I am not a fan of the space combat, but barring that this is a fantastic game that I discovered very late on in my adulthood. The sense of adventure and exploration is unmatched IMHO.
Splattercatgaming: Starsector Is the King of Sci Fi Open Galaxy RPGs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvrkZxyayO8
I loved the melee mode in the original Star Control for the combat, and I love Star Control 2 for the exploration and the story.
I typically enjoy using all of the mushroom guys, the spathi, the one really advanced race that's not the ur quan, the ur quan and the pkunk? But even those, most of them yeah just aren't very good.