There are hundreds of changes to the new version, some of the highlights include:
- A myriad of user interface enhancements. Basically we listened to what users wanted improved in the game's UI and made dozens of updates to the various screens to make managing your intersellar empire and fleet much easier.
- A new combat system. Previously the combat system overwhelmingly favored the attacker to the point that there was little reason to focus on defenses on a ship. The new system has ships attacking at the same time.
- Updated Computer AI. The AI has been further enhanced to provide not just a challenge at higher levels but to play more intelligently at all levels. As a reminder, at difficulty levels lower than "tough" (AI set to "intelligent") the computer players are actually penalized in resources.
- A Modding User interface. Players can now create their own mods more easily and users can easily select between them.
- Stardock also has provided a very detailed example mod that includes an alternative game interface, an alternative set of aliens to play against, an alternative tech tree, and more. Total conversion mods should be very easy to do with the new system.