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Sins II Behind the Scenes: Pirate Galleon Concepts!

Avast ye scurvy dogs! Today I thought we could share pretty pictures of the concepting process for the Galleon, the Pirate’s newest unit featured in Pirate Incursions! Players have been asking to see the beautiful concept art created by resident concept artist Mike Doscher for this plundering beast and now seemed like a great time to share. “We want to introduce a more formidable unit for the pirates, a commander type unit. We're thinking a retrofit Akkan colony ship seems like a fun idea.... [read more]

6/3/2026 By Unikraken in Sins Dev Journals

Ashes II Video Blog: Observer Mode

Observer Mode in Ashes of the Singularity II Wishlist Ashes II In this dev journal, we're taking a first look at Observer Mode in Ashes of the Singularity II. Jump into any match and spectate from a specific player's perspective with full visibility into their economy, resources, research, and army orders, or switch to Revealed View for a fog-free cinematic look at the whole map. We also showcase our new Tactical View, which keeps fog of war intact for the player you're observing while lett... [read more]

5/27/2026 By wasabi_md in Ashes Dev Journals

GalCiv IV Dev Journal #118: Oligarchies in Federations & Empires

How might a hyper-capitalistic civilization develop in the future? That’s the question we wanted to play out and the upcoming expansion pack for Galactic Civilizations IV, Federations & Empires, will answer it. The Oligarchy form of government results in a very different set of gameplay mechanics from the other governments and today we’re going to dive into it.   The Background Here are some early concepts we played with how to manage these that I thought you might find interesti... [read more]

5/21/2026 By Frogboy in GalCiv IV Dev Journals

Now Out: Now Available: Treasures of the Magi for Elemental: Reforged

Treasures of the Magi brings new items, quests, gear and monsters to Elemental: Reforged Stardock Entertainment today released Treasures of the Magi , the first DLC for the fantasy turn-based strategy game Elemental: Reforged . Priced at $8.99  (enjoy the 20% launch discount through May 28!) , the expansion adds new monsters, treasures, items, and quests drawn from the First Age of Elemental, the era when the Magi ruled through sorcery and their golems stood watch over the cities of Ant... [read more]

5/21/2026 By redskittlesonly in Elemental News

Sins II Dev Journal: v1.65 'ARES: God of War' Preview

Welcome to this Dev Diary! I’m Tom Fortune, one of the engineers on Sins of a Solar Empire II, and I’ll be walking you through the reasoning and motivations behind the upcoming AI overhaul. Let’s get started.  Cause & Effect If you've spent some serious time playing against the Sins II AI, you likely already know the shape of the general complaints we get. The AI doesn’t really like to fight as much as we’d like. It builds a credible early empire and then has issues maintaining it. It ... [read more]

5/21/2026 By republica103 in Sins Dev Journals

Ashes II Video Blog: Combat Stats and Tooltips

Combat Stats and Tooltips in Ashes of the Singularity II Wishlist Ashes II This week's dev journal dives into something that doesn't always get a lot of attention: the numbers behind how units actually fight. We walk through the tooltip changes we've made and what they reveal about weapon behavior, range, and damage in ways that aren't always obvious just from watching a battle.  [read more]

5/20/2026 By wasabi_md in Ashes Dev Journals

GalCiv IV Dev Journal: Empires

Greetings! Today I want to talk about what the Empire government actually does in the upcoming Federations & Empires expansion. I'm getting ahead of myself. So let me first walk through the idea of the new expansion, possibly the biggest we've ever done. In Galactic Civilizations IV: Federations & Empires, we are introducing governments. But really, we are using governments as an excuse to redo a lot of how the game is played without making people mad at us for changing the game so ... [read more]

5/14/2026 By Frogboy in GalCiv IV Dev Journals

Ashes II Video Blog: New Orbitals

New Orbitals in Ashes of the Singularity II Wishlist Ashes II Two new orbitals are coming to Ashes of the Singularity II. The EM Blast stuns enemy tanks and Titans while leaving your infantry standing, and the Nano Mesh Barrier throws a temporary shield on any friendly units to help them survive a bad engagement. [read more]

5/13/2026 By wasabi_md in Ashes Dev Journals

Dev Journal #116: The Tech Tree in the Room

Tech trees are one of those parts of a strategy game that look obvious from the outside and turn out, every single time, to be one of the hardest things to get right. Game designers have been struggling with how to present technology research to the player since the early 90s, and three decades in, nobody has really solved it. There are good answers, there are interesting answers, and there are answers that work for one game and fall apart in another. There is no settled answer. As part of ... [read more]

5/7/2026 By Frogboy in GalCiv IV Dev Journals

Now Announcing: Treasures of the Magi DLC for Elemental: Reforged

Treasures of the Magi, a New DLC for Elemental: Reforged New expansion adds monsters, treasures, items, and quests drawn from the lost age of the Magi, launching May 21, 2026.   Wishlist Treasures of the Magi  |  Get Elemental: Reforged Stardock Entertainment today announced Treasures of the Magi, a new DLC for the fantasy turn-based strategy game Elemental: Reforged. The expansion is priced at $8.99 and adds new monsters, new treasures and items, and a new set of quest... [read more]

5/7/2026 By wasabi_md in Elemental News

Ashes II Video Blog: Hotkeys

Hotkey Changes in Ashes of the Singularity II Wishlist Now This video covers a restructured building system with dedicated hotkey rows for army buildings (QWER), resource buildings (ASDF), and defense buildings (ZXC), alongside a reworked unit recruitment screen that follows the same organizational logic, placing basic units on QWER, advanced units on ASDF, and air units across ZX through V. The consistent layout is designed to help players build muscle memory quickly while managing large... [read more]

5/6/2026 By wasabi_md in Ashes Dev Journals

Galactic Civilizations IV: Federations & Empires Brings Distinct Government Forms to Stardock's 4X Strategy Game

Federations & Empires Expansion - the largest governance overhaul in the series' history replaces a linear upgrade path with forms of government Each with its own screens, resources, and political mechanics, releasing on June 11, 2026 Buy Galactic Civilizations IV   |  Add Federations & Empires to your Steam Wishlist Stardock today announced Galactic Civilizations IV: Federations & Empires , a new expansion that introduces interstellar governments to the stud... [read more]

5/6/2026 By redskittlesonly in GalCiv News

Video Dev Journal: v1.6 "UI Horizons" Update Pt. 1 | Sins of a Solar Empire II

Part 1 Video Blog v1.6 UI Horizons Update for Sins of a Solar Empire II Play Sins II Now In this video developer journal for Sins of a Solar Empire II, we're taking a look at the new and improved front-end user-interface added in the v1.6 "UI Horizons" update. We also show off the new hand-crafted leader portraits, a ship viewer tool, and some new ship color customization options. [read more]

4/30/2026 By BATTLEMODE in Sins Dev Journals

v1.6 UI Horizons Update Now Available for Sins of a Solar Empire II

The UI Horizons v1.6 Update is Now Available UI overhaul, in-game map editor, new defensive platform abilities and more arrive in the v1.6 Update Play Sins II Now   (Part 2 Coming Soon!)   Front-End UI Overhaul The entire front-end UI has been rebuilt from the ground up. The new layout surfaces more information at a glance, cuts dead space, and brings a cleaner visual style throughout. A new Faction Selection screen gives you a breakdown of each faction's identity... [read more]

4/30/2026 By wasabi_md in Sins of a Solar Empire News

Ashes II Video Dev Journal: Orbitals

Orbitals in Ashes of the Singularity II Wishlist Now Orbitals are active use abilities designed to boost your economy, drop in new units or cause catastrophic damage to enemy armies and turn the tide of a battle you might otherwise lose. We've made some changes to the way some of our Orbital abilities work. Firstly, some of the larger direct damage Orbitals now cause Friendly Fire damage, meaning you need to be careful where you place them if you're to avoid damaging your own forces. ... [read more]

4/29/2026 By BATTLEMODE in Ashes Dev Journals

GalCiv IV Dev Journal #115: Opening Moves

Strategy games are all about the opening move. Galactic Civilizations is no exception. In RTS games we call it “Build Order”. Back in the day, I played some of these RTS games “professionally”. Today, being old, I can’t even get out of Diamond 1 in StarCraft 2. But it is build order that keeps me at least Diamond. Knowing what to do when. One of the things I like about Galactic Civilizations, something that we hope to continue evolving, is making sure players have multiple interesting f... [read more]

4/29/2026 By Frogboy in GalCiv IV Dev Journals

Livestream: Watch the Developers Play Ashes of the Singularity II

Tune in for the Ashes of the Singularity II Livestream Event Mark your calendars | Wishlist Now Get an exclusive look at Ashes of the Singularity II, the sequel to the massive-scale RTS. Watch the devs play through two popular biomes, the frozen Ice Moon, Europa, and the volcanic planet, Artemis.   📅 Tuesday, May 5th at 1:00 PM EST 📍Location: Ashes of the Singularity II Steam Page   In this massive RTS game, command vast armies fighting fo... [read more]

4/28/2026 By redskittlesonly in Ashes of the Singularity News

Elemental: Reforged v1.03 Update Now Available

Elemental: Reforged v1.03 is Now Available Changelog below  |  Get Elemental: Reforged Stardock has released v1.03 for Elemental: Reforged, a maintenance patch that corrects a long-standing issue with Fire magic, resolves a handful of crashes that were surfacing in longer campaigns, and tightens a range of tooltip and quest text. The most significant change is a fix to Fire spell damage scaling. Several Fire items and abilities had not been behaving as their descriptions im... [read more]

4/23/2026 By redskittlesonly in Elemental News

Sins II Dev Journal: New UI Horizons and Player Customization Pt 1

Our resident UI guru Paul Kiesling will be giving us part one of a two-part series on this UI revamp below: With this month's update comes a functional refresh of our front-end UI. We have spent the last several months really digging into the UI to improve the user experience and feel. We have moved away from the holographic stylization and towards a more hardened TEC feel, with emphasis on readability and organization. We went through every menu and intentionally lined up all of the univer... [read more]

4/22/2026 By Unikraken in Sins Dev Journals

GalCiv IV Video Dev Journal: A Look at the v3.3 Update

In this video developer journal for Galactic Civilizations IV, BATTLEMODE shows off some of the new UI quality of life and Adaptive AI features added in our recent v3.3 update. For more information on this update, check out Frogboy's developer journal here . [read more]

4/22/2026 By BATTLEMODE in GalCiv IV Dev Journals

Ashes II Video Blog: The Substrate Showcase Pt. 2

The Substrate Showcase Part 2 Wishlist Now Ashes of the Singularity II, the sequel to the massive-scale RTS, takes you to a world in the near future where three factions are fighting for the fate of the solar system: the United Earth Forces (UEF), the Post-Human Coalition (PHC), and the AI Substrate. Whether you're interested in the single-player campaign, multiplayer, or skirmish matches, the faction you fight for is in your hands. The Substrate are the children of Haalee, a rogue a... [read more]

4/22/2026 By wasabi_md in Ashes Dev Journals

Ashes II Video Blog: Army Cohesion

Army Cohesion in Ashes of the Singularity II Wishlist Now A major update to our pathfinding in Ashes II is now playable! Armies will now coordinate with all units within the army, attempting to move and arrive at destinations as a cohesive whole. We’re calling this technology ‘army cohesion’, and it’s a key tool in allowing players the freedom to create mixed-unit armies without having to micromanage their movement across long stretches of the maps. [read more]

4/17/2026 By Oxide_BrettN in Ashes Dev Journals

Elemental: Reforged v1.02 Update Now Available

Battle forecasts, expanded modding tools, and stability fixes View the full changelog   |  Get Elemental: Reforged Now The biggest addition is a new battle forecast system. The pre-battle screen now shows a predicted outcome before you commit to a fight, ranging from Crushing Victory down to Likely Defeat, color-coded green to red. If your champions are at risk of falling, it tells you. Modding support has been expanded. All game data can now be replaced by internal name, ... [read more]

4/16/2026 By redskittlesonly in Elemental News

Galactic Civilizations IV v3.3 Now Available

Galactic Civilizations IV v3.3 Now Available Buy now on Steam   |   Epic Games Store   |   galciv4.com This update brings a new AI system, a streamlined faction creator, faster controls, and a long list of gameplay, balance, and stability fixes driven by community feedback. Adaptive AI The biggest addition in v3.3. Adaptive AI is a new gameplay option that gives struggling AI factions gradual bonuses to stay competitive. The bonuses fade as they ca... [read more]

4/15/2026 By redskittlesonly in GalCiv News

GalCiv IV Dev Journal #114: The Evolving 4X Interface (and v3.3)

The Problem Nobody Talks About 4X games have a UI problem and it's getting worse. Not because designers are getting lazier. It's because the games keep getting deeper. Every year we add more systems, more resources, more decisions per turn. And the interface has to present all of that without making you feel like you're working air traffic control. I've been making 4X games since 1993. The original Galactic Civilizations on OS/2 had maybe 15 screens total. GalCiv IV has... I actually don... [read more]

4/15/2026 By Frogboy in GalCiv IV Dev Journals

Ashes II Video Blog: Substrate Mechanics

Substrate Mechanics in Ashes of the Singularity II Wishlist Now The Substrate faction has some unique mechanics in Ashes of the Singularity II. In this video dev journal, we’ll explore their Shield and Drone mechanics, discussing how they work and how they impact the gameplay for the faction. [read more]

4/8/2026 By Oxide_BrettN in Ashes Dev Journals

Sins II Video Blog: v1.51 "Hunt fer Booty" Update

v1.51 "Hunt fer Booty" Update Avast yer scurvy scallywags! The "Hunt fer Booty" update dropped at the start of March and it's time to take a look at what Sins of a Solar Empire II looks like with *proper* Pirates in the game. Bounties can now be placed on the heads of your rivals, Pirates have their own brand new Capital Ship, Minor Factions exhibit new Raiding behavior and two new Advent Minor factions enter the game too. We've reworked the Civilian Structure Capture system, and made a s... [read more]

4/2/2026 By wasabi_md in Sins Dev Journals

Ashes II Video Blog: Pathfinding Updates

Pathfinding Updates in Ashes of the Singularity II Wishlist Now Pathfinding is a tricky subject in RTS games, and especially if you’re trying to allow for maps that are more than just mostly flat spaces. In this dev journal, we’ll explore some of the updates we’ve implemented since Steam Next Fest to the pathfinding. We’ve been working on keeping units from clumping up, improving traffic control through tight spaces, and giving bigger units the priority to shov... [read more]

4/1/2026 By wasabi_md in Ashes Dev Journals

Elemental: Reforged v1.01 - AI Improvements, Balance Tuning, Stability Fixes

Elemental: Reforged v1.01 - AI Improvements, Balance Tuning, Stability Fixes v1.01 is now available. This update focuses on AI decision-making, balance adjustments, performance and stability fixes, and a long list of bug and text corrections reported by the community since launch. Get it Now   |  Full Changelog   Smarter Non-Cheating AI The AI settles cities more intelligently and no longer picks barren tiles. Spell usage and outpost construction decisions have... [read more]

3/30/2026 By redskittlesonly in Elemental News

Faction Reveal: The Substrate in Ashes of the Singularity II

The Substrate Are Here The third and final faction has arrived in Ashes of the Singularity II Wishlist Ashes II here If you've been following Ashes of the Singularity II, you've already seen the Post-Human Coalition and the United Earth Forces go at it. Today, the war gets a lot more complicated. The Substrate are in the game. For veterans of Escalation, the Substrate need no introduction. Haalee, the world's first true artificial intelligence, and her children have been a fan-f... [read more]

3/26/2026 By redskittlesonly in Ashes of the Singularity News

Ashes II Video Blog: Region Power

Region Power Wishlist Ashes II Now Region Power replaces our previous Region Slot system, giving players more flexibility, with additional upgrades providing more specialization. Each building has a unique power cost, and different regions generate different amounts of power. Do you play it safe and upgrade your backline regions, or upgrade your frontline for more pressure? [read more]

3/25/2026 By Oxide_BrettN in Ashes Dev Journals

Ashes II Video Blog: Army Formation and Creation Updates

Army Formation and Creation Updates Wishlist Ashes II Now Building on player feedback from our Steam Next Fest demo showcase of Ashes of the Singularity II, Armies will now organize themselves into a formation: close range damage dealers and meat shields form the front line while less well armored, longer ranged snipers and artillery will form the back ranks. And now, an Army's facing can also be quickly adjusted to properly face oncoming threats. These new features allow increased co... [read more]

3/18/2026 By Oxide_BrettN in Ashes Dev Journals

Ara: History Untold - v2.1 Opt-In Update Now Available

v2.1 Opt-In Update Now Available A new national crafting system, 27 culture traits, religious verses, and more Get Ara: History Untold Now   |  View the Changelog   The v2.1 opt-in build is now available on Steam. This update brings a new national crafting system, 27 culture traits, new religious verses, and a handful of balance and stability improvements.   National Crafting Policy System Managing crafting across a growing empire just got a lot ... [read more]

3/18/2026 By redskittlesonly in Ara: History Untold News

Elemental: Reforged, the Remastered 4X Strategy RPG from Stardock Launched Today

Elemental: Reforged, the Remastered 4X Strategy RPG is Now Available Features three campaigns, dynasty system, deep crafting, and hundreds of new quests, characters, and dungeons Buy with the Launch Discount A unique mix of 4X Strategy and RPG gameplay is now available as Stardock Entertainment has officially released Elemental: Reforged . To celebrate the release of this passionately crafted and expanded remaster of Stardock’s most ambitious title, players... [read more]

3/17/2026 By redskittlesonly in Stardock Entertainment Announcements

Ashes II Video Blog: Post-Human Coalition Pt. 2

Post-Human Coalition Showcase Pt. 2 Wishlist Ashes II Now Ashes of the Singularity II, the sequel to the massive-scale RTS, takes you to a world in the near future where three factions are fighting for the fate of the solar system: the United Earth Forces (UEF), the Post-Human Coalition (PHC), and the AI Substrate. Whether you're interested in the single-player campaign, multiplayer, or skirmish matches, the faction you fight for is in your hands. Joining the fight against the United... [read more]

3/12/2026 By wasabi_md in Ashes Dev Journals

Galactic Civilizations IV v3.2 Update Now Available

v3.2 Update Now Available AI diplomacy, early-game pacing, and gameplay balance improvements across the base game and Tales of the Terran Alliance DLC. Get GalCiv IV Now   |  Full changelog below The v3.2 update addresses some of the most common community feedback. AI civilizations are now better about when and how often they contact you diplomatically, and they make smarter decisions about when to surrender rather than giving up prematurely. Early-game pacing gets a no... [read more]

3/11/2026 By redskittlesonly in GalCiv News

Launch Livestream: Elemental: Reforged

Join us for our Elemental: Reforged Livestream Event Save the Date | Wishlist Now Join us as we play through the campaigns and quests of the remastered 4X strategy RPG, Elemental: Reforged!   📅 Tuesday, March 17th at 1:00 PM EST 📍Location: Elemental: Reforged Steam Page   What to Expect A world of unique characters: Players can design their own units with desired visual customization and attributes, recruit champions, equip gear and watch them develo... [read more]

3/10/2026 By wasabi_md in Elemental News

Beta 3C "The Menagerie Update" for Elemental: Reforged is Now Available

Beta 3C "The Menagerie Update" for Elemental: Reforged is now available Wishlist or Join Early Access   New and Upgraded Monster Lairs Monster lairs now feature greater variety with new creature types including Ghouls, Bone Hounds, Feral Slaves, Embers, Prowlers, and Herglings. Lairs also drop more loot, with specific monster types tending to drop specific types of rewards and crafting ingredients. Guardian monsters will no longer wander away from their lairs. New Tutori... [read more]

3/6/2026 By redskittlesonly in Elemental News

Ashes II Video Blog: What's Next After Steam Next Fest

What's Next After Steam Next Fest Wishlist Ashes II Now Ashes of the Singularity II landed in the top 50 most played demos during Steam Next Fest, and the demo is still available through March 16 . In this video, I open up what we call a "zoo map" for the United Earth Forces faction, it's a development tool that lays out every unit and building for a faction in one place so we can review them all at a glance. I talk a bit about how we use these internally and what's still co... [read more]

3/5/2026 By Oxide_BrettN in Ashes Dev Journals

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