But the experience here works equally well in single player or with just two or three players. Why play it on date night? Obviously Stellaris’ multiplayer mode wasn’t designed strictly with small groups in mind as it supports up to 32 players. Once time rolls you can choose how quickly it passes allowing you to decide whether to speed through lolls in the action or to slow things down to observe interesting events. You control the passage of time so, for example, if you want to deal with a new development, issue orders, or just take a breather to surmise your empire you can pause the game at any time for as long as you want.

And we can also stop the action any time we want if one of us needs to deal with something important in the game. Everyone playing has something to do all the time, even if it’s just taking stock. Not only is space a pretty backdrop, but the graphics and ambient atmosphere hold up excellently after five years.

We like it because it’s absolutely gorgeous. Much like Civilization VI, you’ll be controlling an entire empire but in Stellaris you’ll move beyond a single planet to conquer the stars. The point of the game is to manage your civilization by choosing and enforcing government policies, building and directing your military, deciding what to research, and slowly expanding its influence across the game maps. But, in this case, Civilization VI was our gateway drug. It marks our first foray together into something close to a title in the grand strategy genre. Why Stellaris? My fiancee and I have been gaming together for years but this one’s a bit “advanced” for us.

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