If you’ve had your eye on the Stellaris Season 8 bundle but were put off because you already owned some of the content included, your mind might be about to change. Paradox Interactive, makers of Europa Universalis and Crusader Kings, has just altered its space 4X strategy game’s 2024 collection to make it a better purchase for players who already have at least one of the included items, while letting those who bought them separately claim the free bonus for owning them all.
Stellaris has had a fairly noteworthy 2024 – more than eight years after launch, one of the best 4X games on Steam is still riding high. In this calendar year, we’ve seen the onset of The Machine Age, offering cybernetic augmentations and new ethical dilemmas regarding how they impact your people. Vast Cosmic Storms have ramped up the unpredictability of exploring the space game, and most recently we’ve gained the ability to construct a Grand Archive, a colossal megastructure where you can house and breed all the fauna you find across the galaxy.
Players who committed to buying the full run of DLC early through the Season 8 pass got the full bundle at a 20% discount, along with a special bonus portrait for your faction, Rick the Cube. If you decided to pick up one or two of the add-ons separately, however, you couldn’t take advantage of the bundle without paying again for the content you already owned. Now, that’s changed, as the pack has been redefined as a ‘dynamic bundle.’
Essentially, that means if you already own some of the content within, the bundle will be appropriately discounted to account for that. You’ll therefore be able to take advantage of the bundle discount on the remaining expansions. Additionally, if you already own all three of them along with the base game, you can add the bundle to your account to claim Rick the Cube as your own.
Note that if you’re eager to pick these items up in particular, you’ll want to do it before the year comes to a close, as Paradox is planning to retire the Season 8 bundle in 2025 and move its contents into the ‘ultimate’ bundle to make room for Season 9. There’s currently no exact date beyond “early in the new year,” although the developer says it will keep players updated with a full announcement closer to the time.
You can find the Stellaris Season 8 expansion pass on Steam. If you’re someone who likes to take advantage of similar bundle deals, it’s worth noting that Valve recently changed its Steam rules for season passes to ensure greater clarity on release schedules and how the expected content in a DLC bundle is presented to users.
For even more ways to change your next adventure through the stars, the best Stellaris mods are worth a look. We’ve also rounded up the best grand strategy games on PC to keep you plenty busy.
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