Egosoft has quietly announced X3: Terran Conflict, a standalone expansion for its mega-confusing by extremely rewarding space trading sim X3.

The news arrived via a post on Egosoft’s official forums. Here’s a snippet:

X³: Terran Conflict is a brand new, stand-alone game set in the universe of X³. It is the culmination of the X trilogy, with a grand finale that takes us all the way back to Earth’s own solar system. Gamers can take on the roles of different characters in the X universe, or of a Terran military pilot, and experience a multitude of stories in the largest X universe ever featured – for X³: Terran Conflict will offer more missions than any other X game before.

Meanwhile, X³: Terran Conflict will pose questions such as: How has Earth changed in all these years? And how will relations between Earth and its counterparts in the X universe develop?

Egosoft has a page up on its site for the expansion, but it’s a little barren. From the sounds of things it may simply be a new campaign with a few gameplay tweaks. Though I’m hoping it’s not, because I adore X3. Yes, it had a learning curve steeper than Mt. Everest, but once you mounted that summit, the view was glorious. Erectile even.

What I’d like to see? An expansion that combines all the useful mods the community has created over the years into one, beautiful, sanctioned product.

NEWS: X³: Terran Conflict announced [Egosoft, via Blue's News]