The minds behind Star Control II are making a sequel, and the Origins beta is incoming

There has been a surprising amount of Star Control news lately and it's good news, at that.

If you missed it, the original creators of Star Control II -- Fred Ford and Paul Reiche III, whose studio Toys for Bob has understandably kept busy with the Skylanders franchise in recent years -- have drawn up plans and gotten approval for a "direct sequel" to the 1992 sci-fi game. This new project, Ghosts of the Precursors, will be a "passion project" developed on their "own time." Here's where they're at:

"For four years, people asked me why we weren't going to touch the Star Control 2 story," Stardock CEO Brad Wardell wrote following the Ghosts of the Precursors news going public. "Now you know."

In the mean time, there's Stardock's own Star Control: Origins. The space-adventure game is slated for 2018, with a "Super-Melee" closed beta arriving next month for folks who pre-order. Here, you'll be able to toy around with the Ship Crafter and compete against the AI or others in unranked multiplayer.

There's also a bundle with Origins and the original three Star Control games. That has popped up on GOG.com, Steam, and Stardock, and the old games are available separately if you prefer.

Star Control: Origins Pre-Orders Begin Today [Star Control]