Well, here's my attempt at giving this game a review, but of course you'll get a short TL;DR here:
Neat but sometimes frustrating Sci-Fi sandbox game with light RPG elements, extensive spaceship & base building, lots to explore, a hefty amount of adversity and even after several kicks between your legs you'll be coming back for more.

Of course this review will have some spoilers in it, so beware!

Where do I start? The game has been in development for years, only leaving early access a while ago (though it is NOT finished - most of the storyline that's to come is missing; it has it's fair share of bugs, some mechanics need to get expanded upon and there's still frequent updates). We're now at version 1.0 (or Alpha 12) which brought one of the biggest and most desired features the players had been waiting for: the universe!

In the Alpha stages the game was set in small "scenario type" galaxies: a few planets with predetermined features (but still had random landscapes) to explore & fight through. Now we have a huge universe with lots of systems and features including asteroid fields, black holes, gas giants, multiple moons (yes, they can be visited!), space debris and more! My server once said something about ~13.000 stars... so there's lots of space even for busy multiplayer servers!

With that update the major factions in the game (Legacy - mutated beasts (?) which will play a major role in the storyline I guess, Polaris (a huge and usually friendly corporation) and the oppressive Zirax (kind of the bad aggressive aliens) got their own planets and territories. Don't expect much of a Polaris or civilian presence in Zirax controlled zones & vice versa.

Enough talk about the universe for now. How does the game start? That already depends on if you play in singleplayer or chose to start on a multiplayer server already. There's a few scenarios with predetermined story arcs and objectives you can choose from - of course there's more to come! Server owners (there's dedicated server software) are able to choose scenarios too - or just stick with the "Default Multiplayer"-scenario (no real objectives here beside those the players choose for themselves, it is more or less the usual sandbox experience where the players create their own adventures). Most of the time you're able to choose a planet where you'd like to start from a set of about three possible starter planets - which are varying in difficulty.

Different types of planets bring different kinds of hazards & possibilities with them. Starting on a snow/ice-type planet will force you to adapt to the freezing temperatures by taking portable heaters along and taking regular breaks from outside work. Even if a planet already is pretty cold you can be surprised by freezing weather which IS quite dangerous. Some planets have VERY UNHEALTHY acid rain while others sport deadly radiation, hurtful hailstorms, literally raining fire & meteorite showers. Many planets have no breathable atmosphere, so you have to prepare before visiting them (you can buy and produce your own oxygen bottles). And that's only the environmental hazards; some planets have rather "tame" wildlife like big cow-like creatures (I think those were called lizard mules), friendly dinosaur-types and such. But usually you get confronted with big spiders, hunting raptors or other enemies in no time. Harder planets have bigger, tougher and - yes - sometimes more scary monsters which will be on the prowl for you (yes, they respawn). Of course, the different factions (major factions are the aforementioned Legacy, Polaris and Zirax, but there's also the tribal Talon, the Trader & Pirates faction (which do not yet do very much) or the rather apathic civilians) also have installations on the planets, so you might try to be on good terms with as many as you can or else they might just annihilate your base (I usually keep the Zirax as enemies and try to be nice to everyone else).
Usually it pays off to at least keep good relations with Polaris, as they often control trading stations & facilities which will allow you to repair your ships, buy ammunition or fuel (there's energy for the usual operation of equipment & there's "Pentaxid" which is used for warping & your crafts shield systems). What happens if you get attacked? The Zirax usually don't give you much time & are hostile initially. Most of the time they send a few drones (armed with miniguns or rocket launchers on the starter planets) or a troop transport with a few soldiers your way. This can all be managed with a few defensive turrets. But if you don't get them killed in time & they can't reach your bases core to destroy it (= disable the base), they might resort to a lame approach that does definitely need an update: they hack your base. Suddenly its theirs and your own turrets will fire at you. Yes, this will definitely get a revision in the future, but we're stuck with it right now. The Talon might cut the power to your base if they attack (idk how they would be able to do that, but I guess that's to give them a fighting chance, since they mostly resort to crossbows).
On "harder" planets you will have to face bigger drones which are more sturdy and might carry more devastating weaponry. Some planets even have Zirax patrol craft (bigger smaller vessels, hehe I know that sounds weird) which can get rather troublesome for your bases. Some good flak and missile launchers always pays off.

So I mentioned "small vessels"... I guess its time to talk about the ships, their design, the limitations and options for a while. The game differs between four 'groups' of "buildables": bases, hover vessels, small vessels and capital vessels. Bases are of course the place where most of your things get built, in which you farm your own crops and you'll most likely hoard your loot. You'll have (and need) a lot of equipment ranging from the constructors (which basically allow you to create all your more advanced equipment, building blocks, weapons and more) to food processors (eating raw food might prove to be unhealthy and fatal) or your defenses (various types of turrets, including but not limited to cannons, miniguns, lasers, rockets or flak) & cargo space of course.
'Hover vessels' are usually smaller craft that can hover up to a height of about three metres. They can use some weaponry small vessels can not use, so right now a good hover tank might be a suitable answer to an armed enemy base. Since your first hovers are usually rather cheap & basic, they make a good choice for scouting a planet (you can build a motorbike too, but the hover all in all will be 'smoother' experience).
Why scout? Well, you want to find bases that are worth to get looted, but you also need raw materials to craft your gear. There's a few materials in the game right now: copper, iron, silicon (the aforementioned three are basic materials needed in pretty much any blueprint), promethium (this is what your power cells are made of), titanium (needed for sturdier metal constructions), sathium (needed for even sturdier metal blocks and some advanced machinery), neodymium (advanced computers, weapons & bigger thrusters usually need this), gold (can mostly be used to accumulate wealth, but are also used in some armor upgrades), erestrum & zascosium (the "high end tier"-type of ores; usually found in dangerous spaces but ultimately needed for strong capital vessels and their equipment). I've also encountered aluminium and platinum, which don't seem to do much; mined ice can be used to create drinking water.

Back to the ships: small vessels are your usual figher craft, transporters or medical vehicles while capital vessels can be your mobile bases, destroyers, carriers and such. Tip: only engage enemy capital vessels or bases in a CV or they might make you stardust rather fast. While small vessels may have shields they lack some weaponry hovers and CVs have.

Oh crap. I'm running out of space for this review. Guess this has to do then.

Well, here's my attempt at giving this game a review, but of course you'll get a short TL;DR here: Neat but sometimes frustrating Sci-Fi sandbox game with light RPG elements, extensive spaceship & base building, lots to explore, a hefty amount of adversity and even after several kicks between your legs you'll be coming back for more. Of course this review will have some spoilers in it, so beware! Where do I start? The game has been in development for years, only leaving early access a while ago (though it is NOT finished - most of the storyline that's to come is missing; it has it's fair share of bugs, some mechanics need to get expanded upon and there's still frequent updates). We're now at version 1.0 (or Alpha 12) which brought one of the biggest and most desired features the players had been waiting for: the universe! In the Alpha stages the game was set in small "scenario type" galaxies: a few planets with predetermined features (but still had random landscapes) to explore & fight through. Now we have a huge universe with lots of systems and features including asteroid fields, black holes, gas giants, multiple moons (yes, they can be visited!), space debris and more! My server once said something about ~13.000 stars... so there's lots of space even for busy multiplayer servers! With that update the major factions in the game (Legacy - mutated beasts (?) which will play a major role in the storyline I guess, Polaris (a huge and usually friendly corporation) and the oppressive Zirax (kind of the bad aggressive aliens) got their own planets and territories. Don't expect much of a Polaris or civilian presence in Zirax controlled zones & vice versa. Enough talk about the universe for now. How does the game start? That already depends on if you play in singleplayer or chose to start on a multiplayer server already. There's a few scenarios with predetermined story arcs and objectives you can choose from - of course there's more to come! Server owners (there's dedicated server software) are able to choose scenarios too - or just stick with the "Default Multiplayer"-scenario (no real objectives here beside those the players choose for themselves, it is more or less the usual sandbox experience where the players create their own adventures). Most of the time you're able to choose a planet where you'd like to start from a set of about three possible starter planets - which are varying in difficulty. Different types of planets bring different kinds of hazards & possibilities with them. Starting on a snow/ice-type planet will force you to adapt to the freezing temperatures by taking portable heaters along and taking regular breaks from outside work. Even if a planet already is pretty cold you can be surprised by freezing weather which IS quite dangerous. Some planets have VERY UNHEALTHY acid rain while others sport deadly radiation, hurtful hailstorms, literally raining fire & meteorite showers. Many planets have no breathable atmosphere, so you have to prepare before visiting them (you can buy and produce your own oxygen bottles). And that's only the environmental hazards; some planets have rather "tame" wildlife like big cow-like creatures (I think those were called lizard mules), friendly dinosaur-types and such. But usually you get confronted with big spiders, hunting raptors or other enemies in no time. Harder planets have bigger, tougher and - yes - sometimes more scary monsters which will be on the prowl for you (yes, they respawn). Of course, the different factions (major factions are the aforementioned Legacy, Polaris and Zirax, but there's also the tribal Talon, the Trader & Pirates faction (which do not yet do very much) or the rather apathic civilians) also have installations on the planets, so you might try to be on good terms with as many as you can or else they might just annihilate your base (I usually keep the Zirax as enemies and try to be nice to everyone else). Usually it pays off to at least keep good relations with Polaris, as they often control trading stations & facilities which will allow you to repair your ships, buy ammunition or fuel (there's energy for the usual operation of equipment & there's "Pentaxid" which is used for warping & your crafts shield systems). What happens if you get attacked? The Zirax usually don't give you much time & are hostile initially. Most of the time they send a few drones (armed with miniguns or rocket launchers on the starter planets) or a troop transport with a few soldiers your way. This can all be managed with a few defensive turrets. But if you don't get them killed in time & they can't reach your bases core to destroy it (= disable the base), they might resort to a lame approach that does definitely need an update: they hack your base. Suddenly its theirs and your own turrets will fire at you. Yes, this will definitely get a revision in the future, but we're stuck with it right now. The Talon might cut the power to your base if they attack (idk how they would be able to do that, but I guess that's to give them a fighting chance, since they mostly resort to crossbows). On "harder" planets you will have to face bigger drones which are more sturdy and might carry more devastating weaponry. Some planets even have Zirax patrol craft (bigger smaller vessels, hehe I know that sounds weird) which can get rather troublesome for your bases. Some good flak and missile launchers always pays off. So I mentioned "small vessels"... I guess its time to talk about the ships, their design, the limitations and options for a while. The game differs between four 'groups' of "buildables": bases, hover vessels, small vessels and capital vessels. Bases are of course the place where most of your things get built, in which you farm your own crops and you'll most likely hoard your loot. You'll have (and need) a lot of equipment ranging from the constructors (which basically allow you to create all your more advanced equipment, building blocks, weapons and more) to food processors (eating raw food might prove to be unhealthy and fatal) or your defenses (various types of turrets, including but not limited to cannons, miniguns, lasers, rockets or flak) & cargo space of course. 'Hover vessels' are usually smaller craft that can hover up to a height of about three metres. They can use some weaponry small vessels can not use, so right now a good hover tank might be a suitable answer to an armed enemy base. Since your first hovers are usually rather cheap & basic, they make a good choice for scouting a planet (you can build a motorbike too, but the hover all in all will be 'smoother' experience). Why scout? Well, you want to find bases that are worth to get looted, but you also need raw materials to craft your gear. There's a few materials in the game right now: copper, iron, silicon (the aforementioned three are basic materials needed in pretty much any blueprint), promethium (this is what your power cells are made of), titanium (needed for sturdier metal constructions), sathium (needed for even sturdier metal blocks and some advanced machinery), neodymium (advanced computers, weapons & bigger thrusters usually need this), gold (can mostly be used to accumulate wealth, but are also used in some armor upgrades), erestrum & zascosium (the "high end tier"-type of ores; usually found in dangerous spaces but ultimately needed for strong capital vessels and their equipment). I've also encountered aluminium and platinum, which don't seem to do much; mined ice can be used to create drinking water. Back to the ships: small vessels are your usual figher craft, transporters or medical vehicles while capital vessels can be your mobile bases, destroyers, carriers and such. Tip: only engage enemy capital vessels or bases in a CV or they might make you stardust rather fast. While small vessels may have shields they lack some weaponry hovers and CVs have. Oh crap. I'm running out of space for this review. Guess this has to do then.