An AI-driven sci-fi RTS: Stardust Colonies

Hi guys, I am an indie developer with a big interest in AI. I thought you might appreciate the sci-fi RTS I am developing, Stardust Colonies.



In Stardust Colonies, the player takes a role of a Colonizator, and a member of a high-tech alien species that defeats and colonises other planets. The game is an AI-focused mixture of emotion and task micro management, forcing players to observe their units and how their feelings change over time in order to make the colony survive and fulfil objectives like building monuments or securing hostile areas.

Each unit has its own happiness and energy level that affect how it performs. Happiness of a minion is determined by whether it likes the task it’s doing (mining, farming, breeding) and by its other personal experiences. The player also needs to keep an eye on the energy of their minions and let them rest from time to time so they return to work fresh.


In later versions of the game, there will be hostile alien creatures and RPG-like tech tree.

 

The Kickstarter looks pretty good. I would probably like to see a few more features in the video demo though.

But the concept and everything else sounds pretty solid.

Good luck

 

Thanks a lot

 

Really digging the concept art.

Good luck

Edit : It reminds me a lot of the game SimAnt. Man that game was great.

 

glad you like it you can actually download a wallpaper on the web site

 

Please use one thread per game in WIP.

 

OK, will do, didn't know.

 

I read some of your thesis and then I downloaded the demo and tried it out.

It is a very interesting twist. I noticed the critters have names. It is awesome they actually get tired and they get bored with the "same old" thing. At first they happily gathered grain and crystals. Later, however, I noticed a change in their behavior... they said I wish I didn't have to [do whatever task I gave them]. One even said "I don't want to do this again!". I also noticed them slowing down as they grew tired. They almost seemed to have personalities although I think this was just a result of some being tired and some being bored with their current task while others remained happy (the ones I had done a better job catering to). In fact, I think that is the key difference with your game. Instead of just having mindless drones available simply to do my bidding, I felt more like I had to care for these creatures. It added a whole extra layer of detail to the game over the other RTS games I have played.

 

Thanks for your comment, the feel of the game play where you get to know each unit rather than having mindless drones is exactly what I was going for. You are right, I've never played an RTS that actually did that. In the future, I want to give them even more speech bubble content so that it's a bit more varied and feels more real. So thank you, I am glad my vision is getting across