AI War 2

[KevinC]

Transformer noises

[kerzain]

Maybe this game will finally teach me how to properly play the first one.

[vyshka]

For me the problem with the first one was that there seemed to be so much there to learn initially with the super long tutorial that I never got around to taking the time to figure it out.

[Grifman]

This reminds me of a problem I have with RTS games in general, especially any kind of fleet combat - a lack of formations. Ships are turned this way and that, and you also get that whole blobbing effec, which looks horriblet. It really makes combat unattractive for me. I wish you could create different formations with different bonuses and penalties to use. And it would be cool if formations broke down and became less effective the more ships you lost.

Anyway, not picking on AI War here, this is just a general issue I have with all of these games.

[MisterMourning]

I didn’t make it past the AI War 1 tutorial, and it was a game I’m sure I would have really loved. But honestly I tried it one night, gave up and said I’ll try it again later and proceeded to promptly forget it was a thing. If this ends up being easier to get into than the last maybe someone could let me know.

And I’m not opposed to harsh learning curves as long as what you’re supposed to be doing is at least somewhat intuitive.

[Bluddy]

As an Arcen forum lurker, it seems to me that this iteration will be easier to get into. Control happens at the fleet level, for example, which should simplify things.

[Andon]

This version is much easier to get into…my main problem is every time I load it up I lose five hours and the AI stomps my homeworld. Very fun and I keep going back for more.

[KevinC]

@vinraith

Yikes, I missed that (in fact, looking through my email it doesn’t look like I got it - though I did get the new Backerkit stuff). That’s definitely troubling.

Sorry, I meant to clarify this earlier. I was referring to what he said in the latest (at the time) game update/patch on Steam, not a Kickstarter update. This was the comment I was referring to:

After three long years, we’re finally at the point where we’re ready to start showing this off to the press in a non-preview fashion. This build does still have some bugs and some rough edges, but they’re minor in the main and we have a week to finish up that sort of thing along with achievements.

As a mostly one-man shop now (plus awesome volunteers who keep increasing in number) there’s only but so much lead time I can give, and I wind up feeling like I want every last everything to be perfect. As it stands we have about a week until 1.0, and I’m really pleased with how things feel. Seems like our growing list of players are, too, from the sound of things. So that’s good!

[vyshka]

An AAR of a game posted to the kickstarter by Chris:

AI War II

[KevinC]

Long update detailing about everything you could want to know about where both AI War 2 and Arcen Games is.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/arcengames/ai-war-ii-0/posts/2657182?ref=ksr_email_backer_project_update_registered_users

An overview of how the design has evolved:

The short history (of the full release notes) is that:

• Originally the sequel felt TOO different from AI War 2, as well as not all that fun in general.
• So we did something we called “The Pivot,” which took us back in the direction of the first game and made things feel more familiar.
• But then things felt TOO familiar, and a lot of the old-style problems from the first game started creeping back in.
• After a while, things got better and we went to Early Access… but it still was lackluster. People weren’t really engaging with the game as much as I would have expected, and I shared the feeling.
• After a LOT of time, I came up with the idea for a new Fleets system, which took a few months to initially implement and then another half year to polish to where it satisfied all the goals that many different people had for the sequel.

Beyond that, we also have a TON of new factions, which make the game play really differently if you turn those on. And the AI is smarter in general, too.

[vyshka]

Only singleplayer at the moment. MP planned to be done by q1 or q2 2020. Just a heads up for anyone interested in it for that.

[kerzain]

Release version is now live!

Steam Community :: AI War 2 :: Events

[SlyFrog]

Going through the tutorial for this, it feels very similar to AI War, and that is a compliment.

[robc04]

Is it the AI War for those who couldn’t get into the first AI War? I never got much past the tutorial - kinda got overwhelmed.

[Scotten]

Reviews on Steam say “Yes”.

I will likely buy this today, I’m a sucker for a small developer with a strong product.

[robc04]

I wonder why I didn’t get the coupon for AI war owners.

[vinraith]

I can send you mine, I was a Kickstarter backer so already have it. Ping me when you’re around on Steam.

[robc04]

Ok thanks!

[KevinC]

Interesting. Why is he giving coupons to people who own the first AI War? For a company that’s always on the edge of staying solvent, seems a dumb move to discount all the people most likely to buy it.

[vinraith]

I love Arcen dearly but they’ve never been what you’re call “great” at the business end of things. I think they’re hoping to convert wishlistings into sales in the short, rather than long, term. I hope it works out for them.