System, although it is fun to get completely lost in another galaxy. Space objects are varied and the in-game browser makes it easy to find what you are looking for, by characteristics and so on.

My biggest gripe (and I use that word lightly, because this is comparatively a minor issue) with Space Engine is the planet surfaces, which are a bit of a letdown. Most of the fun on the surface of a planet is had by looking at other space objects rather than the actual surface. Whilst large structures like Verona Rupes are interesting, more subtle details are lost. Finding a planet with life is also generally meaningless, and the only flora you'll see is a very basic texture with grass. Of course, I'd never expect a "No Man's Sky" modelling of alien life... but it would be interesting and perhaps not resource intensive to visit an alien planet and see a forest with fauna sounds coming from it... Perhaps something for far down the pipeline.

Existential dread in a neat little package. Bonus points for triggering my fear of infinity/emptiness.

Looks very nice, although I'v accidentally f_cked up the game a few times and so had to restart the whole program. One thing I recommend to fix is a bug that happens if you press shift along with a key that takes you a direction. This locks the direction input, stopping you from moving in any other direction. it might just be a me problem but I recommend you (the developer team) look into it if you happen to find this.
This is just a bug that will only happen if you manage to mess things up and does not define the game as a whole. This is meant to be a game where you get to look at procedurally generated otherworldly scenery and not where you have to move anywhere to progress through a narrative. The scenery can be quite beautiful, but in my mind optimisation is key.

A lovely program to simulate space travel to the stars. For those who have dreamed of flying out of the solar system, now there is a way. The visuals are enjoyable and the experience is customizable. Like a 3D astronomy program where you can change your viewpoint far away from earth and fly around the galaxy in a space ship. Thanks you developer. Keep up the good work.

This game changed my entire perspective about the universe; it changed everything I thought about the universe, including how possible life can exist in other galaxies and universes. This is just tremendous, immaculate, and astonishing. I cannot fathom the fact that this game includes every existing atom across the entire universe alone, let alone other universes. Well, let's say that this game presents the stars, planets, nebulas, etc. that our telescope can discover so far.

This is a highly accurate Universe simulator. The one downside though is that all the spiral galaxies seem to look more-or-less the same. As a PhD astronomer, I know that not to be the case, given James Webb and Hubble observations showing us that even spiral galaxies have distinct looks in real life. It would be great if the spiral-galaxy models were more varied.

That being said, the distances and visuals of what they COULD put in are awesome. I am currently in production of an astronomy documentary, and I am finding it to be a very useful teaching tool about the Universe. I am using it to not just do an astronomic zoomout, but to stop along the way at pretty nebulas and beautiful galaxies.

I highly recommend this game. I am a little bothered at the nomenclature of "game," because "teaching tool" is really more accurate, IMHO. I strongly recommend this to science teachers and other educators. And the Space Engine PRO and HD Solar System DLCs are well worth it.

My bio:
My name is Dr. Brian Hart. Originally from Minneapolis/Saint Paul, Minnesota, I am a PhD astrophysicist with a specialty in cosmology --- the study of the structure and evolution of the Universe. From 2002-08, I attended the University of California, Irvine on a so-called "Regent's Fellowship," which is a highly-coveted "full ride." Major funding for my PhD graduate school program was provided by the NASA Astrophysics Data Program and the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory at the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard and Smithsonian. Currently, I reside in Colorado Springs with my Black Lab, Bruce.

I am not being paid for this review in any way, and I paid for my copy of Space Engine. While this game is not without its subtle flaws and inaccuraces, I recognize that it's in the very early stages of development, and I do not fault the authors for that. Overall though, as a trained, professional astrophysicist, I am highly impressed with the level of fidelity in this game and that is why I highly recommend it to educators (especially) for use as a teaching tool in the classroom and lecture hall.

I *was* going to recommend this game, but here's the deal:

I bought this and I did enjoy it, but I felt I'd enjoy it more with VR and a nice big screen, which I don't have, so I chose to refund it for now.

I refunded and uninstalled and the game straight up REMOVED the drive partition it was on. Win11. Didn't appreciate that, so the devs might wanna look into it.

My favorite part about this game, is realising how big space is, and how worthless I am compared to everything

Amazing game tho, amazing graphics, and good optimization

11/10

---{ Graphics }---
☑ You forget what reality is
☐ Beautiful
☐ Good
☐ Decent
☐ Bad
☐ Don‘t look too long at it
☐ MS-DOS

---{ Gameplay }---
☐ Very good
☐ Good
☑ It's just gameplay
☐ Mehh
☐ Watch paint dry instead
☐ Just don't

---{ Audio }---
☐ Eargasm
☐ Very good
☑ Good
☐ Not too bad
☐ Bad
☐ I'm now deaf

---{ Audience }---
☐ Kids
☑ Teens
☑ Adults
☐ Grandma

---{ PC Requirements }---
☐ Check if you can run paint
☐ Potato
☐ Decent
☑ Fast
☐ Rich boi
☐ Ask NASA if they have a spare computer

---{ Game Size }---
☐ Floppy Disk
☐ Old Fashioned
☑ Workable
☐ Big
☐ Will eat 10% of your 1TB hard drive
☐ You will want an entire hard drive to hold it
☐ You will need to invest in a black hole to hold all the data

---{ Difficulty }---
☐ Just press 'W'
☑ Easy
☐ Easy to learn / Hard to master
☐ Significant brain usage
☐ Difficult
☐ Dark Souls

---{ Grind }---
☑ Nothing to grind
☐ Only if u care about leaderboards/ranks
☐ Isn't necessary to progress
☐ Average grind level
☐ Too much grind
☐ You'll need a second life for grinding

---{ Story }---
☑ No Story
☐ Some lore
☐ Average
☐ Good
☐ Lovely
☐ It'll replace your life

---{ Game Time }---
☐ Long enough for a cup of coffee
☐ Short
☐ Average
☐ Long
☑ To infinity and beyond

---{ Price }---
☐ It's free!
☑ Worth the price
☐ If it's on sale
☐ If u have some spare money left
☐ Not recommended
☐ You could also just burn your money

---{ Bugs }---
☑ Never heard of
☐ Minor bugs
☐ Can get annoying
☐ ARK: Survival Evolved
☐ The game itself is a big terrarium for bugs

---{ ? / 10 }---
☐ 1
☐ 2
☐ 3
☐ 4
☐ 5
☐ 6
☑ 7
☐ 8
☐ 9
☐ 10

---{ Author }---
☑ https://vojtastruhar.github.io/steam-review-template