Battle Systems Announces Core Space: Evolution

Core Space: Evolution introduces an overhauled rule set, an expanded Rogue Purge faction with their own agenda, and branching narrative campaigns; whilst integrating the extensive existing terrain range and miniatures.

Redditch, UK - May 2026 - Battle Systems, the UK-based publisher behind Core Space and Maladum, has announced Core Space: Evolution, the second edition of its flagship sci-fi dungeon-crawler. The campaign launches on Gamefound, bringing together a decade of player feedback, modern game design thinking, and compatibility with the existing Core Space range.

“Sci-fi gaming has always been my passion, so much so that I’ve built a whole company just to spend my time making the game I always wanted to play. Core Space has been a huge success, to the point where we’re still reprinting it a decade later. Fans who’ve been following us will know we’ve had a secret project (Project Penguin) on the go for a while now, and I’m so pleased that we can finally reveal it!”
Said Colin Young, Founder and Designer at Battle Systems.

Core Space: Evolution retains the format that defined the original. Immersive 3D terrain, narrative campaigns, customizable crews with progression, an extensive cast of NPCs, while streamlining the rule set and adding depth to player decisions. The changes were developed from accumulated feedback and informed by the branching narrative design introduced in Maladum.

The Rogue Purge return in Evolution as a more fully realised faction, operating with their own agenda rather than functioning as a straightforward opposing force. Their expanded mechanics create a more reactive battlefield, where enemy intent and player objectives can pull in different directions.

Battle Systems has designed Evolution to work with what players already own. All existing Core Space and First Born miniatures remain fully playable, and Battle Systems’ full terrain range (past and present) can be used, exactly as it could in the original. To expand the range, the Evolution starter set introduces new terrain representing cyberpunk style streets. For players who want to replay the original stories with the new mechanics, updates to the most popular missions are planned for free online distribution post-launch.

Every Gamefound pledge includes a free upgrade pack containing revised character boards and event cards for existing collections. Stock of the first edition game and expansions is still available, while supplies last, through the Battle Systems website and stockists. 3D-printable STL versions of the miniatures remain available as an alternative for out-of-print items.

“The quality of life changes that I’ve seen, even in the early stages of development, have really upped the gameplay for me. Being a fan of the original, I still feel very much in the world of Core Space but the changes have really made a huge difference to my decisions and tactics. I can’t wait to play again.”
Said Ben Leach, Battle Systems Team Member, Early Play Tester and Original Core Space Kickstarter Backer

Readers that want to learn more about Core Space: Evolution can do so over at Battle Systems website where the full details of the announcement are held on their blog page.

And if you want to follow the campaign over on Gamefound you can do so here.