AI War II is a grand strategy/RTS hybrid against an overwhelming, inhuman enemy who has conquered the galaxy. The enemy has made only a single error: underestimating you. You must steal as much technology as you can, and take enough territory to fortify your bases and launch your attacks.
What Makes the AI Awesome? The AI has a distinct advantage over you in a grand strategic sense, but when it comes to combat and tactics it plays by the same rules as you... and it's very devious. The core conceit of the AI is that most of the time it's not aware of you. But pieces of its empire become aware of you at various times, and you have to then deal with those pieces in battles ranging from tiny skirmishes to thousands-strong epic encounters.
Very Positive
1,533 Steam reviews
| LANGUAGE | AUDIO | SUBTITLES | INTERFACE |
|---|---|---|---|
| English | Y | — | Y |
Actually good AI.
Paradox/CIV players that are used to building fortresses for AI to beat their head against - this doesn't work.
Expand too quickly - and the game will be over just as quickly.
Winning is very satisfying though
More bugs than Florida. Spent 7 hours playing for it to decide it will no longer register my ships to click on any more. Had to start over from the beginning. The AI cheats. All of a sudden they go from having 100 to 200 units to 5000 within a 90 sec period. Just a bad game.
Текст.
Yeah just fight the Galatic level AI with your rag tag band of buddies, what could go wrong ?
Its like the friendliest RTS you've ever played, everything is explained in detail, there's a million different options, its such an exciting game to get into.
I wish I liked this game But i Still after all these years cant even bother to launch it :(
The apex of multi-threaded, well designed AI combined with a mechanically unique asymmetric guerilla-war RTS. You will not find an experience like AI War 2 anywhere else. Don't worry about having Starcraft-tournament level clicks-per-minute, this RTS focuses more on strategy and tactics and is pausable (having your fleets in the right places at the right times, doing the right things).
A word of warning, it takes quite a bit of time to get competent. AI War is brutally hard, and it will punish you hard for small mistakes. The reward of this game requires a substantial time investment, and during that time, expect to get your ass kicked. However, if you want a more chill experience, difficulty is highly customize-able, from "if you win this it is a bug" difficulty to "don't hurt me please"/sandbox difficulty.
I cannot stress enough how impressive the multi-threaded AI is in this game, it feels like a human opponent. It probes weaknesses, it withdraws from losing battles and uses those forces to create death-balls to kill you later, it hides strike forces from your recon, it ambushes you when you attack a "weak point", it attacks your weak points, etc. Every enemy fleet runs on a different thread in a different CPU core, making absolutely massive battles more performant than would seem possible, although it will choke a bit if the battles get big enough. You can see some lag in response as overloaded threads call back to the main UI at times when you have 20,000 or more ships engaged (on my system).
Another impressive aspect is the sheer amount of customization available to you in starting games, from starmap generation, to each AI fleet's behavior, to starting forces, there are hundreds of dials to tweak.
This is a must-buy title for anybody who has the time to invest and who loves strategy.
Absolute masterpiece. My only problem with the game is that I took too long to give it a try and that I just can't ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ put it down. 11/10 will spend a half hour paused pondering my next move again. and again. and again. and again.
Oh and I've barely scratched the surface. There is so much ♥♥♥♥ and all of it terrifies me
Good replay value and wide range of difficulties.
They took what was great about the last one and really improved upon it. I'm absolutely loving it. It can become a real time-sink. (In a positive way, as in you lose track of time.)
Word to the wise, don't get overconfident with how you do starting out. When you think your force is large enough, it probably isn't.
AI War 2 is a deeply systems-driven strategy game that deliberately challenges conventional real-time strategy expectations by placing the player in a position of overwhelming inferiority. Developed and published by Arcen Games, it is built around the idea that humanity has already lost the war, and what remains is a long, careful struggle for survival against a vastly superior artificial intelligence that controls nearly the entire galaxy. This core premise defines every mechanic, pacing decision, and strategic tension throughout the experience, resulting in a game that values planning, restraint, and adaptability far more than rapid expansion or brute force.
From the opening moments, AI War 2 establishes itself as a game about thinking several steps ahead rather than reacting in the moment. You begin with control over a single world and limited forces, surrounded by AI-controlled planets bristling with defenses, fleets, and surveillance systems. Expansion is possible, but never without consequence, as every aggressive action raises the AI’s awareness and response level. This creates a constant push-and-pull between the need to grow stronger and the risk of provoking catastrophic retaliation. Unlike traditional RTS games where expansion is always beneficial, here it is often wiser to strike selectively, capture only what is necessary, and leave large portions of the galaxy untouched until the right moment.
Strategic depth is the game’s defining strength. The galaxy map functions as both a battlefield and a puzzle, with each planet offering different resources, threats, and strategic value. Players must decide which technologies to unlock, which ship types to emphasize, and how to deploy specialized units like hackers, saboteurs, and mobile defenses. Every campaign feels different due to randomized galaxy layouts, variable AI personalities, and optional factions that introduce new pressures and opportunities. This ensures that no single strategy dominates, and success comes from understanding how systems interact rather than memorizing optimal build orders.
Combat in AI War 2 unfolds in real time but is framed within a broader strategic context that discourages constant micromanagement. Large-scale fleet engagements can involve thousands of units, yet the game encourages players to think in terms of positioning, timing, and logistics rather than precise control of individual ships. Defensive structures, chokepoints, and layered responses matter as much as raw firepower. When battles are won, they feel earned not because of fast reflexes, but because of careful preparation and intelligent decision-making long before shots were fired.
The artificial intelligence itself is one of the game’s most compelling features. Rather than acting as a predictable opponent, the AI adapts to player behavior, reinforcing weak points, launching counterattacks, and escalating its responses as it perceives greater threats. This creates an ongoing sense of pressure, where the galaxy never truly feels safe. Even periods of relative calm carry an undercurrent of tension, as the AI continues to build strength and probe for opportunities. The result is a persistent feeling that time is always against you, reinforcing the game’s theme of fighting a desperate, asymmetric war.
The learning curve, however, is undeniably steep. AI War 2 throws a dense web of mechanics, statistics, and systems at the player, often with minimal hand-holding. The interface prioritizes information density over elegance, and new players may initially feel overwhelmed by the sheer volume of options and terminology. Tutorials and tooltips help, but mastery requires patience and a willingness to experiment, fail, and learn from mistakes. This complexity is a barrier to entry, but it is also what gives the game its longevity and depth for players willing to invest the time.
Visually, the game is functional rather than flashy. Ship designs, effects, and planetary views are clear and readable, but not cinematic. This minimalist presentation serves the gameplay well, ensuring that critical information is always visible even during massive engagements. Sound design is similarly restrained, focusing on feedback and atmosphere rather than dramatic flair. While the presentation may feel austere compared to big-budget strategy titles, it reinforces the game’s identity as a thinker’s strategy experience rather than a spectacle-driven one.
Narrative in AI War 2 is largely emergent, arising from the player’s actions and the AI’s reactions rather than scripted events. There is no traditional story arc with characters and cutscenes; instead, the narrative is the campaign itself. Every hard-fought victory, narrow escape, or devastating loss becomes part of a personal war story shaped by choices and consequences. This approach makes each playthrough feel personal and memorable, especially when long-term plans finally come together after hours of careful maneuvering.
Ultimately, AI War 2 is a strategy game that rewards patience, foresight, and intellectual engagement more than almost any of its peers. It is not designed to appeal to casual players or those seeking immediate gratification, but for strategy enthusiasts who enjoy grappling with complex systems and outthinking a relentless opponent, it offers an exceptionally rich experience. Its uncompromising design, combined with its unique premise and immense replayability, makes it one of the most distinctive and mentally demanding strategy games available on PC, standing as a testament to what focused indie development can achieve when depth is placed above convention.
Rating: 8/10
The tutorial teaches you how to use the mouse to move units, use the build menu to make stations, then it gives up and tells you to figure out the rest by looking up fan tutorials on Youtube.
I start a game and the Beginner Tips tell me I should use Science to upgrade my home world. The tips do not tell me how to do this. Nothing in the Science tab does this. So I go to Youtube. I spend a while watching a video that turns out to be useless because it is years out of date, explaining an old version of the game. I find a more recent tutorial by a guy who eventually says he doesn't understand what the game's systems mean. I find a third tutorial, start going through it, and 30 minutes later I still do not know how to upgrade my starting planet with my starting resources.
Literally unplayable, 0/10.
I almost never write games reviews on steam. And frankly at this moment I am not in mood to write long detailed review - I want to go back to the game and beat those godd**ed level 8 AIs. =)
But I will say this - I have been playing deep strategy games for 3 decades. This (and deep RPGs) are my two favorite genres in computer games. So over the years I've played probably 70-80%+ of games on most "Best strategy games of all times" lists.
And this game is certainly in the top 5 or even in the top 3 strategy games I've EVER played, out of hundreds. It's really amazing. And it is also absolutely original - there is really nothing like that out there.
And I think it is also criminally relatively unknown, likely because it's just too complex and strange for most major reviewers, and also obviously it doesn't have much eye candy. (although its artwork if totally fine for this type of game)
Bottom line - if you love deep, deliciously complex strategy games with very strong (but infinitely customizable for any difficulty level or preference) AI opponents - do yourself a huge favor, stop wasting time by continuing reading reviews, and get this game. It's *really* that good. :)
Fair warning - it does have learning curve. It's not a large curve, and it is certainly not a vertical wall, but it is there. Although let's be real - all interesting and deep strategy games have some learning curve, pretty much by definition - they would not be "deep" otherwise. :) Fortunately there are excellent tutorials both within game, as well as many video tutorials on youtube. (in particular, those made by "Strategy Sage" really helped me to upgrade my mastery of this game to beat higher levels of AI)
Approval 50%
На фоне первой части как по мне слабее, меньше тактики и привязанности к флоту, меньше ощущения потерь, интерфейс для меня в разы менее удобный.
Но свои плюсы безусловно имеет, в виде более "живого" геймплея, меньшей обеспокоенности потерями флота, ввиду невозможности уничтожения големов и транспортников, меньше сейвскама. Система топлива дала новые сложности, что интересно выглядит.
В общем, игра в чём то схожа, но ощущается совершенно иной, что наверное плюс. Модов много, включаются прямо в игре.
It's a NO! tldr; Do you enjoy reading through walls of text before you can play? If not, move on!
Because, you won't enjoy this game, unless you like to spend a lot of time, to go through it's tutorials, read through it's superlong manual, spend time studying superlong and unintuitive tooltips which are rather like a mess than an organized structure, and have hours over hours, before you finally figure some of the game and understand what you're supposed to do.
I had to go through the tutorials twice, because the game leaves you in a state where you start playing and you're immediately are like "Ok, but... what am I supposed to do now?". It doesn't help you in any way. You would think it's otherwise, because of the few but kinda lengthy tutorials, and because of the beginner tips... that is, if you find them once you go through all the sidebar tabs and read through... long text once again. Unfortunately, all the text is more verbose than necessary and yet is still not to the point or very helpful, nor truely guiding you through like a well designed guide would.
15 hours in the game, and I still don't feel like I've kinda played it... and if you think that is an exception, just have a look at the achievements, where 97% of the 241 plenty achievements are just under 10% of the players.
This is a game of high complexity, with a very unintuitive UI design and unit info displays, which require lots of reading and a high curve of learning, even lots of patience. Yet, there doesn't seem to be much of depth in it, as others have pointed out too. Plus, the game makes it very hard to understand, how different units or technologies affect your gameplay or your fleets. After all, it seems, you just gonna take the technology for which you have the most units and you may throw any strategy you expected to figure out, away. Funny, even one guide in the game tells you if in doubt just to do like that.
I had already nearly 5 hours with only trying to go twice through the tutorials and still be at a loss how to proceed in an actual game. Or I would had definetely refunded it. Don't get what the developers hype is about... the marketing lets you expect something completely different.
good game but quite complicated.
Tutorial is ok but you are going to learn by loosing.
if you are up to this, you will have fun.
I change this if u fix multiplayer
nahhh.... play Homeworld.
很好玩的游戏
Way too buggy only played 9 hours and can't play for 15 minutes without a bug crashing the game?
Quite a complicated game, but fun to play if you like Galactic Civilization–style games.
very ingenious game and interesting its the only 4x and strategic game that handles late game perfectly, no steamrolling at all, you have to fight to the bitter end, you'll rarely have parts in the game were you'll just out produce and outmatch the enemy, love it
I wish I could do neutral instead of positive.
Learning curve was too much for me, and the idea of an RTS without micro isn't that interesting to me.
With that being said, the game is extremely fun when you do get it.
Last time i played this game was years ago... it was already very good. And what do i see ? The dev are still updating it ! It's time to start playing again.
one of the main reason's I've played this game so much is the mods and the randomness of the game, you never know what might happen next. and it keeps one on their toes when they're up against a high level AI (difficulty 7+ for me) and the amount of potential factions with all the DLC's can really add a little spice to the game. one of my top 10 favorite games of all time
Great game. I got worried about my threat level getting to high, so I smashed my computer to drop it by 5 levels.
Brilliant game.
Completed the Rite of Passage (the game's "filter" difficulty) and a couple custom games. It's better than most 4X games, that's for sure.
I don't really buy into the whole "the AI is way smarter than you bro, it's really devious" type of message Arcen Games tries really hard to push, but it [i]is[/i] a more competent AI than most. The truth is that - much like most strategies to make AI harder - the AI is just given way more to work with.
That being said, the game is lovingly crafted with some tough choices made by the devs to make their game better (perfect example is the controversial fleet system, where ships aren't individually built, instead being attached to a "fleet ship"). The music and setting really are enjoyable as well.
But it just feels like I'm doing work for the sake of work. My improvements don't [i]feel[/i] like anything. They're just another step towards "winning" the game.
Honestly... I don't know if I should rate this positive or not.
6/10, the music sways me to a narrow recommendation.
Deep customization, smart opponents, addicting gameplay.
As a Stellaris veteran with 1,200 hours of meticulously crafting massive, custom fleets, I was eager for AI War 2 to deliver a new spin on space strategy. Instead, it’s a crushing disappointment that denies you the joy of building your own armadas. The core mechanic is baffling: you can’t design or construct your own fleets, a staple of 4X games like Stellaris. Instead, you’re forced to chase down enemy flagships, which the AI inexplicably scatters in random sectors, waiting to be captured. From there, you “hack” new ships—a clunky, immersion-killing process that feels more like scavenging scraps than commanding a galactic navy.
Buggy multiplayer - co-op player unable to build or getting stuck in the "waiting for X player" not worth the stress of having to guess if its going to work this time
Very interesting asymetric space grand strategy game, It looks more complicated than it actually was to learn thankfully. Lots of ship types, lots of wandering neutrals, lots of factions, aliens, etc. Absolutely worth the price with the expansions.
This is a great game for RTS fans however, it's not like lot of other RTS. If you try to take over everything you will fail and this game has a massive learning curve with what can seem like overwhelming amount of options. Best to take it slow with making changes and limit the amount of factions you select when starting out. I would also say stick with 1 AI at first add another when you feel comfortable and keep the difficulty settings below 5.
There are some complaints I have and some issues. First is the UI isn't the greatest, it's a bit ugly though it works. Second issue is adding too much leads to a lot of CPU usage and slows the game down.
Over all I enjoy the game for what it is with the options and ship variety it can keep it fresh and not too repetitive right away.
The UI is too messy to get into.
херня а не игра.
-перевода нету, в игре ОЧЕНЬ много текста, в наше время сделать текстовый перевод через тот же ИИ это работы на 5 минут.
-обучение очень короткое и не объяснять как нормально играть.
-всё производство войск происходить на "большом корабле" которых не построишь и можно только найти и захватит на нейтральных территориях что очень сильно ограничивает возможности.
-нельзя нормально выбрать какие типы кораблей строить(на больших кораблях - авто сборка) только менять чертежи между кораблями.
-очень ограниченное количество очков исследований из за чего у врагов 7 лвл единиц а у тебя 1-4 уровни.
-выносишь станций кое как, а потом тебе из "воздуха" спавнятся сотни врагов с х10 количеством которые ваншотают любые твой щиты, защиты и прочее.
-графика очень простая, модельки может и есть интересные, но эффектов разрушения, взрывов и т.д. просто нету.
из за чего игра становится просто наблюдением как "твой иконки тыкаются против вражеских иконок".
а если наблюдать с близкого расстояния, то вот кораблик есть, а когда хп достигает 0 то он просто пропадает, об видимости повреждений и прочего вообще речи не идет.
задумка игры интересная, но реализация ужасна, есть примеры еще со времен Флеш игр на такую тему которые сделаны в разы лучше и бесплатно.
Yes, this is a positive review. Even though I don't like games of this style, I can see the appeal of a 4X at this scale.
Great concept but clunky, ugly and boring. I would give AI war 3 a shot though if they improve on this.
This is one of the best RTS games I've ever played.
I always loved the genre, but didn't like the high APM necessary and mixed macro and micro tasks at the same time. This game takes a different approach to the standard formula and it gets it so right.
Basically, the AI owns the galaxy and you own one measly planet and need to somehow help humanity survive and ideally wipe out the AI. Lucky for you, the AI doesn't think wiping you out is worth its time... yet. As you expand, that changes. You have to make interesting choices about what to take, where to expand, and how quickly to do... pretty much everything.
The ships/turrets/flagships are varied and interesting with their own strengths and weaknesses, and you don't get to fully decide what you want to produce, which is actually genius rather than annoying, making you figure out how to best use the resources at hand. The difficulty was good for me, though I've seen others say it's quite difficult, my natural strategy I fell into seemed to work well, though I only played on normal with nothing weird enabled.
Speaking of which, there seems to be a ton of variability and settings to tweak - some of which seem to really have the potential to ramp up (or in some cases, down) the difficulty and/or chaos. There's a ton of galaxy configurations and factions and situations to switch between. I can see this being very replayable and I'd love to try it multiplayer. All in all I'm very impressed with it and encourage anyone who enjoys the genre to give it a shot.
This is one of those games with a "losing is fun"-type philosophy. It makes me think particularly of FTL (although you can probably make the comparison with many other roguelikes). In order to progress at all (scout, get more science, hacking points, new ships or defenses, raise energy (ship/defense cap), etc.), or even just to recover from a bad situation, you have to increase the pressure on yourself. It's straight up explicitly hard-coded as an "AI Progress" (AIP) number that is unavoidable to increase. (I'd rather call AIP "AI Aggression/Aggravation/Threat", although "Threat" is already used for something else.) You are hard-sandwiched between needing to make progress vs inviting aggression that is impossible to defend against - I'm sure that poses a difficult balancing challenge for the dev. Your role is to treat this as kind of a puzzle game, trying to squeeze the most (situational) value you can out of each AIP increase. At some point, you may not be immediately dead, but the game might as well be unwinnable. It feels like you have to know the game inside out before you start fooling around with weird builds, otherwise you will eventually get crushed by endless overwhelming waves. Or you can play on a lower difficulty setting, in which case the game has little to offer you.
There is a lot of helpful explainer text. The writing style is... charming in a way, but also not very lean. (Even after I changed the style to "Formatted" in the game settings.) Some things are not explained well, whether by wording or by simple UI obscurity. e.g. the ONLY thing affecting your ships' effectiveness is their Mark level; the upgrades, despite sounding like they're specialised towards attack or defense, actually only affect the Mark level, and therefore affect both stats.
You can tell that a lot of love went into this game. After hearing a bit about the dev's story, I think this dev should be supported for making their games into an art form.
I'm still not sure if I prefer this one or AI War 1, but it's undeniably a very good and unique game with a huge breadth of content and customization to satisfy pretty much whatever flavour of strategy fan you are, as long as you're willing to put in some hours upfront to get past the steep learning curve.
It ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ updates every 15 ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ minutes. Annoying as ♥♥♥♥.
Love the diversity of enemies, weapons, strategies...so unlike any other RTS! Just feels fresh still somehow. Loved the first one, and love this one ever more!
[h1]Boringg, messy, unfun.[/h1]
That's not a game where you can drop 1000 hours due to some "deep" mechanic, as they try to present it.
That's clunky EA wannabedeep trash, not worth your money or time.
[b]Cons:[/b]
- Boring music
- Terrible UI
- Shallow core gameplay loop
[b]Pros:[/b]
- A lot of levels and rules customisations.
Why thumbs down after 40 hours? It's more compelling than fun. This is a game you struggle against. There less exploration and more spamming defenses than I would have cared for.
After beating "level 4" - the most basic scenario - I noticed from the achievements %s that most players never beat the game and many of the reviews are from a couple hours of play in early access.
It is hard to recommend to the people who might just read the tags for this game, if you do you won't have the right mind set of what to expect. It's closer to a stealth mission with limited units in an RTS. If you go in blowing up everything and increase your threat level too much you will die spectacularly.
You must plan and have a good reason for taking out certain bases, falling back to defend occasionally until you are ready to take apart the enemy at their core. Fail to get it in one or two attempts and they will be knocking at your door with units you can't possibly stop.
It is no exageriation to say if you set the difficulty too high or set more than 1 AI it might be impossible to win. I'd highly recommend no higher than a single AI at 2-3 until you have a few games under your belt and know what to expect.
Remember that you are always the underdog and the odds are stacked against you.
The learning curve will be massive.
My only complaints would be the neutral factions taking out bases counting against your threat level and the massive CPU usage if you set up the game too big or complicated.
If none of these things have made you run away you are the person that I would recommend this game.
Arcen are fascinating devs. Their games are chock-full of idiosyncratic ideas, have great music and very well-supported by them. Unfortunately, I've they also tend to be so dense and esoteric as to be impenetrable without spending a lot of time figuring them out.
AI Wars 2 manages to retain the best aspects of Arcen while also being impressively accessible. The tutorials readily explain the basics, the UI is clear and there are plenty of useful in-game hints. There's also a lot of scope for customisation of the game, allowing for simpler initial games (which don't take too long) to get the hang of things.
Above all; it's a game which rewards thought, planning and patience. The AI can be punishing, but fairly so - failure comes from your own choices. Well worth a shot for strategy fans.
goat
gud
Might be the best 4x game ever made and I say this as a person with more than two thousand hours in Stellaris. Its a hard call for me between the two but its definitely between AIW2 and Stellaris. I know I have low hours as of now but I've played almost all of these types of games and I can just already tell.
For newcomers, it skews more Sins of Solar Empire than it does Stellaris. But if you enjoy either of those games, there's no reason you won't love this. They say it has a steep learning curve and I'm sure I can go much deeper, so there's that for people who enjoy that kind of depth, but it should also be a pretty easy learn for anyone who plays 4x games frequently.
Great game that just gets better and better because the devs keep adding content
fun
Духота.
Не такой стратегии я ожидал. Думал можно строить заводы, строить корабли. А тут тупо захват. Хочешь увеличить флот? Хочешь ресы? Ответ один - захват.
Не знаю как у других, я просто летал самым сильным флотом от планеты к планете.
Какой-то фтл, который косит под стратегию.
Yay! TBH I was thinking about refunding this after the first hour because I was a little overwhelmed. Most games are played in an 80-planet universe and you are surrounded on all sides.
So glad I stayed with it! After two or three hours things started to click and now I'm working through the Quick Start Campaigns. This really scratches the itch!
有卡 有255个成就 没中文 还在更新
《人工智能战争2》
《人工智能战争2》是一款大型策略与即时战略相结合的游戏，它颠覆了这两种游戏类型的许多传统设定。在不引起注意的情况下占领领地，精心打造你的帝国，并适应不断变化的银河战场。它还是“阿尔森（Arcen）的超大规模太空即时战略游戏《人工智能战争》的续作，我们曾在2009年称其为‘本年度最优秀的策略游戏之一’”（汤姆·赛克斯，《电脑游戏玩家》）。
策略游戏中最狡猾且备受赞誉的人工智能在不断进化。
自2018年以来，游戏中人工智能的智慧每年都在显著提升。而那些与它对抗、从属于它或者仅仅是与其相邻的阵营数量也在不断增加，并且变得更加逼真。
游戏的设定很简单：你已经输掉了战争。整个银河系都属于其他阵营，其中大部分由人工智能掌控。你从敌对领土中的一个小星球开始发展，并且必须努力避免过多地引起人工智能的注意。你的任务是仔细评估目标，战略性地适度扩张领土，以便运营你的舰队和防御网络，然后在准备好的时候直击人工智能的核心区域。
《人工智能战争2》旨在兼具易上手性和深度性。在2021年初，游戏进行了重大改进，使新玩家更容易进入游戏中期，同时还有更宽松的科技系统以及功能更强大的黑客系统。2021年第三季度，游戏为那些想要接受更极端挑战的玩家引入了新的专家模式，这种挑战来自于存在永久损失的元素以及更多坚守劣势阵地的理由等等。选择哪种模式完全取决于个人喜好。
#### 意想不到的技术进步
自从我们为初代《人工智能战争》编写代码以来的十二年里，我们对模拟引擎进行了大量改进，现在它运行在Unity 3D引擎之上。然而，《人工智能战争2》带来了一些真正独特的技术挑战，主要涉及以大规模并行的方式运行海量的人工智能和模拟程序。我们能够充分利用现代多核处理器的强大性能，这是大多数游戏模拟程序无法做到的。从2020年起，我们面临的挑战是将这种性能运用到多人游戏领域。虽然多人游戏目前仍处于测试阶段，但它也算是一项技术展示。
这款游戏大力支持模组（mod），而且让模组在多人游戏中安全运行（或者让模组能够深入修改核心模拟的部分内容）在整个游戏领域中都不常见，更不用说在这个游戏类型中了。我们成功地让多人游戏具备自我修复功能，这既有利于不同操作系统和硬件的玩家一起游戏，也能让核心游戏自动纠正大多数模组代码错误。
自2018年以来，人工智能的智能水平每年都在大幅提升，而且帧率与模拟性能是解耦的。你可能拥有一台性能强大的机器，在激烈的战斗中能达到120帧每秒，而你的朋友的机器帧率为30帧每秒，但你们仍能保持同步，且实际模拟不会变慢。你可以在不增加CPU负担的情况下加速或减速模拟，这对于避免无聊的等待非常有帮助，而且你可以随意暂停游戏。
游戏界面会自动处理那些你95%的时间里都会做的事情，从而节省你的时间。对于剩下5%的情况，游戏确实提供了一些高级功能，比如放置间谍纳米机器人、调整或禁用自动化规则，或者随心所欲地重新设计你的舰队组成。黑客攻击是自定义现有舰队指挥官的最有趣方式之一，因为你可以为他们进行不寻常的升级，甚至将他们转变为该类型的新版本。
#### 简化但更具深度
有时候，当一款续作声称它“简化了”时，实际上可能意味着“降低难度”。在这款游戏的某些方面，确实减少了一些微小的选择：你不必决定如何清洗每一个盘子；游戏中有“洗碗机”来处理这类事情。老实说，这是件好事，因为复杂且令人困惑的场景可以深入到你想要的程度。
如果你想以接近专家的水平进行游戏，你需要利用额外的脑力来设计你的舰队，同时管理多个战线，平衡进攻和防御，并随着战役的推进不断调整你的帝国设计以满足需求。如果你想更休闲地玩游戏，也完全没问题，游戏在提供大量有趣的宏观选择的同时，对玩家也更加宽容。
游戏中有太多内容需要记忆（不过工具提示随时可用），而且总是有不熟悉的元素。快速点击并不会对你有帮助。要赢得人工智能战争，你必须随机应变、灵活适应并运用你的智慧。
这才是它应有的样子。
#### 游戏亮点有哪些？
- 有许多可选阵营，每个阵营都有自己的目标和策略，共同构建出一个充满生机的银河系。
- 舰队系统为你提供了大量的飞船，你可以轻松地组织和调配它们。
- 科技升级易于管理，但根据你的偏好以及在游戏中的发现，你可以有多种方式来推进战役。
- 可以对敌人进行黑客攻击，也可以对盟友甚至自己进行黑客操作。黑客点数虽然有限，但却是获取更多飞船或能力、直接削弱敌人甚至从敌人那里窃取资源的强大手段。
- 有大量的地图类型，并且有许多子选项使它们更加多样化。
- 可以雇佣“前哨护卫队”，在你需要的任何地方部署突袭机动部队，而且许多阵营都可以成为盟友。
- 人工智能的“守望者”“猎手”和“禁卫军”子舰队为你与人工智能的互动带来了新的挑战（有时也是机会）。
- 游戏的可模组化程度极高，通过易于访问的XML文件，你可以对很多方面进行调整。游戏直接附带了一些玩家支持的模组（默认关闭），这样你总能使用它们的最新版本，无需费力寻找下载。
#### 与原版相比有哪些新内容？
- 游戏玩法更容易上手，但策略深度一如既往。
- 从即时游戏玩法和选择方面来看，可做的事情更多。有更多的东西等待你去发现，更多的区域等待你去征服或被征服。
- 游戏机制经过优化，融合了初代游戏六个扩展包的经验（以及这款续作三年的开发成果）。
- 去除了繁琐的部分：重复性的枯燥任务已实现自动化或简化，但同时也增加了更多选项，让你可以根据需要自定义游戏内容。我们的目标是从不浪费你的时间，同时始终为你提供一系列有趣的挑战。
- 重新设计的用户界面能在你需要时为你提供大量信息和强大功能。
- 在原版游戏4.5小时的配乐基础上，新增了1.5小时的新音乐。
- 采用多线程技术以提升现代设备上的游戏性能，并且代码库经过重写，适合现代设备运行（完全重新编写）。
- 超过25位演员录制了1900多行的语音对话。
Fun game
I am very fond of this game, that is an engine + lots of contents to tune the challenge in very varied ways. I buy a DLC from time to time as a support to the (almost) solo dev, and I end up enjoying the new content.
It works great on my HP Envy laptop, which is rudimentary gear. Congrats to the dev(s) for optimizing so well the engine, with thousands of units taking decisions and performing the pew pew smoothly.
The game is best played as intended : the player has a tiny fraction of the might of the opponent AI, yet must defeat it with calculated moves. Stacking too many factions on the player side looses the fun, and might cause some slight performance alteration.
w game
Great strategy for people who are new to strategy.
Be warned you'll lag/FPS drop when you have WAY too many ships on the battlefield. Those Nanocrust ships go hard.
A very fun and engaging strategy game with hundreds of hours of content.
This is a must play! Just give it a fair chance.
This is the Dwarf Fortress of the X4 Space Games genre. The depth of the content just keeps going and if you think something would be fun, cool or nice to add to the game, it's probably already part of the game in some form.
Losing is fun and figuring out how to not lose even funner.
Here’s a curious fact: look at the achievements and you'll quickly notice something funny. Only about 20% of players have unlocked even the easiest ones that pop up after ten minutes of gameplay. That means 80% of you bought this strategy gem and immediately decided: "Nah, not today, I have 200 other unplayed games anyway."
I get it. This isn’t exactly the kind of game that greets you with cinematic explosions or eye-candy visuals. The graphics are functional, like my microwave, practical but not winning beauty awards anytime soon. And yes, the UI might initially give you that "did someone spill spaghetti here?" feeling, but trust me, it's quicker to figure out than it looks, especially with the built-in help system ready to guide you (assuming you actually read it).
But jokes aside, the developer has poured genuine care into continuous improvements and expansions. Behind the awkward first impression lies strategic gameplay that can be deeply rewarding if you give it a fair shot. If you're among the majority who bought it but haven’t played yet do yourself a favor, spend at least two hours and see what you're missing. If you don’t own it yet, wait for a sale. It's definitely niche, but it's the good kind of niche.
Just remember: clicking "buy" won't magically grant you achievements. Trust me, I tried.
10/10 game and studio. thx for supprting linux and mac
I loved the first one and I love this one too. There are some things I miss from 1 but in general I prefer the game play of 2; the UI is better, it looks better (and unlike many comments about the graphics I personally find the graphics effective at conveying information and the battles a joy to watch), and many aspects of game play have been streamlined for the better. The learning curve can be steep, as the concepts are likely to be highly novel for a majority of new players--at the very least, they certainly were for me.
If you have stayed away from this game because of the formidable reputation of its predecessor, this second iteration has a lower entry bar on account of UI improvements and the general streamlining of game play referred to above.
I love tug-of-war strategy games, and AI War 2 had the potential to deliver that experience—but it falls apart under its own weight, both figuratively and literally. What starts as a promising large-scale war quickly turns into a lag-ridden, unmanageable mess, with performance issues, lackluster progression, and an absence of meaningful player agency.
Major Issues:
Severe Performance Problems
Even on a high-end system, the game grinds to a halt a few hours in. CPU usage hits 100%, the game speed slows to a crawl, and eventually, battles devolve into frame-by-frame slugfests. In the late game, I found myself playing at 10% game speed, with battles taking literal hours due to thousands of ships endlessly respawning faster than they can be destroyed. This isn’t a war—it’s a frozen traffic jam.
No Tactical Feedback—Just Numbers
The beauty of a great tug-of-war game is watching your army evolve and adapt. You trial-and-error different unit compositions, fine-tune your strategy, and get that rewarding moment when you finally break through by deploying the right counter. AI War 2 strips that thrill away because you can’t see what’s happening. The battlefield is a chaotic mess of indistinguishable ships, and the only thing you can rely on is a combat report showing two numbers slowly decreasing. Since you can’t tell which units are performing well, there’s no informed decision-making—just randomly picking upgrades that make the number go up. The result? No sense of strategy, no excitement in watching your forces grow stronger, and no real engagement beyond passive number-crunching.
Messy Visuals, No Spectacle
For a game about grand space battles, there's surprisingly little to see. The sheer number of ships and effects on-screen make battles unreadable. Instead of watching an epic clash unfold, you’re left staring at a blurry, laggy screen, unable to tell what’s actually happening. A good tug-of-war game lets you sit back, observe the battlefield, and appreciate the spectacle—this game buries everything under a visual overload.
Inefficient Unit Scaling—Why Not Use the System That Already Works?
The game already has a system for merging ships into larger "single units"—for example, a single ship representing 76 smaller ships with multiplied stats. And this works! So why doesn’t the game fully commit to this system? Instead, it insists on rendering and processing every individual ship, tanking performance. It should take inspiration from Heroes of Might and Magic 3, where unit stacks represent numbers rather than overwhelming the battlefield with individual models. Doing this properly would fix both performance issues and battlefield readability in one go.
How This Could Be Fixed:
✔ Commit to the Ship Merging System – Instead of trying to process thousands of individual ships, fully embrace the "stacked units" approach that already exists.
✔ Better Tactical Feedback – Players should be able to see which unit types are performing well so they can make informed choices instead of just picking whatever upgrade makes your numbers go up the most.
✔ Optimize Late-Game Performance – The game needs serious optimization for long sessions; otherwise, it just becomes unplayable.
Final Verdict:
I wanted an epic tug-of-war, but instead, I got a slow, unresponsive numbers game where tactics or strategy do not matter. With better performance, more meaningful choices, and a clearer sense of the battlefield, AI War 2 could shine—but in its current state, it’s just frustrating.
❌ Not Recommended (unless you enjoy watching your CPU suffer).
this game is for sick freaks and i am that sick freak
One of those very easy to learn / get into, very hard to master things. On higher difficulty settings, you'll have to pull all the stops and use 100% of what you know, and if you don't know something, you are probably dead.
The game itself is very open to player customization, the best way to enjoy it is to customize your own difficulty settings for an optimal experience, as different campaign presets don't have everything. There are so many extra things that you could do in this game that you could have played this game forever and could have barely scratched the bottom.
Has some community mods that can add extra stuff in it too. Has a mod that the developer famously calls an "unofficial DLC" for the game.
After some point I've realized that I don't enjoy other RTS's anymore when I returned to them after getting to know this game.
Also I find it hard to call this an RTS game at this point, but it's a really well-made strategy game, it has something that none of the other strategy games have done before, this game might as well be it's own genre. Which is one of the reasons why it makes you keep coming back for more.
"AI War 2" is an intriguing strategy game that has some solid concepts and a dedicated development team ensuring consistent updates, which is definitely a plus. The game offers a unique twist on the RTS genre, allowing players to build their fleets and engage in strategic battles against an AI that adapts and evolves over time. The sheer scale of the game and the complexity of its systems can be appealing, especially for those who enjoy deep and intricate game-play.
That said, while I appreciate the innovative mechanics and the ongoing support from the developers, I find that the game can start to feel repetitive after about an hour of play. The initial excitement of battling the AI and managing resources is engaging, but as time goes on, the pace can feel sluggish, and the challenge can sometimes become more tedious than thrilling. The vast expanses of space and the various objectives can create a sense of overwhelm, which, rather than being intriguing, can lead to a feeling of burnout.
Additional elements, like the multitude of ship types and tactical options, do add layers to the game-play, but I often find myself hitting a wall where I’m just going through the motions. The strategic depth is there, yet it sometimes lacks the engaging narrative or dynamic situations that could make it more captivating for longer sessions.
The game's visuals and sound design do play a role in creating an immersive atmosphere, but even those aspects can only carry the experience so far. After an hour, I often feel the urge to switch to something else or take a break, as the excitement tends to dwindle. While "AI War 2" definitely has its moments and a committed player base, it struggles to maintain my attention for extended play sessions, leading me to view it as more of a casual gaming experience rather than an enthralling one.
It's a pretty humble game and clearly a labor of love from someone who likes adding all his crazy ideas to his projects. Overall, I do not like it but if you don't mind the graphical style like I do then you'll likely get a good bang for your buck.
It is good
I actually don't play a lot of RTS games: I've always preferred turn based. But AI War is just that good. The struggle against the AI is great, and I love how higher difficulties actually make the AI smarter rather than just upgrading their units. There's a lot of great design decisions that makes this a game I enjoy. Another banger from Arcen.
Really cool game, lots to do and see.
Great game
Good game, need to stick with it.
It is a very deep and genre-bending game. It has elements of grand strategy, real-time straegy, tower-defense, and some roguelike randomizations. The game can be customized in an absurd amount of ways to change up the gameplay, difficulty, etc.
Lots of great real-time strategy games have a campaign that is a series of fixed battles. Wouldn't it be fun if you could actually control the strategic situation in a game like Command and Conquer, choosing where the battles are fought and for what objective? You can do that here!
Have you ever played a grand strategy game like Europa Universalis and wished you could have tactical control of the individual units during a battle? You can do that in this game!
It really does blend the strategic and tactical elements very nicely for a challenging and tense experience with lots of interesting strategic choices to make.
My one criticism is that modern UI standards are out the window for this game, it seems to be all home-baked which is impressive in a way but also a hassle. Click a unit to select it. Want to see the details? Hold down 'C' and click it. Not so horrible, just tons of weird hotkeys and strange ways of using them that are unintuitive and hard to remember. I'm really looking forward to their next game and I hope the UI gets some love.
I like space fight:)
I actually really enjoy this game but i have one major issue, why is it so hard to know exactly how much metal you're spending, and it so stupid and frustrating when all of a sudden nothing will work all because you captured 2 planets back to back and immediately build mines just avoid that problem, what kind of sense does that make!?!?!? Now i have to restart all because there is no way to no how to adjust or destroy any units just so your metal income is positive/negative. oh yeah, the whole thing about you running out of metal and so it just back logs construction till you generate enough over time, if thats how its supposed to work then how the ♥♥♥♥ does it just shut down after building a few extra buildings and won't let anything be built, sorry about this but that one little mechanic can just ruin an entire night of hard work and stop everything in its track, sorry but thats just dumb as ♥♥♥♥
We need Chinese.Please..................................
It's honestly a crying shame that a game this original and distinctive should have lost money and disrupted the lead developer's life. The strength of his design is apparent in how willing a core group of supporters have been to keep the game updated half a decade after its release. I don't play this as often as I should, but its rhythm is like nothing else on the market. I blame the decline of the indie-games press between the release of AI War: Fleet Command and its sequel, but that's neither here nor there.
Play this if you want a game that only gets harder and never lets up until the great climactic final battle. The expansions are wonderful, but even the vanilla game has much to love about it. You will have to get over some cheap bits: The graphics are not top-of-the-line, and you'll never want to hear "It's either death or success!" again after three campaigns. But it's well worth the effort to acquire this taste. One day I'll go back and get serious about this game.
Great game
Takes some time to get used to, but it's well worth it...
great
Gutes Spiel
I love this game a lot, it's not for everyone, but if it clicks for you, you'll have an amazing tome
It's a fun game with the mindset of being Darksouls, but for real-time strategy.
A really unique PvE RTS with enough meat, challenge and reactivity to satisfy even PvP RTS players.
Super Spiel. Habe es vorläufig zu Weihnachten bekommen. Als ich dieses Spiel das erste mal gestartet habe, habe ich durch das Neon-leuchtende Hauptmenü tränen vergossen. Mich hat noch nie ein Hauptmenü so stark emotional berührt wie dieses. Als ich dann nun endlich den Mehrspieler Knopf betätigte und einem Spiel beitrat konnte ich es kaum glauben. Nachdem gestartet wurde wurde alles für mich Übernommen. Ich habe das Spiel nach 15 Minuten sehr genossen als meine Automatisch aufbauende Basis die Galaxie für mich eroberte. Ich konnte in ruhe eine Pizza essen. Ich habe nach 15 Minuten also gewonnen und startete die nächste Runde. Diese zweite Kaffeepause habe ich sehr genossen. Man kann das sich selbstspielende Spiel auch auf der Arbeit spielen. Ich liebe meine Basis und meine Basis liebt mich, da Sie einfach alles für mich macht.
10/10, würde es jederzeit nochmal Kaufen, auch für die vollen 20 Euro.
Diese Fortsetzung ist noch viel besser als der erste Teil dieser reihe. Bereits viele Tausende stunden hat mich dieses Game gefesselt. Manchmal erwische ich mich wie ich Stundenlang im Schiff Designer herum hänge um das Perfekte schiff zu erstellen.
Die Wirtschaft ist Komplex und man muss auf viele kleinigkeiten achten. Ein paar minen hier ein paar solar anlagen da. Gut gemacht finde ich das Banken System was verschiedene währungen zusammenführt und doch gut vereint. Durch die vielen Verschiedenen Ressourcen und Alien Rassen kann es am anfang etwas überwaltigend sein. Aber ich denke bereits in den ersten 69 stunden hat man(n) seinen spaß.
Leider hat das Spiel auch ein paar negative seiten die Grafik schafft leider meine 4060 nur knapp. die 128 GB Ram sind an ihrer grenze. aber nur für dieses Spiel werde ich mir bald einen neuen rechner zulegen. Es verging keine sekunde in der ich keinen ständer hatte bei diesem hammer geilen spiel. Von mir eine Klare empfehlung für jung und alt.
Good game, fun
Fun game, but I do not have friends to direct connect multiplayer to. Fix multiplayer to have actual lobbies, thx.
💋
没中文，给老子爬
Tricky to play... but worth the effort
This game can be summarised as roughly:
A strategy game where you plan your next steps like in a puzzle, where the progression in a is similar to a roguelike, and the difficulty and playstyle of a session can be adjusted extensively to whatever degree you desire.
Make sure you read the things the game tells you, and you'll get the hang of it quite quickly.
If you want an easy and relaxed experience, you can have that. If you want it ridiculously difficult - you can have that too.
Good game
Everything is the same but also different
It was quite intimidating seeing the UI at first, but after the 20-30 minutes of OPTIONAL tutorials, I felt much less intimidated. There isn't a whole lot of lore, but what is there is great! The game isn't fast paced which i appreciate, the ability to pause gives you however much time you need to think about any decisions, and there isn't a ton of micro that keeps me away from other RTS games. I appreciate that the wiki is literally accessible from the menu, complete with strategy guides and every bit of info you could need! The unit variety is pretty good, with many different fleet setups possible, and the models are genuinely impressive, my favorite part of getting new units is just seeing the models! Another strength of the game is how customizable the game is, there are enough options to make your head spin, just about any setting can be changed to your liking! I also appreciate that many of the mods are also just in the game, waiting to be enabled if you are interested, i appreciate when the developers give tools and visibility to the modders, who add quite a bit of free content for everyone! I bought all the DLC and i enjoy all that they add, and of course the options let you only use the parts that you want to see! The other species have cool asthetics and mechanics to add, and with all the DLC there are many factions to choose from to make each game you play quite different, and the skill floor is very high. The depth is impressive, the AI seems to make good choices, and feels very fair compared to other 4x games on higher difficulties. Highly recommend to anyone that enjoys the theme and can get through the tutorial, after the tutorial the UI won't be intimidating and you can enjoy the struggle against the AI or powerful aliens and other oddities!
I've tried three separate times to get into AI War 2, and I've had to admit defeat. To be fair, I have never gotten much past the tutorial, but that's because the UI overall repels me. Nothing about it is intuitive, and my appetite for memorizing a game-specific way of thinking about using an interface just isn't big.
The problems start early with the third tutorial step, which is "hold Q to rotate the camera" Q? Ok. With a note longer than the tutorial about how this actually isn't a useful thing to do. Thanks?
Next step, "You may have noticed what appears to be some form of ship." I haven't. So I guess I'm stuck just clicking through the 10 or so objects I can find. Ok, finally found the ship. It has a wall of text stream-of-consciousness box of stats that mean nothing to me, but could at least be organized into a table or a column.
Next, "Right click on a drone to have the frigate attack it." Drones? Where? Nothing on the screen looks like a drone. Ok, time to randomly select things again.
Maybe there's a great game buried somewhere under the bad UI, the drab visuals, and the abstracted combat. And if you have a lot of patience and free time for that, great. I don't.
Amazing game, but please hire a UI/UX Artist, your UI looks like crap :P
Awesomeness if you are into different approaches on space RTS games. Absolute reccomend!
