Out Of The Beta Quadrant: Stellar Impact

The best thing about space is that it's real. It may or may not be filled with aliens and warring spaceships, but the setting, the background, is actually there! All those galaxies - that's not pretend from out of a book. As much as you may doubt me, they're really all up there (and down, and some on the left too. We are of course on the far right of space). Space is the setting chosen for Stellar Impact, the intergalactic strategalatic DOTA-ish multiplayer, and despite our reviewing it in January, it's out today.

Brendan, wot played it when it was in its open beta, said this:

"But if ever there was a game that I knew RPS readers will like, this is it. If ever there was a game that was in more need of a strong, communicative playerbase (is that a word?) to fully realise the vision of the developers, this is it. Stellar Impact has its issues but it still deserves a little more love and attention than it currently has. Similarities to Defense of the Anglicans be damned."

And now it's all finished, and yours for £15. The game's press release explains it's on Steam and "other top distribution channels". They may have wanted to be a little bit more personable about those channels, since there's not a sign of it on Steam, but it's up on GamersGate and Desura right now.

OR, I just noticed, get it directly from publishers Meridian4 and it purports to be only $10. Which is almost half the price. With a bit of a catch - Meridian are still selling those foul "extended download" things, meaning you have to pay almost as much again for the right to download the game in the future. Idiotic, and they need to stop it. Remove that bit, add on UK VAT, and it ends up coming to £8.22, which is still a big chunk off the other sites' price, but with the stupid caveat that you'll eventually lose your right to download it.