Verdict
Is ZeroSpace worth it?
Steam says Very Positive. The loudest complaint on the boards is the price. Both of those are true at once, and which matters more depends entirely on what you want from it.
The short version
Buy it now if you want a large-scale RTS with genuinely good unit control and you are comfortable paying for something that is still being built. The combat holds up, the scale is real, and the Galactic War layer is a legitimately interesting idea that works today.
Wait if you are here for the single-player campaign, if you need a healthy ladder population at your local peak hours, or if $39.99 for an unfinished game is a line you do not cross. None of those is an unreasonable position and the roadmap says the answers get better later.
What it does well
- The RTS fundamentals are solid. Unit control is streamlined without being dumbed down, and thousand-unit fights actually function.
- The loadout system is a real idea. Faction plus mercenary group plus hero gives you meaningful pre-match decisions without the complexity of a deckbuilder.
- Progression respects your time. Every mode feeds the same commander, so playing co-op is not a detour from getting better at versus.
- The campaign punches above its price band. Cinematic dialogue and choice trees are unusual in an RTS at any budget.
- The developers are visibly working. A day-one patch targeting performance, crashes and UI, and a public roadmap with honest "coming soon" labels on unfinished features.
What it does badly
- The price is genuinely contentious. "Game looks cool but 40€ is a deathsentence" is a real, popular Steam board thread, and it is not trolling — it is the most common reason people bounce.
- The campaign is a fragment. 11 missions, with save/load still marked coming soon. If that is your reason for buying, it is not ready.
- The population is small. 886 all-time peak concurrents is modest for a competitive RTS, and it shapes your ladder experience directly.
- One faction is openly unfinished. The Xol are in beta and out of ranked.
- The AI leans on advantages. Higher difficulties are widely described by players as resource-advantaged rather than cleverer.
- Rough edges remain. Ultra-wide display problems, crash reports and UI polish still on the roadmap.
ZeroSpace vs StarCraft II and Stormgate
| ZeroSpace | StarCraft II | Stormgate | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feels familiar to SC2 players? | Yes — deliberately. Reviewers and players consistently note the resemblance. | The reference point. | Yes, also positioned as a successor. |
| The differentiator | Hero + mercenary loadouts, and a persistent shared Galactic War. | Two decades of balance and a huge match archive. | Co-op and campaign focus. |
| Entry price | $39.99, Early Access | Free to play (base) | Free to play (base) |
| Population | Small — 886 all-time peak. | Large and stable. | Contested. |
The honest summary: if you want an RTS that feels like StarCraft II and you want to pay nothing, StarCraft II is still there. ZeroSpace's argument is the RPG layer and the shared galaxy war — mechanics SC2 does not have. Whether those are worth $39.99 in an unfinished state is the whole question.
Who should buy it today
| You are… | Verdict |
|---|---|
| An RTS player who wants something new to learn | Buy. This is the audience the game is built for. |
| Mainly a co-op / PvE player | Buy. Galactic War works today and is barely affected by population. |
| Here for the story campaign | Wait. Eleven missions and no shipped save/load. |
| A serious ladder competitor | Wait, or try it and watch the numbers. Population is the constraint, not quality. |
| Price-sensitive | Wait for a sale or for 1.0. Nothing here is going to get more expensive. |
Frequently asked
Questions people actually ask about this, pulled from the Steam discussion boards and search data.
Is ZeroSpace good?
Steam users rate it Very Positive — 81% of 1,181 reviews are positive. The RTS fundamentals and the loadout system are the strengths; the price relative to an unfinished feature set is the consistent criticism.
Is ZeroSpace worth $39.99?
If you want the multiplayer and co-op game, yes — that part is playable and good today. If you are buying for the campaign, no, not yet: 11 missions with save/load still listed as coming soon.
Is ZeroSpace better than StarCraft II?
Not on balance depth or population — SC2 has a twenty-year head start and is free to play. ZeroSpace's case is the hero and mercenary loadout system and the persistent Galactic War, which SC2 has no equivalent for.
Should I wait for the 1.0 release?
Wait if you want the finished campaign or a large ladder population. Do not wait if you want to play co-op and versus now — those are the finished parts, and Early Access buyers get the 1.0 update.