After 32 years, the 1992 open-world space game that helped inspire Mass Effect is getting a proper sequel
Apr. 16, 2024Free Stars: Children of Infinity is Star Control 3 in all but name, and it managed to smash a $100,000 Kickstarter goal in under 3 hours
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
The devs who founded Toys for Bob are going back to finally build a proper sequel to their beloved 1992 open-world space game, and while they no longer have the rights to the original game’s name, the Kickstarter for this new title has smashed its $100,000 goal in less than three hours.
Free Stars: Children of Infinity is a sequel to Star Control 2 in all but name, and like its predecessor it’s an open-world space game where you captain a ship, explore the galaxy, and have dialog tree conversations with all sorts of alien characters. You control your ship from a top-down perspective, flying around and shooting enemies in action sequences, but the real draw is the open-ended freedom you have to change your relationships with the characters you meet along the way and forge your own way through the galaxy.
Star Control 2 is a beloved classic, and with Free Stars: Children of Infinity promising a similar adventure from the original developers, it’s little wonder that the game’sKickstartermanaged to smash its $100,000 goal less than three hours after the project launched. “This is the ultimate, best feeling in the world,” as the devs say in anupdate post.
If you’re not familiar with Star Control 2, you might be wondering why this game features an entirely different title, and why I’m completely ignoring the multiple other sequels that have appeared in the years since the original game’s release. Well, buckle up, because this is a long, strange history lesson.
The original Star Control was the first game from Toys for Bob, initially an independent studio founded by Paul Reiche III and Fred Ford. That first game is well-regarded, but it wasn’t until the sequel and its added open-world sandbox elements that the studio produced an instant classic. Reiche and Ford did not want to do another sequel, so publisher Accolade contracted another studio - Legend Entertainment - to create Star Control 3, and while that game reviewed well, it never held up to its predecessor in the eyes of hardcore fans.
Sign up to the GamesRadar+ Newsletter
Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more
Reports suggest thatToys for Bob is now making a game with former owner Xbox shortly after going indie.
Open-world dress-up game Infinity Nikki is serious business – so serious its devs have already banned over 80 accounts for cheating: “We implore all Stylists to adhere to the game rules”
Hideo Kojima seems to be testing Death Stranding 2, but it’s not going well: “I fell asleep twice while on a delivery and ran the vehicle into a cliff”
Todd Howard “rolled his eyes” at the idea of Troy Baker playing Indiana Jones in the Great Circle, but the Bethesda boss later told him “you’re doing a hell of a job”
