You don’t notice it as immediately as you notice the interface user friendliness, the tech tree depth or the spaceship design complexity but more than often the hidden economic mechanics may be crucial for the game success in the long run.

Some may say that the key is in the complexity, others will defend that simpler is better others may even argue that realism is in important factor. So what is the right balance? What makes a good 4x space game economic model? And ultimately is that such a big deal?

Let’s look into some classic examples to try to find some answers to these questions. Continue reading...