Summary
Since the dawn of gaming, developers have sought different ways to engage consumers inexploring outer space, as many people are captivated by the mysteries that lie among the stars. This trend continues today, with games becoming not only more immersive but also incorporating multiplayer options that allow friends to venture into the cosmos together.
Recent years have introduced innovative ways for players to explore vast multiplayer universes, whether by navigating starships or journeying across alien planets. Players can come together to discover unfamiliar worlds, search for new life and civilizations, and boldly venture into uncharted territories.
The final installment in the original series of games isDead Space 3, which offers an action-packed campaign featuring Isaac Clarke on the icy planet Tau Volantis, fighting against the Necromorph threat.Similar toResident Evil 5,Dead Space 3is best enjoyed in the cooperative mode, as it includes the character John Carver.
Playing together to eliminate hordes of Necromorphs is not only more enjoyable, but the co-op campaign also features exclusive story moments. John Carver and Isaac Clarke encounter different horrors and hallucinations, which can create tense situations. While one character battles with their mind, the other faces real monsters.
As a franchise,Star Trektends to be a coin toss when it comes to licensed games, but one that has continued to evolve isStar Trek Online, which puts the player in the shoes of a new Starfleet captain. They create the character from scratch,fly a Federation ship, and lead Away Team missions on the various planets, ships, and stations throughout the galaxy.
Star Trek Onlineis easy to adapt to, especially for those familiar with most MMORPGs, as it incorporates many similar aspects and mechanics but adds unique twists to fit the universe. With the opportunity to explore various eras ofStar Trek, being part of Starfleet becomes even more enjoyable when playing with friends, much like in most MMOs, particularly when tackling more challenging missions.
Fans of Star Wars, both young and old, can fully enjoy the universe created by Lucasfilm inLEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga.This game transforms familiar elements from previous installmentsinto an open-world experience. With twenty-four planets from across the nineStar Warsfilms and nearly every character included, two players can dive into the colorful and whimsical world ofLEGO Star Wars.
Players have the option to follow the stories of all the films, butLEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Sagaalso offers countless side activities for additional fun, smiles, and laughter. Traveler’s Tales retains the signature humor found in all their games, honoring and playfully parodying the entireStar Warsuniverse simultaneously.
6Pulsar: Lost Colony
Soar Through The Stars As A Team
Heavily inspired by Star Trek,Pulsar: Lost Colonyis intended for friends to play together as they must monitor and maintain the starships as they fly across deep space. Piloting, engineering, science, and weapons need to be stationed by up to five players in a crew as damage can happen at any time from asteroids, monsters, and enemy craft.
It’s not just space, however, as the team can alsogo onto extraterrestrial planetsto explore and encounter numerous enemies, from creatures to nefarious bandits. It may not be a reinvention of the wheel, but it is a quality way to live out that fantasy of being on a starship and emulating the feel ofStar Trek.
There is usually one entry in a big franchise that gets overlooked by its successors and predecessors andBorderlands: The Pre-Sequelis a prime example of that. It still delivered the same one-to-four-player first-person looter shooter action that the series is known for but never reached the same popularity asBorderlands 2.
2K Australia and Aspyr took theBorderlandsuniverse and brought it to a new location: Pandora’s moon, with a new set of NPCs to enjoy alongside fan favorites. So, on top of the over-the-top humor and violence,Borderlands: The Pre-Sequelnow has low-to-zero-gravity mechanics to make the fourprotagonists even more fun to playwith new challenges.
If someone were to takeSea Of Thievesand fuse it withFTL, the result would beVoid Crew. Similar toPulsar, it features a crew of players working cooperatively to keep a ship thriving as they complete six types of missions across the galaxy for rewards. Space combat, ship customization, and different roles help makeVoid Crewanother memorable adventure.
While there is the option to play solo, it is highly recommended to play Void Crew with other players as maintaining a ship can be stressful, especially when dealing with enemies, repairing damages, and flying all at once. It also doesn’t hurt that it features colorful and vibrant visuals reminiscent ofDestiny.
After controversial pay-to-win options and minimal content, the rebooted version ofStar Wars: Battlefront 2was nearly a disaster, but DICE worked hard on numerous free content patches. Years later, it is now the go-to Star Wars multiplayer game with a still-dedicated player base even after the developers have stopped making any updates to the game.
Whether it is a small party or over a dozen, players can work together to fight as units across various planets and eras ofStar Warsin objective-based multiplayer action. However, there are also dogfights to enjoy as the different starfighters, either above the battlefront or in space, with visuals that are still impressive almost ten years later.
The Milky Way is a massive open world to explore inElite Dangerous, with players controlling ships and exploring different planets and different systems to haul cargo, assassinate targets, or just strip for resources. Thanks to theOdysseyexpansions,Elite Dangerouseven has first-person combatto spice up the gameplay.
With thousands of worlds to get lost in,Elite Dangeroushas proven to be an ambitious title for Frontier Developments. Single-player or multiplayer,Elite Dangerousprovides gamers with a space adventure that is consistently evolving and reshaping thanks to the choices of players around the globe.
Exploring one alien planet would be impressive enough, butNo Man’s Skytakes it even further withhundreds of procedurally generated planets, each with its own ecosystems. New flora, fauna, and biomes can be found with different activities and missions to accomplish as one or more players continue their journey to the center of the universe.
Few games manage to capture the feeling of being lost in space asNo Man’s Skydoes, as the players are stranded with no knowledge of the cultures and languages, so they have to slowly learn. It gets even better when playing with friends as it can make resource collecting much easier to build settlements or the upgrades needed to keep advancing from planet to planet.
