I've been a fan of Paradox for a long time now. Played their games, bought their endless DLCs to show them my support and appreciation for their work. But as much as I would want to recommend this game, I'm on the fence. Since you have countless reviews telling you the pros, I'll choose to highlight the cons. Combat is broken - a matter of who has the bigger stick/doomstack. War is rather boring, more a means to an end. There is a lack of meaningful ways with regards to diplomacy. Sectors (think decentralization of power) are barely efficient.

This game is an interesting mix of Universalis Europe and Civilization placed in space. The multitude of options at this moment seems to me to be enormous, and the galaxy can have as many as 1000 stars, and of course, every galaxy has several of its planets. The whole is as overwhelming as the real universe when it comes to thinking about it. Impressive.

Had this game a while now and I absolutely love it. Feels like (as the title says) everything I've ever complained about in other strategy games, this game just seems to do right. The pace is great, the variability mixed in with reasonable reliableness just makes the game feel smooth and satisfying. The dlcs have been wonderful additions as well, and even give free dlc like the anniversary skins to reward players as well. My only real complaint with the game is the late game slowing/lag can get annoying as even playing on fastest speed towards the very end of the game moves at a crawl - but honestly anything else I can even think to complain about is more personal preference or ways to improve the game. Devs work on the game regularly and are very responsive to the community. Overall, best gaming purchase I've made in years

Stellaris is a great sci-fi strategy game. Following the familiar Paradox strategy formula, Stellaris sets you loose on an entire galaxy. Put yourself in charge of humanity's first steps into galactic exploration, lead a galactic conquest of terror and slavery, or put yourself into the "shoes" of a sentient fungi looking for love in all the wrong star systems. The gameplay is deep and engaging, allowing you to fully immerse yourself. There aren't too many negatives to this game (as long as you enjoy 4x strategy games). However, after a few play throughs, the events start to look familiar. As with other recent Paradox strategy games, Stellaris will probably have plenty of DLC to add content to keep the game fresh. Also, concerning Paradox DLC, It is important to note that they LOVE DLC... take a look at the ridiculous amount of DLC for Crusader Kings 2: be prepared to spend more money.

Stellaris is a great game. If you are a fan of grand strategy games, you will not be disappointed in that one. There are lots of fresh ideas, and putting the game in space was great for replayability. The sense of exploration that you would expect from such a title is there. There is a problem, however. The midgame can get quite boring as there is not much you can do. I often find myself playing on really high speed just to have stuff happen more often. I am not a fan of micromanagement, so maybe that is the reason - if you like that stuff, you will find lots to do. Also, the systems are not that easy to learn, so keep in mind that it will take some effor to get going. But once you do, you will enjoy yourself immensely.