Why space games still can't convey the real scale of the Universe?

"The Universe is big. You just won't believe how vastly, hugely, mind-bogglingly big it is." These words from Douglas Adams' The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy perfectly describe the main problem of all space games. How can you convey the feeling of the infinite cosmos when even our Milky Way galaxy spans 100,000 light-years and contains hundreds of billions of stars?

A scale that's hard to imagine

As Space.com reports, astrophysicist Jeffrey Bennett, author of "The Scale of the Universe," illustrates the problem clearly. If the Solar System were scaled down by a factor of 10 billion, the Sun would become the size of a large grapefruit, Earth would be smaller than a ballpoint pen dot, and the distance to it would be about 15 meters. The Moon would be just 4 centimeters away. To reach the nearest stars, one would have to travel a distance comparable to the width of the United States.

This is precisely why developers are forced to find compromises. Fully realistic modeling of even a small part of the galaxy would instantly overwhelm any hardware.

How games solve the scale problem

Developers use several basic techniques:

• Levels of detail (LOD) — distant objects are simplified or replaced with simpler models
• Procedural generation — planets, systems, and entire sectors are created algorithmically "on the fly"
• Space compression — hyperspace jumps, warp drives, teleportation, and time acceleration

A prime example is the X series from the German studio Egosoft. Studio founder Bernd Lehahn explains that the main challenge is finding a balance between the feeling of vast space and engaging gameplay. On one hand, space should feel very large, otherwise players will feel cheated, but on the other, they don't want to force players to spend hours on empty flights.

In X4: Foundations, multi-tiered engines, jump gates, teleportation, and time acceleration are used. Additionally, during long flights, players are given minor tasks to avoid a feeling of emptiness.

Elite Dangerous approach

Frontier Developments went even further. Elite Dangerous features a 1:1 scale model of the Milky Way — approximately 400 billion star systems. The Stellar Forge technology, which relies on real astronomical data, is used to generate them.

Executive producer Gauthier Verquerre acknowledges that this is a huge challenge, noting that they must simultaneously show both the vast scale of space and the personal scale when the player is on the surface of a planet or inside a space station.

Why it's so difficult

Even with modern technology, fully conveying the feeling of cosmic infinity is practically impossible. Too much space — and the player will get bored. Too little — and the sense of the Universe's grandeur will be lost.

Developers continue to seek the perfect balance, understanding that space is not only about scale but also about the sense of wonder and exploration.

In brief

Space games face a fundamental problem: the Universe is incredibly vast, and technology still doesn't allow conveying its real scale without compromises. Developers use procedural generation, levels of detail, hyperjumps, and time acceleration to preserve the feeling of vast space while keeping the game engaging. The X series and Elite Dangerous are prime examples of different approaches to this eternal problem. Fully realistic space in games remains an unattainable dream for now.