We’re experiencing a bit of a renaissance in space gaming. But when Homeworld, one of my all-time favorites, was resurrected for a sequel, all I wanted to do was go back and play another game that would never get one. I hope the sense of wonder is still as strong as it was all those years ago.

There was something special about being a kid jumping into the low-resolution darkness of mid-90s space games, and I hope players who try out Homeworld 3 experience at least a fraction of that joy. The technical limitations of the time meshed seamlessly with the fundamental appeal of the setting; space is dark, empty, and unknowable. As a developer, you had to imply rather than show, and make things seem much bigger than they really were. So players discovered the world rather than explored it.

This was the pinnacle of the space sim genre, the apotheosis followed by the swift death. Veterans like myself will no doubt also remember the X-Wing series or Freelancer, but in my mind Homeworld and FreeSpace were the ones that really made the most of the setting, leaning into the scale and horror of the unknown, and showing off some of the best writing the industry had to offer at the time.

Do I have a good justification for this? Sure: the deep, unwavering conviction of a one-time child. But then again, space games need to keep showing up on “best games of all time” lists for a reason. Homeworld is a unique 3D real-time strategy game, and FreeSpace, the last great space sim of its time, has a special sci-fi world that’s still worth exploring.