AI War Trailer 3

[D3adtrap]

For some reason, I suspect that this wont run on a laptop...

[x4ooo]

@D3adtrap Actually, it runs quite well on laptops -- even moderately old ones. A few people have run it on netbooks in the past, even, though I will say that I think _that_ experience is sub-par because they are too underpowered and the screens are way too small for this game.

[BoomWav]

Incredible trailer really. I'd like to point out that the music is actually pretty awesome and original. I've just finished the tutorial campaign. Took me 5hrs. Awesome. I can't wait to start a real campaign now.

Also keep in mind that the developper (see x4000 here) is still really supporting the game. That actually makes the game last WAY longer than it would have if it has been developped by another company.

[Guy7542]

This looks like my kind of game, I hate RTS with pretty graphics but crappy gameplay. I still play Starcraft since 1999....

I might give this a shot if people still play online

[x4ooo]

@Guy7542 It's on sale on Steam (with its first expansion) both for 50% off, if you want to take a look. There isn't a central online matchmaking service as this is co-op only and the games are long, but there are forums on the Arcen site where it is easy to find others to play with, as well as an IRC channel, Steam group, etc, where you can find people for quicker games. A very active community in our forums, and more free DLC comes out every month, with heavy input from players.

[ROCKONHEAVYMETAL]

@Guy7542 high five dude :D i luv Starcraft never gets old! rispek :D

[3000tomas]

look at 00.20 ! toooo much units buttons etc . bäkse ! ugly !

[x4ooo]

@3000tomas That's right when ships are emerging from a wormhole onto a heavily entrenched enemy defense. So you get a few seconds of chaos while those forces slug it out, and then if you've brought enough forces to breach the wormhole, you wind up with a force that is then unencumbered to move around the enemy planet in a more tactical manner.

[wasyhasy]

if you like this game check out EVE ONLINE

[Kaitokit100]

it's look realy scery

[prasad604]

not wat i expected

[patchhacker]

does anyone play this online?!

[x4ooo]

Sure thing. There is not a matchmaking service at this point mainly due to the length of games. Generally people coordinate through our Steam group, our "meeting grounds" forum on our site, or our irc channel (also on our site).

[GeorgeSoucy]

ok ty

[x4ooo]

@GeorgeSoucy np

[GeorgeSoucy]

well... how does this game work?

[x4ooo]

Check out some of the tutorial videos on this same channel, if you're interested in more videos. If you prefer text, the arcen games website has a ton of information in our online wiki, or you can download the demo and go through the in-game tutorials. Tons of info out there!

[3K8FLASH]

Wow i have never seen Such a game that sucks in the same way this does :O i subscribe and rate 1 :)

[AzC4liveweetje]

me to xD

[Raond11]

Just because the game suck ass so dosnt you haft to destroy x4ooo´s stuffs xD

[UnknownRex]

Just because you are not able to actually play a game that needs thinking and does not give instant gratification like WOW does not mean the game sucks.

AI War is imo the best RTS of the decade that is designed for coop and against an AI that actually acts like an AI, not the scripted boring AIs of bigger titles.

As for the graphics, they are more then adequate for such excelent gameplay (3D is overrated).

Granted, its not for everyone, only for thoose who like a challenge and to think.

[Gargantou]

I don't suppose you can setup huge AI vs AI battles in this?:D

[x4ooo]

Not a the moment, although we do use AI vs AI battles run at superspeed (x1800 speed) in order to gather our "strong vs" and "weak vs" ship performance data. The upcoming expansion also adds a neutral AI faction (the Zenith aliens), which will sometimes fight with you, sometimes with the enemy AIs, and will sometimes be more of a trader or miner or some other personality depending on which band of Zenith you run across. So that's SORT of like what you asked about, but not the exact thing. :)

[Gargantou]

@x4ooo If you ever implement the ability to setup AI vs AI battles, send me a PM, please?;)

I'm a big fan of watching and studying how AIs interact with eachother, especially in a game like this with very impressive AI!

[waltermh111]

Why is part of game described as tower defense?

Because it uses defensive turrets?

If so, seems redundant as thats standard RTS.

Looks incredibly nice.

I hope to remember it when i get windows, not that Im looking forward to that aside from all the gaming i am missing

Also, whats the use of flanking?

Do you get a bonus to damage for hitting the backside of an enemy?

I can sort of see the use of them splitting fire if the AI can show fear or if splash damage is part of some weapons

[x4ooo]

The tower defense aspect comes in based on how the AI does offensive raids against you. You are notified in advance of what is coming and when, as in TD games, and there is a countdown timer. That lets you prepare defense (fixed turrets and otherwise) during that preparation period. Other times the AI attacks you in a more organic fashion -- that is the Threat meter at the top of the screen -- but the main way most ships come in is very Tower-Defense-like. Glad you like the look of it!

[x4ooo]

As for flanking, there are no artificial gameplay bonuses in there for that -- no bonuses for hitting backsides or anything like that. Instead, the advantage is very much like what you would see organically in real battles; if you can engage fewer enemy troops at once with more of your troops being in firing range simultaneously, you can exert tremendous advantage. A lot of the tactical maneuvering is centered around that sort of idea, and is really something unique to the huge scale of AI War

[MrFox1231]

love this game. unique AI and great variables.

the only anoying thing in this game is that 1 game might take 1 day to finish which depends on how many planets you have and how inteligent the AI is.

[fuunguus]

Are the Unit icons rendered sprites? Will Nvidia stereoscopic drivers give me an enhanced feeling of 3d in this game? Also, if the unit icons are sprites, can the energy bars which seem like they are not rendered in the 3d world be turned off? If so, are there an hotkey for this?

[x4ooo]

The game is entirely sprite-based, there are no 3D objects in it at all. It uses techniques like Parallax scrolling and prerendered 3D planets to give the effect of some 3D depth in some cases, though. I don't know how that would work with a stereoscopic drivers; probably not overly well, though, because no items in the game have true Z-depth. It's very much a 2D game, even though it is rendered in Direct3D and has the associated performance improvements and zoom/scaling abilities, etc.

[x4ooo]

Also, the health bars can indeed be turned off, but that's information that you'd probably want to see in most cases. That's an option in the settings window, not a hotkey, though. Thanks for your interest in the game! You can give the demo a try to see how it does with your stereoscopic drivers if you want to try before you buy.

[fuunguus]

Perhaps I'll give that demo a try. Need to be sure. If it works with the drivers, and the sprites are actually rendered in true 3d, and not a 2d image on the screen like many strategy games do with various icons, I think the extra depth would add a lot to the game in terms of graphics!

[fuunguus]

Thanks for the info :)

[x4ooo]

If I'm not mistaken, those sorts of stereoscopic drivers rely on data from the Z Buffer to do their work -- I may be wrong, though. AI War doesn't use the Z Buffer, so the likelihood of it working is fairly low; but it depends on the drivers and what exactly they are doing, so hopefully it will do well enough to enhance the experience the way you want.

No problem for the info! :)

[fuunguus]

To my understanding the stereoscopic drives make the graphic card render 2 images, slightly besides each other, like 2 eyes. Don't know if this z buffer is going to be a problem, but I'll know soon ;)

[x4ooo]

Oh, that's true -- I'm thinking of polarizing 3D, I think. If it does that sort of thing, I guess there is a better chance of it working.

[fuunguus]

Nah, the drivers wouldn't even become active. But I'll check this game out anyway, looks interesting. :)

[x4ooo]

Ah well, that's not too surprising all things considered with the drivers, but it is good to know. Glad the game looks interesting anyway! :)

[i8pancakes2day]

what is the name of the song? i like it.

[x4ooo]

The music was composed specifically for this trailer, actually, and I don't recall that it has a name outside that. It's by the same composer and very similar in style to the music in the actual game, though. Glad you like it!

[azelmcfuzz23]

oh its one of these type of games...

[benythebot]

sins of a solar empire is better. though there is no real campain...

[chubbychasser78]

Saw this on steam. Pretty intense game.

[reincarnage256]

3:35 look like touhou

[reincarnage256]

lol look like "the day of sagitarius" from haruhi suzumiya

[xDrunkDevilx]

Yeah, some developers thought that graphics is the key so we almost forgot what's the difference between Beutiful game and a Good game. This one was a surprise, with 2d graphics it has so great gameplay!

[Bifour]

This is fucking Starcraft I in space, wtf?

[SFtheWolf]

This is more than just Starcraft in space!

I KNOW it's not 3D!

[martinikid]

i got fired for playing all day at work, but i don't regret it!

awesome!!

[balthazarm]

At first I was very sceptical with all the hype... then BAM! Wow this is epic.

[regnar1985]

Just got the game after hearing about it in PC gamer.

one word... WOW!

[tooclassyforme]

Bought it today... can't put it down! Hope the GF doesn't mind... LOL!

[alphacentfanguy]

Also, I've always dreamed of an MMO EXACTLY LIKE THIS! This is pretty damn close.

[alphacentfanguy]

Gonna buy this today! This is a WONDERFUL GAME! Simply WONDERFUL

[alphacentfanguy]

Bought reaction... "My god... Its full of stars..."

[Luerrer]

This looks really epic. I love Total Annihilation, Supreme Commander and Sins of a Solar Empire because of theri giant battles! And this seems to have EVEN BIGGER battles. Need to get some friends together and buy this game for playing coop.

[mistyluv8]

I don't play these games, but the musical score is WOW!!!

[themassai123]

I was reading your blog for about 3 months now and I will definitely buy the game when it comes to Steam ... love the idea behind it

[x4ooo]

Thanks for your support! We will be releasing on Steam within around 2 weeks, we have a tentative date set with them. In the meantime, feel free to join our Steam community!

[XgamerDerekX]

Awesome looking game, i would so get it, but i'd hate to pay for steam =/

[HGPMischiefMaker]

You can buy it DRM-free direct from the developer.

[x4ooo]

Beat me to it. :)

[x4ooo]

Steam is free to users, there's no cost to you. But if you're not a fan of Steam, we're already on sale through the Arcen website, Stardock's Impulse, and GamersGate. So you can pick the vendor you prefer!