Just noticed this.... (yes a bit late :) ) Very excited.. just hope it's done right!

That's how I noticed.. :) I just hope it retains the original feel... (and is turn-based still).. fingers crossed but it's fun to dream!

Missed its gog coming soon arrival. Thanks! :)

I hope it will be coming on February 26 to GOG :) Because it's coming to Steam

All the news sites say it's coming to GOG and Steam at the same time, but it will be an In-Dev title:
https://www.vg247.com/2016/02/18/master-of-orion-early-access-release-voice-cast/

Yet another in-dev version? -_- How long will it take to get the completed version?

It says at least 3 months in Steam page

So how is it? Watered down into mainstream tastelessness?

Edit: Someone must know!

I tell myself to have no hope and then I just might get a nice surprise.

<Off to stock up on ammo for my disruptors>

Pretty much. Watched a pretty depressing gameplay demonstration from PAX Australia 2015. Lots of talk about how this or that feature has been simplified or now has an automatic-mode for newer players. Hope you liked the Microsoft Paperclip assisstant showing up constantly because you're getting the MOO equivalent as an advisor. What absolutely kills it for me is the forced usage of wormhole spacelanes between systems, creating chokepoints and limiting how you can move your ships. The guy claims this is a good thing since now you can tell where attacks will come from when you're at war. What a load of shit.

Argh!
It is as I feared then. MOO For Dummies. We've been MOOFD'ed. :(

The calls for complication mystify me. I have played MOO2, and that game had simple rules and procedures for how things were done. It was one of the reasons why I liked the game in the first place.

Options and efficiency. Complexity done right can give you many more viable options to play the game and making your empire more efficient, thus squeezing out more "production" than your opponents is a whole game in itself.

Oh and the call for complexity shouldn't be confused with making games unnecessarily more play unfriendly. It's a bit hard to explain better.

Edit: For example look at Space Empires IV here on GOG. That's more complex than MOO so it gives you many more options on how to be successful. You should try it if you're used to playing MOO. Going from MOO to SE IV is like going from Normal to Advanced. :)

I enjoyed the VA reveal with the exception of how the Mrrshan empress was portrayed. My perception of them has always been as a Kilrathi style nation of feudal warlords, not coy. I wonder if that was a producer choice or an actress choice, but I would have preferred some consistency and I'm sure the lady doing the voice is capable of fiercer dialogue.