The original Kerbal Space Program brought both the complexities and sense of accomplishment of interstellar exploration to players’ screens in a way that had never been done before. Wholly accessible through a sandbox design whilst simultaneously deep and challenging to master, KSP made its name as an absolute classic by securing the sweet spot between giving players the overarching ability to go about space travel by their own design and allowing success only within the realms of scientific possibility. There is almost certainly a generation of physicists who, on some level, owe their love of science in part to Kerbal Space Program; a hard act to follow, indeed.
Kerbal Space Program 2 seeks to bring everything that made the original game great up-to-date and delightfully polished for a new generation. The game markets itself on being the KSP you know and love but with all of the clean operation and broader opportunities, you only imagined the first time around. Drawing on new technical capabilities and the knowledge earned through fostering a thriving modding community with the first endeavour, KSP2 promises to be the definitive version of an already
near-perfected model. A bold proposal, but one which has struck a positive response from current fans and would-be first-timers alike in the marketing and build-up stages. On paper, KSP2 has everything going for it.
The problems arise, however, as soon as you get started. Performance issues make the core game unpleasant to work within its current form; with unworkable frame rates creating an essentially unplayable scenario. From vessel building to getting off the launch pad, what was once a largely entertaining process of trial and error has sadly evolved into a jittery and game-breaking battle against the game itself. It is unfortunate, as the systems behind the issues are familiar and intuitive, with added detail to support your full immersion in the space race sim’s world. Alas, lag overrules love when it comes to taking this in, and it becomes increasingly difficult to stick with it. The biggest issues are on the launchpad, where the lag more than once caused vessels to randomly flip, explode and fail with no input or reason to cause this. Whilst some bugs are to be expected in an early access title, this is one of the most painful implementations of that system which I have experienced to date.
What is more surprising, perhaps, is how little of the game has genuinely evolved for KSP2, and indeed how much of the game feels, honestly, worse. Ignoring the performance problems, a lacklustre set of tutorials riddled with lengthy loading times makes learning the fundamentals a chore more than an experience. Beyond the tutorials, the early game (which, again, is hard to get past given its problems) is nigh-on identical to the original KSP, leaving you to wonder what exactly has changed, and more so what can possibly have gone quite so awry in the process. The store page lists additions such as colonisation, multiplayer and, of course, modding – but these features are either yet to come or too deep into the mix to reach in the game’s current form.
Ultimately, so much potential looks to thus far have been squandered in the development and early access release of Kerbal Space Program 2. I look forward, with a great deal of hope and desire, to seeing the issues resolved and the new game features come to light, as KSP2 is truly a sequel which I dearly want to love and enjoy. Until such a time as some significant clean-up has taken place, and perhaps a second look at the new, high asking price, this game will regrettably remain to prop up the more active titles in my library…
Get in on the action here https://store.steampowered.com/app/954850/Kerbal_Space_Program_2/
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