Empire of the Ants will be released on November 7, 2024, on Steam. In this strategy game, you control the fate of an ant colony in large battles.
What kind of game is it? Empire of the Ants is a real-time strategy game for PC and consoles. In it, you command an army of ants of different classes and fight in large battles against other small forest dwellers to expand your empire.
Empire of the Ants will be available on November 7, 2024, on the following platforms:
- PC: Steam, GOG.com, and Epic Games Store
- Consoles: PS5 and Xbox Series X|S
The launch trailer showcases the game in its best light:
What does the trailer show? Empire of the Ants runs on Unreal Engine 5 and visually impresses accordingly. Detailed animations bring the various forest dwellers to life, which include not only ants but also animals like snails, various insects, and more.
Solo Campaign and Multiplayer Battles
What does the game offer? The centerpiece of Empire of the Ants is the solo campaign: According to the developers, it lasts around 20 hours on Steam and is based on the novel of the same name by French author Bernard Werber.
During the campaign, you will engage in large battles, conquer enemy territory, and thereby expand your empire. Alternatively, you can befriend other species. They will then aid you in battle, functioning as a sort of mobile support. For example, you might fly into battle on the backs of large insects.
In addition to the campaign, there is a multiplayer mode. There, you face off in battles against other players. If the ranked mode feels too stressful, you can also play against friends or the AI in a private lobby.
“The game has the potential to stand out”
How is the game being received so far? Buyers of the digital deluxe edition get 3 days of early access to the game. Therefore, the first reviews are already available on Steam, even though there are only 70 of them (as of November 6, 14:23).
The reviews so far are 77% positive. The graphics and the exciting concept are particularly praised. However, opinions on the gameplay are divided, as a look at the reviews shows:
- Raffneck(GER) writes on Steam: “A beautiful and unhurried game that is almost meditative. It has a fresh and great setting where you experience adventures as an ant. As far as I can tell, it’s ‘bug-free’… insane wordplay^^”
- Trippy Crawl expected an RTS with more depth. His conclusion on Steam: “Pricing a glorified tech demo about ants at €40 is ridiculous. If it had been €20, I would have been less critical, but you get a lot more depth in a 10-year-old RTS game for €20 than in this game. This game just looks pretty.”
- Steam user Commander is excited about the game but also criticizes somewhat repetitive gameplay. He writes on Steam: “I like something different for a change. This game really has the potential to stand out. There are many changes that can be made and areas to explore to make the game more attractive. The game runs well and without issues. My only problem is that the game becomes a bit repetitive if you play for an extended time.”
Other players have had less luck with the game’s performance. To get a better impression of the game, you might want to wait for the official release. In the following days, there should also be more reviews on the game that you can refer to.
MeinMMO editor Benedict Grothaus had already the chance to try Empire of Ants at gamescom 2024 – initially somewhat reluctantly, but later with joy. You can read his detailed first impression of the game here: I love strategy games on PC, but an RTS with a controller is my secret tip from gamescom 2024
