Sins of a Solar Empire was a big sleeper hit for developer Ironclad Games and publisher Stardock back in 2008. Recently a major new patch for the game and its two micro-expansions was released. But it sounds like Ironclad and Stardock are prepping up plans for a major follow-up for the space strategy game.

In the just released annual Stardock customer report, company CEO Brad Wardell states, "We will also be making some important announcements regarding Sins of a Solar Empire in 2011." That's about as close as he would come to admitting a sequel is in the works. The report also states that Stardock's gaming/entertainment division "anticipates making 3 big announcements in 2011 concerning its future plans for the PC."

The annual report also goes into some detail over the issues surrounding the launch in 2010 of Stardock's fantasy turn-based strategy game Elemental War of Magic. As we have reported before, Stardock has hired new team members and is developing an all new stand alone game, Elemental Fallen Enchantress, which Wardell states in the report shares little from the original game apart from some art assets. Wardell also states that Stardock is still looking to hire a "seasoned lead developer" for Stardock's game studio.

Finally there's a small update on the long-in-development free-to-play MMO Society which was first announced by Stardock several years ago. In the customer report, Wardell states, "The project has not had full funding yet and the company is considering creating a new business unit dedicated to Society to allow for more partners on this ambitious project."

[Via email press release]