14 DAY TRIAL // My father is planning a strike on an enemy system. My husband is extracting taxes from another. I have my sister creating an intelligence net against a possible rival, while my other brother is working to rebuild a planetary improvement. It’s a great bonus that I can also educate my own heir. But what should I do with the education of his siblings? And what role is best suited to my rival? And what bloodline perk is best suited to the next generation of my dynasty?
Bloodlines is the first piece of downloadable content for Star Dynasties, developed by Pawley Games and published by Iceberg. It focuses on the family that the player controls, with enhancements to the role-playing elements of the game.
The tweaks with the most immediate impact happen before the start of the game. Players get the option to now customize their house, their character, and their extended family. The game offers plenty of options (with big bonuses and big trade-offs), as well as ways to auto-generate them. But I find that it is fun to design the ruler, the house, and a few key family members because it creates relationships and role-playing space even before the campaign has begun.
A range of interactions and events are added for child education, heir progress, rivalries inside the family, and more. All this also links well with the intrigue system in Star Dynasties. I still want to see some more options for the diplomatic side of the experience, perhaps in a future DLC.
Bloodlines reinforces the tight focus of Star Dynasties. Money is tight, the number of people that can act is small, the universe lacks resources and there are rarely opportunities for innovation. Gamers need to plan with attention to detail and only execute when they feel strongly, they can win. Overstacking the odds is never a bad idea.
The DLC does not introduce any significant tweaks to the presentation. The game is a bit spartan but very informative and the look fits the future space setting well. I do want a little more visual personality for the various factions and families, as well as more songs for the soundtrack.
Conclusion
Despite the easy description of “Crusader King in space”, Star Dynasties offers a much more focused experience, with more depth and an emphasis on planning. Bloodlines enhances this element of the game and also opens up cool role-playing moments. The DLC is not essential to newcomers but is a Yay for anyone who has put more than 10 hours into the game.
Review code provided by the publisher.
