The Economy 2 update for Space Engineers overhauls the game’s economy with revamped NPC trade stations, new functional blocks like the services terminal for storage, repair, and salvage, improved ship designs, and enhanced trading features such as billboards and item searches. Additionally, it introduces new structural and decorative blocks, increases modding capabilities, and sets the stage for future updates including expanded NPC roles and gameplay improvements.
The Economy 2 update for Space Engineers 1 brings a complete overhaul to the game’s economy system, including revamped NPC trade stations that now feature updated visuals and new functional blocks like the event controller. Ships sold at these stations have been redesigned to incorporate new blocks, and all contracts and their rewards have been rebalanced. Importantly, the economy system is now more moddable, allowing for greater customization by the community. Seventeen new trade stations have been added both on planetary surfaces and in space, featuring animated NPC characters that add life to the stations, though their current interactions are limited. The developers hinted that this is only the beginning of NPC integration, with future updates potentially expanding their roles.
A significant improvement is the introduction of billboards at stations that display rotating advertisements and provide GPS coordinates to other stations, making navigation and discovery much easier. Previously, players relied on data pads to find new stations, but now billboards, data pads in loot, and contracts can all lead players to more locations. The store blocks at stations now show ships, rovers, drones, and missiles for sale, with a restock timer visible to players. The restock time has been reduced to about 10 minutes, improving the economy’s usability. Additionally, an item search feature helps players find specific goods across stations, displaying prices and distances, which enhances trading efficiency.
The update introduces a new functional block called the services terminal, offering three key features: storage, repair, and salvage services. Players can store ships or grids at stations or bases and retrieve them later, with transit times dependent on grid size but can be expedited for a credit fee. The storage system supports precision placement for spawning ships exactly where desired. Repair services allow players to fix damaged blocks on owned grids for a fee, though it does not weld up projections or rebuild missing blocks. Salvage services enable players to dismantle owned ships for credits, factoring in faction reputation bonuses. These additions make managing ships and resources more convenient and integrated into the economy.
Alongside the services terminal, the update adds several new structural and decorative blocks. Notable among these are the structural platform blocks that are cost-effective and performance-friendly alternatives to traditional light armor blocks, and diagonal beams and frames for detailed building. The DLC pack includes aesthetic additions like spinning safe zones, decorative vavarium trees, customizable billboards, angled doors for new architectural designs, narrow viewport windows for armored station looks, and bulk cargo containers that double storage capacity. These blocks enhance both the functional and visual aspects of player creations, encouraging more creative and efficient base and ship designs.
Looking ahead, the developers announced a forthcoming 2.10 custodian update focusing on bug fixes, system improvements, and gameplay polishing, followed by a major update later in the year that will likely introduce armed NPCs and expand on the NPC work begun in this update, potentially as part of a Warfare 3 edition. The video concludes with a giveaway contest for the new Economy DLC pack and teases future content, including a special video celebrating the channel’s recent subscriber milestone and plans for a 100-day Space Engineers challenge at 100,000 subscribers. Overall, the Economy 2 update significantly enriches the gameplay experience, making the economy system more engaging, accessible, and integrated with new features and blocks.