Kerbal Space Program 2 rockets into early access in February

Space flight simulation sequel Kerbal Space Program 2 will finally get to take off in early access on PC on February 24th, 2023, devs Intercept Games have announced. The early access version of the game will allow you to fully travel around the Kerbolar system - can’t quite believe I typed that - which has been given a major overhaul since the first game. There’ll also be more than 350 new parts to build your spacecraft with. You can watch a lengthy chat with the Kerbal team about their early access mission below.

Originally announced in 2019, the game has been delayed several times. Last we heard was nearly a year ago, when the game was intended to see release during 2022. Kerbal Space Program 2 had already been postponed twice before that, in late 2019 and in 2020. While things were starting to seem like a real space launch, repeatedly scrubbed, it emerged that rights owners Take-Two had poached many of developer Star Theory’s staff after an unsuccessful buyout attempt. That led to development shifting to Intercept Games, and Star Theory shutting down.

Kerbal Space Program 2 has a few new things to muck about with compared to the original. Among these are the planetary atmosphere system, which generates cloudscapes for the game’s various celestial bodies, and the ability to set up colonies. You’ll be able to paint and customise vehicles too. I can imagine that’ll result in some interestingly phallic designs, but that might just be me. Intercept say Kerbal Space Program 2’s terrain system will make landing your trousersnake-esque vehicle much harder. You will get the option to speed up interstellar travel with the time warp system, though, so you’re not bored on long flights.

Kerbal Space Programme 2 enters early access on Steam and the Epic Games Store on February 24th, 2023. It’ll set you back £45 / $50. There’s more info about the game on the official site here.