Paradox Interactive has shared the first developer diary for Stellaris, their upcoming science fiction-themed grand strategy game.

Featured above, the “Aiming for the Stars” video has a multitude of the key staff working on the game sounding off with their inspirations for creating the upcoming sci-fi grand strategy title.

They talk up the historical settings in various games they’ve previously released, like Europa Universalis IV. They also discuss the challenges in making a game in an entirely new genre, and elaborate on the new methods used to evoke all-new experiences for players.

Stellaris typically pans out with maps involving randomly created opponents and procedurally generated star systems, so no two games will play out the same way. You’ll be able to guide a species of your design to power and glory.

For now, you can waste some time by playing the clicker-browser-game Project Augustus: A Stellaris Adventure, where you can experience the exhilarating feeling of flying through near-endless voids of space, with the eventual goal of reaching your destination. If you keep playing, you can unlock bonuses for your account to use in the full game, like the Platypus regalia for your future space empire. Incredible.

Stellaris is launching for PC, Mac, and Linux on May 9th of this year.