Hi!
Today is a special day - Project: Zenith Expanse finally has its official gameplay trailer. You can find it on the Steam page or on the YouTube:
I thought this would be a good moment to introduce myself a bit more - and the project as well.
My name is Szymon. I was born and still live in Bytom - in New Le… well - Poland. :)
I have been involved in game development for around 20 years - professionally speaking. I wrote my first tiny game at about 8 years old on a Commodore 64 - I definitely do not count that as professional experience, but that is where the obsession probably started.
Somewhere back then, little Szymon told himself he would one day make a game about being a celebrity - and about space.
So in a way, I guess I always wanted to make a game about stars.
Some of you might know me from Wonderlife - a Polish project launched in 2008 that has been running for 18 years and is even getting a refreshed version soon. That project fulfilled the first childhood idea.
This one fulfills the second.
So what is Project: Zenith Expanse?
I am not a big fan of comparisons, but PZE is a tribute to the strategy games I grew up loving - with my own flavor added on top. It draws inspiration from the grand strategy depth of Paradox titles and colony simulators like RimWorld and Oxygen Not Included.
What will Early Access include?
Procedurally generated planets with multi-biomes, orbital motion, axial tilt and seasons
A living ecological simulation - human impact, natural disasters, dynamic flora and fauna populations. You can capture fauna and transport it to another planet - if conditions allow, it will eventually reproduce on its own
Advanced weather system - fronts, wind, conditions and weather-driven events
A relationship system with history and memory - family members can appear as crew or NPCs, with long and short term memory, evolving dynamics and events including marriage and pregnancy - yes, I did not list The Sims as an inspiration, sorry EA
Dynamic trade with settlements - influenced by supply, demand, faction relations and global or local events
Missions - available in settlements, affecting reputation and faction influence across systems
Quests - triggered through NPC ships or discovered Points of Interest, both in space and on planetary surfaces
What colony sims do best - chaos emerging from tightly connected systems and a large event database available from day one
Full modding support from day one through my custom system called Let Me Cook - allowing modifications of planet templates, textures, quests, events, species, minerals, attacks and anatomies
Side activities such as a DarkNet Terminal for underground operations - watch out for patrols - and local fauna racing you can bet credits on - although maybe consider buying water first, because Franek from the silicon mine on Sylostris-II might need it more
And many smaller systems - crafting, space combat, recruiting additional colonists, reputation and influence mechanics
And the best part?
All of this is already in the game.
I am currently in Phase Three - the content update phase. Most of my work right now is focused on expanding the LMC content files mentioned above. Over the coming weeks, I will share more posts diving deeper into the systems and features.
In the meantime, feel free to join:
Discord -
X -
Take care - and have a great day or good night, depending on when you are reading this.
Szymon