It is done. I have played a 4X game from start to finish on "normal" settings. Not actually the first time, but it is a rather rare accomplishment, because when playing against AI there is a tipping point after which the outcome of the game is clear, yet half the game is still ahead of you. This issue plagues all large-scale TBS games, and Endless Space 2 is no exception. I'll be happy the day I find something that fixes this, but as long as I haven't I can't really hold it against any of these games either.
There are a lot of similarities between most TBS games, from the more known Civilization series to less known games whose names escape me for the time being. It's honestly difficult to describe one uniquely without going into all the tiny details. I guess the main difference of Endless Space 2 would be about the same as that of Endless Legend - the different factions / empires have a very different playstyle, even more so in Endless Space 2 than in Endless Legend. Another thing they have succeeded in yet again is making a very beautiful world. I find the aesthetics of the game pleasing, the soundtrack nice to listen to, and each of the factions has a solid backstory as well as a story that can be pursued in different directions through in-game quests. This really makes factions stand apart and give each a goal that is emphasized by their faction traits as well as lore, making playing different factions kind of like playing slightly different games.
Endless Legend was my favorite TBS game, and Endless Space is a fair competitor. I'll get to the reasons shortly, but first I can foresee a certain question. "Why would I play Endless Legend/Space 2 instead of [Your Favorite TBS Game Name Here]?" And really, I can't give you a reason. As I mentioned before, most TBS games are very similar to each other, with only the little details setting them apart, and it's usually a matter of preference. I happen to like the Endless TBS games the most due to the beautiful world, and a larger emphasis on the combat side of things. Why Endless Space 2 didn't feel as good to me as Endless Legend, was that I felt some of this focus had been taken off combat and put into diplomacy and system management. It reminded me a bit of Stellaris in the sense that you were partially subject to what your people wanted, and didn't have absolute control. This didn't sit with me quite as well, but it could totally appeal to someone else. Another thing were the odd connections between systems. There was pretty much no sense of a perimeter or which were your "outer" planets, and which were your "inner" ones - the enemy could just warp to any one of them, and you couldn't stop them, forcing you to defend literally everything, lest you wanted to suffer because of a stupid sneak attack.
So, yeah, I liked Endless Space 2, but the games take an eternity-and-a-half, and as usual, the AI doesn't pose a challenge past a certain point. It offers a lot of the same as Endless Legend, but is also very different. Perhaps some DLC will improve it in the future, as I heard a very recent patch already increased the intelligence of the AI.
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