AI War: Fleet Command 7.0 and Vengeance of the Machine

[Professor Paul1290]

http://arcengames.com/w/index.php/aiwar-vengeance
AI War: Fleet Command 7.0 and the Vengeance of the Machine expansion were released yesterday.

AI War 7.0 patch notes:
http://www.arcengames.com/mediawiki/...ost-6.000_Beta
(Warning: long)

There aren't as many up-front new features in this release, though this release seems to focus more on under-the-hood fixes and improvements to the AI itself as well as improvements to how things like cross-planet attacks, exo-waves, and Champion response are handled. There's the usual re-balancing and tweaking as well.
Interestingly, the ability to "untangle" maps has also been added.

Vengeance of the Machine expansion features list:
http://arcengames.com/mediawiki/inde...of_the_Machine

A quick expansion summary:
-8 new AI types, 2 new map styles, 6 new bonus ship types, 5 new core guard posts, 7 new AI Guardian types, 2 new optional AI plots.
-Dual Type AI:
AIs can be given a secondary type in addition to their primary type, allowing different AI types to be mixed together.
-Planetary Subcommanders:
Some planets are given a "subcommander" command station that has access to unique guard posts and will set them up differently from the main AI.
-Dire Guardians:
These are more powerful AI guardians that are manufactured in "Dire Guardian Lairs". They are manufactured when a planet with a lair is put on alert and are more difficult to take down than normal guardians.
-Core Turret Controllers:
Allow you to manufacture Mark V turrets when captured.
-Showdown Devices:
A new alternate win method/condition in addition to the normal win and the "Fallen Spire" campaign. This win method/condition is somewhat more defensive in nature.



I'm not sure if the overall difficulty has jumped, but I kind of lost my first two games with the new release in under an hour, which is rather painful considering that I usually do fairly well against level 7 AIs.
Either that or maybe I got unlucky and got some nasty dual-types.

On a related note, there seem to be some new deep-robo-voice AI taunts.

Also, I'm finding that Plasma Siege Starships are pure evil when used by the AI early on, especially if you rely on forcefields a lot to protect your precious stuff! Bomber them immediately!
Seriously, I lost my first game with the new release in under 50 minutes to these things. (GAH! DAMMIT!)

[AshEnke]

Maybe off-thread, but I've heard some really good things about this game for quite some time and I'm curious and would like to try.
I was sue I bought one someday (in a bundle or something) but I can't find it. So where should I start ? Are the expansions mandatory ? Are some of them stand alone ? Is the game that good ?

[Professor Paul1290]

Maybe off-thread, but I've heard some really good things about this game for quite some time and I'm curious and would like to try.
I was sue I bought one someday (in a bundle or something) but I can't find it. So where should I start ? Are the expansions mandatory ? Are some of them stand alone ? Is the game that good ?

1. If you mean to look for where you might have bought it, the only bundle I know of that had it was the recent Indie Royal Arclight bundle. If you mean to try the game, there's a demo on the developer's website.

2. No, the expansions aren't mandatory, but they're really cheap (especially right now since the game + expansions is on sale on Steam at the moment) and add a lot to the game.

3. No, none of them are stand alone, you need the base game (AI War: Fleet Command) to play them.

4. Well I like it a lot and it's one of my favorite strategy games, but I don't know what your taste in games is. Again, there's a demo available if you want to try it.

[AshEnke]

Oh right, didn't see the promo.
Bought the whole collection, thank you !

[sinister agent]

AI War is a hefty game and very daunting, and it is pretty complex, but once you get your head around some core concepts and learn to scan through the data you're given, it's surprisingly intuitive.

The interface isn't the best, though. It's not particularly bad, and there are lots of shortcuts and timesaving devices, but it does take some time to become familiar.

One of the best things about it is how many options it gives you to customise the game and behaviour of the AIs. If there's something about it you don't like, you can probably change an option to make it more to your liking.