What will my game be about?

I am inspired by a lot of things, but my predominant inspiration, especially for this project, is the works of my favourite author Ursula Le Guin, and primarily, her Hainish Cycle series of books.

I love sci-fi for all its faults, however, I think there is a disconnect between the science fiction found in literature and the science fiction found in the medium of video games.

Video game sci-fi is usually quite brutish and confrontational, whereas nuanced works like the Hainish Cycle are much more focused on the complex interpersonal and cultural implications of multi-planetary or technological advancement.

This is hard to make fun in a video game however, but the success of something like Stellaris proves it's not impossible. I have been playing Stellaris and it's absolutely fantastic, but I want a more controlled playstyle. I want users to feel the weight of trying desperately to tie different cultures together and to make tough decisions on the entry of my version of the Ekumen.

Let's see how I get on!