Calling it 4X feels.... not entirely correct, but I suppose it is correct technically.

Technically you eXplore the spare around you, you eXpand your dominion to encompass more star systems, you eXploit the systems that have Tacknium and you eXterminate the competition. So technically it is.

That doesn't *feel* right though. The game feels more like a a turn based tactical space battle game with a 4x component attached for the purpose of developing ships. That's not to say the 4X component is bad, but it doesn't feel like the primary aspect of the game. You could theoretically auto battle all the tactical battles or play just quick battles so the two halves of the game can be isolated from one another, but I can't see why you'd hit autobattle repeatedly. I've done it once or twice and generally been disappointed with the high casualty rates. (But that's every auto battle in every game, no?)

So the game functions around a single resource for construction: Tacknium. It's a finite resource unless certain mega weapons get used to create more of it. This forces you to expand because you'll run out of the basic building block of ship construction. There are 3 other lesser resources in the sense that 2 different station types generate resources to upgrade your ships and one station type develops an enriched tacknium that you use to launch the missles that will make more regular tacknium (and vaporize an entire location on the map of all stations and fleets).

One of the best features here is that when you upgrade a class of ship, EVERY ship of that class is upgraded across your entire navy. There's no need to cycle old ships back for upgrades or micromanage any of that. This keeps even the smallest ships relevant later in the game and indeed for many factions and play styles and mix of larger and smaller ships is ideal since ships give bonuses tot he rest of the fleet, but its capped at a number less than the maximum number of ships in the fleet. Accordingly, mixing ships is generally a good plan with 2-3 types generally being ideal depending on the point in the game and faction. However, you can only build ships that match the shipyards you have found on the map. There's no building up your own shipyards to rush to a given ship type. You need to find a system on the map where that shipyard already exists. And then you need to hope that it doesn't get wiped out by a tacknium warhead. Additionally, your ships can only be deployed from your reserves at shipyards so you need those shipyards are nodes for deploying new fleets. On the up side there though, that means you can be using a shipyard on one side of your dominion, only to actually deploy the ship many star jumps away instantly. That lets you get your ships to the battle quicker.

The game encourages you to combat by giving you rewards towards the end goal simply for fighting as well as granting your other resources for upgrades etc. Therefore sitting around and waiting is not an ideal play style. Steer your ships towards the sound of the guns!

The game is not for everyone though. No game is really. Some people will be put off by the simplicity or the fact that there are only 5 factions. Some folks will be upset that the dev has basically declared the game done and you won't be getting updates. This is its final form. The big thing that folks either love or hate is that you move ONE fleet per turn. Just one. The other 3 dominions do likewise and the big bad empire you have all rebelled against moves 4. Sometimes this puts your in rough spots. However, it ensures that turns move quickly. Move a fleet, maybe build some ships, launch a missle, setup a harvest and next turn. I like the simplicity. Others have complained about wanting to move multiple fleets. You need to accept this limitation going in or you will not be happy.

Others have commented that they don't see how folks using 20 fleet if they can only move one. You use more small fleets at higher difficulties when you're simply deploying a single ship to grab unguarded systems, launch missiles from and not actually trying to engage the enemy directly with them. Sometimes, you just start ignoring a fleet in the middle of your dominion because its 6 jumps away from being useful and well you don't really feel the need to salvage it.

Sometimes the game will frustrate you with the luck of where stations spawned. Sometimes the AI will nuke things you really wish they hadn't.

And other times you will be delighted at outmaneuvering enemy formations in tactical combat. Tactical combat is really where this game shines. I recommend the game to anyone who wants a tactical turn based space combat game and accepts that the 4X component is light. It's deliberately light. If you are looking for deep 4X and lighter fleet combat, this is not the game you're looking for.