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Dev Journal #6: The Great AI Awakening

The Truth about AI in PC Strategy Games Multiplayer will not save your game. Strategy games must have computer opponents as a first-class game mode. They aren’t there to be “practice bots”. Even in games that are allegedly “multiplayer-centric”, fewer than 20% of players will press the multiplayer button, let alone actually play it. Yet many strategy games just handwave, putting in interesting computer opponents. You, reading this, know the folly of that, and yet they still do it. W... [read more]

9/4/2025 By Frogboy in Ara: History Untold Dev Journals

v1.18 "Endorsement Reinforcements" Update for The Political Machine 2024

v1.18 "Endorsement Reinforcements" Update Adding new Endorsements and Issue Get it Now   |  View the Changelog Below The Political Machine 2024 is a political simulation game that allows players to run their own presidential campaigns, navigate complex political landscapes, and engage with various issues and endorsements. The latest update, version 1.18, titled "Endorsement Reinforcements," introduces a few new features aimed at enhancing the gameplay experience without mak... [read more]

9/4/2025 By redskittlesonly in Political Machine News

Ashes II Dev Journal #5: Evolving Production for a Grander Scale

In the original Ashes of the Singularity , we noted some key pain points when it came to producing units and managing armies in the late game. One of the first frustrations was the need to micromanage numerous production buildings during large-scale conflicts as the game progressed. You could dogpile engineers onto a single production building to make it construct faster, but if you were trying to field various cruisers, frigates, etc., you still would need to manage several different buildings... [read more]

9/3/2025 By Oxide_BrettN in Ashes Dev Journals

Sins II Video Blog: Unique Faction Tech Pt. 1

Exploring the Factions of Sins of a Solar Empire II: Unleashing Unique Technologies Sins of a Solar Empire II invites players into a universe of interstellar warfare, featuring three distinct races each split into two warring factions. With a total of six playable sides, each faction boasts its own unique technological innovations aimed at outsmarting and outpacing opponents. In part one of a two part series, we take a closer look at the first three factions and their standout technologie... [read more]

9/3/2025 By wasabi_md in Sins Dev Journals

Date Announcement: Reinforcements DLC for Sins of a Solar Empire II

New command ship class units and lore-driven factional victory conditions Players will experience fresh strategies on the battlefield September 25, 2025 Wishlist Now The battle for galactic control has evolved as all sides introduce deadly new ships and cunning methods of victory. Stardock has announced the Reinforcements DLC for Sins of a Solar Empire II , will launch on September 25, 2025. This content expansion introduces a brand-new command ship class—one u... [read more]

9/3/2025 By redskittlesonly in Sins of a Solar Empire News

Ara Dev Journal #5: The Great Differentiation

How do you make nations more unique? When we began discussing Ara: History Untold 2.0, we asked: how do you make 40 different civilizations feel genuinely unique while maintaining strategic balance? The answer went deeper than a few superficial differences. We discovered that giving players ways to leverage systems and explore new tactics yielded the most rewarding experiences. Distinctive traits and unique units give Nations personality and don’t just challenge the player to find new ro... [read more]

8/28/2025 By wasabi_md in Ara: History Untold Dev Journals

Ashes II Dev Journal #4: Building Better Worlds

Making the map a character When you think about RTS games, what do you spend most of the time looking at? More than your base, more than your armies - it is the terrain itself. It sets the scale of the conflict, shapes how battles unfold, and creates the sense of immersion that keeps players engaged. For Ashes of the Singularity II, we wanted to push this further by creating maps that are larger, more detailed, and more responsive. Our work on Ara: History Untold taught us a lot about h... [read more]

8/27/2025 By Oxide_SatchP in Ashes Dev Journals

GalCiv IV: Supernova Dev Journal #107 - Culture and Influence

In Galactic Civilizations IV, Influence is a measure of your Empire’s overall cultural and logistical reach, and affects many other gameplay elements. Today I’m going to explain how to generate Culture, how that then spreads your Influence across the map, and why all this is important in your race to win the game. First let’s take a look at the bare basics of how Influence is generated. Each planet has a baseline statistic called Cultural Significance , representing it’s potential for the... [read more]

8/26/2025 By BATTLEMODE in GalCiv IV Dev Journals

Ara Dev Journal #4: UI Enhancements in v2.0

I’m a UI guy. Most of my work over the years has been on software such as Fences, Start11, WindowBlinds, IconPackager, and countless other programs designed to improve the Windows experience. On Ara: History Untold , one of the first things we noticed was that the text and icons were blurry. Not a lot, but just enough to feel like an itch you couldn’t scratch. In fact, the entire UI carried that slight fuzziness. The cause was the game rendering at 720p under the hood and then scaling up to... [read more]

8/21/2025 By Frogboy in Ara: History Untold Dev Journals

Sins II Video Blog: Basic Economic Strategies

Your Path to Economic Success in Sins of a Solar Empire II Knowing the basic of the economy in Sins of a Solar Empire II is crucial to your success early on and towards the end of your match. From diplomacy with alien empires, research and development, and the exploration of star systems, this video will explore many different strategies for economic warfare whether you're up against humans or computers. [read more]

8/20/2025 By wasabi_md in Sins Dev Journals

Ashes II Dev Journal #3: Making the "BIG" Accessible

Updated: 22 Aug 2025 Oxide has always loved RTS games that go BIG. Big maps, sprawling bases, units all over the place - the whole chaotic sprawl. While we certainly love more ‘tactical’ RTS games as well, with Ashes of the Singularity, Oxide wanted to go BIG, harkening back to genre stalwarts like Total Annihilation and Supreme Commander . However, as we prepared to develop Ashes of the Singularity II , we wanted to tackle the core problem of “BIG”. One key challenge was that th... [read more]

8/20/2025 By Oxide_BrettN in Ashes Dev Journals

v1.41 Now Available for Ara: History Untold

The latest update for Ara: History Untold , v1.41, builds on the positive reception of the previous patch by introducing several quality of life improvements aimed at enhancing gameplay and usability.  Full Changelog Below  |  Buy Ara: History Untold Gameplay and Balance Updates One of the most significant enhancements in this update is the ability to upgrade undeployed units directly from the Create Army screen. This streamlines the process of preparing your forces for ba... [read more]

8/19/2025 By redskittlesonly in Ara: History Untold News

Ashes II Dev Journal #2: All thanks to Andy

Welcome to the Ashes of the Singularity universe! Today, I’m going to quickly walk us through some lore, focusing in on a key character and his lasting impact: Andy Lexus. There are some figures that become synonymous with their inventions and discoveries. Tesla and the power grid. Darwin and evolution. In the Ashes of the Singularity universe, the same could be said of Andy Lexus and artificial intelligence. When Andy Lexus achieved the first strong artificial intelligence with Haale... [read more]

8/13/2025 By Oxide_Gab in Ashes Dev Journals

Sins II Ship Series: The Advent Revelation Battlecruiser

In this installment of the Ship Series, we take a closer look at the Advent Revelation-class Battlecruiser. The Revelation is a versatile warship, with offensive, support, and planetary siege functionality. As with many Advent capital ships, the Revelation relies heavily on its host of Psintegrat. These psychic adepts are capable of shutting down both enemy ships and structures, including starbases. Additionally, they can focus their minds to support nearby friendly forces by boosting their psi ... [read more]

8/13/2025 By Yarlen in Sins Dev Journals

Sins II Video Blog: Early Capital Ship Choices

Choosing Your Capital Ship: The Key to Early Success in Sins of a Solar Empire II The beginning of a Sins of a Solar Empire II game is crucial, as your early choices can shape your entire strategy. One of the most pivotal decisions is selecting the Capital Ship that will lead your first fleet. In our latest video, we break down the five Capital Ships available to each of the three playable races, highlighting their strengths and how they can help you tackle the early game challenges. Whethe... [read more]

8/6/2025 By wasabi_md in Sins Dev Journals

Announcing: Massive Scale RTS Game Ashes of the Singularity II

Highly anticipated sequel features larger battles, advanced units, and a new campaign to lead humanity against hostile AI takeover Wishlist Ashes II Now Stardock and Oxide Games today announced Ashes of the Singularity II , the highly anticipated sequel to the groundbreaking, massive-scale RTS that redefined real-time strategy gaming a decade ago. Set to release in 2026, exactly ten years after the original, the game invites players to engage in strategic battles of unprecedented scale,... [read more]

8/6/2025 By redskittlesonly in Stardock Entertainment Announcements

Ashes II Dev Journal #1: Welcome to Ashes of the Singularity II

Welcome to Ashes of the Singularity II Wishlist Now Reaching the stars will take more than just energy; it will take intelligence. Turinium became the currency of intelligence, for both sentient and non-sentient computing alike. Could most of mankind be content with merely possessing superhuman intelligence, rather than true omniscience? Yes. But could all of mankind? No. Welcome to Ashes of the Singularity II , a real-time strategy game about epic warfare over... [read more]

8/6/2025 By Oxide_BrettN in Ashes Dev Journals

v1.43 Objective Reality Update Now Available for Sins of a Solar Empire II

"Objective Reality" Update Brings Missions, Visual Enhancements, and New Gravity Wells Get Sins II Now   |  Full Changelog The latest update for Sins of a Solar Empire II, version 1.43, titled "Objective Reality," introduces several key changes aimed at enhancing the gameplay experience for both newcomers and seasoned players alike. A New Mission System for Learning and Rewards This update introduces a new mission system designed to help players learn the game without ... [read more]

7/31/2025 By redskittlesonly in Sins of a Solar Empire News

Sins II Dev Journal: Combat Geometry Pt. 2 - Missiles and Point Defense

Today we’re continuing our series about combat geometry with our resident Sins designer, Conor Harris (Sovereign Echo). Missiles are a unique weapon in Sins of a Solar Empire 2. They are closer to a unit in many respects, with distinct interactions at both the physics simulation and mathematical damage layers of the combat system. As with the previous Combat Geometry dev diary , we will begin with an obvious yet an important statement: Missiles must strike their target in order to d... [read more]

7/30/2025 By Unikraken in Sins Dev Journals

Dev Journal #3: What's Next for Ara: History Untold?

Ara: What’s Next? Last month’s release of Version 1.4 seemed to be well received. It marked the first update since we assumed responsibility for Ara: History Untold so we were pretty excited and nervous. It’s been a great experience! The teams at Oxide and Microsoft have been wonderful to work with and now we’re ready to start talking about what’s next. Who are you? You probably don’t know me but I know you. Or at least, I’d like to thin... [read more]

7/28/2025 By wasabi_md in Ara: History Untold Dev Journals

Epic Fantasy Strategy Game, Elemental Returns as Elemental: Reforged

Stardock Entertainment announced today Elemental: Reforged , a definitive re-imagining of the ambitious fantasy 4X strategy series Elemental . Integrating the strongest elements from Elemental: War of Magic , Fallen Enchantress , and Sorcerer King , Elemental: Reforged finally brings to life the comprehensive vision originally set out nearly two decades ago. First conceived in 2008 following Stardock’s successes with Galactic Civilizations II and ... [read more]

7/24/2025 By redskittlesonly in Stardock Entertainment Announcements

Sins II Video Blog: Multiplayer Battles

Exploring the Thrilling Multiplayer Experience of Sins of a Solar Empire II The multiplayer scene in Sins of a Solar Empire II can be ruthless and invigorating, offering challenging battles while fighting with or against human players. Watch as we dig into the notable multiplayer maps found in Sins II and discover some popular ways to gain supremacy.   [read more]

7/23/2025 By wasabi_md in Sins Dev Journals

GalCiv IV Dev Journal #106: Organic Difficulty in GalCiv IV

Galactic Civilizations IV’s depth is its greatest strength, but it can often be the biggest barrier to entry for new players too. I don’t think any long-time fan of the series will disagree that to get the best out of GalCiv, you kind of need to have played GalCiv a fair bit first. GalCiv IV is no exception here, and after talking to people who struggle with the game, and reading comments online I see a lot of misunderstanding about how the game is put together in terms of it’s design deci... [read more]

7/17/2025 By BATTLEMODE in GalCiv IV Dev Journals

Sins II Ship Series: The Advent Halcyon Carrier

The assignment of choice for many Advent novitiates is the Halcyon-class carrier. With its ability to host as many as 13 squadrons of Drone Anima strikecraft, there’s always high demand for remote pilots. As novitiates gain experience, they may be elevated to a Psintegrat choir, taking on the responsibility for providing support actions like Telekinetic Push. The Halcyon’s drone anima gives it excellent power projection, while still providing support for its accompanying fleet. The t... [read more]

7/16/2025 By Yarlen in Sins Dev Journals

v3.01 Update Now Available - Galactic Civilizations IV

The v3.01 update for Galactic Civilizations IV brings adjustments for enhancing gameplay. Full Changelog Below  |  Get GalCiv IV Now The map generation settings for "Sector Layout" and "Hyperlane Frequency" have been tweaked to increase the likelihood of clustered hyperlanes, improving navigation and strategy. Multiplayer functionality has been addressed, fixing a bug that prevented players from loading into games larger than 32MB, as well as resolving an issue that restricted ... [read more]

7/16/2025 By redskittlesonly in GalCiv News

Sins II: Behind the Scenes - Advent Concept Art Showcase

We had the pleasure of collaborating with TransPerfect Gaming on some of the 3D and concept art for Advent in Sins 2 . I believe now is the perfect opportunity to share some of that stunning concept art with the community. TransPerfect played a vital role in bringing Sins of a Solar Empire 2 to completion, and we are immensely grateful for the care and dedication they invested in helping us shape the latest title in the Sins universe. You can find these ... [read more]

7/2/2025 By Unikraken in Sins Dev Journals

Sins II Video Blog: Advent Assimilation Protocol

Unleashing the Advent: Strategies for Dominating in Sins of a Solar Empire II The Advent war machine has returned with a vengeance, catching both the Traders and their Vasari adversaries off guard and opening a new front in the ongoing intergalactic war. Unlike their rivals, the Advent employ a more subtle approach to conquest, utilizing psychological warfare, religious indoctrination, and powerful psychic abilities as they expand their reach across the galaxy. At the forefront of their ... [read more]

6/25/2025 By wasabi_md in Sins Dev Journals

GalCiv IV Dev Journal #105: v3.0 Update - Drengin Human Wars XXVII Pt. 3

The Battle of Ivan’s Star Task Force Kenga included an Ann Arbor class Destroyer as well as the original TAS Gibraltar. It was evenly matched with the Drengin fleet. But the Drengin had something that the humans did not: Long-ranged missiles These instantly took out the Frigates. The Drengin Doom Giver class had twice the armor as the Terrans who relied heavily on shields. Shields are indeed very useful but having the shields annihilated before they reached weapon ra... [read more]

6/19/2025 By Frogboy in GalCiv IV Dev Journals

Historical Strategy Game Ara: History Untold Gets Ambitious New Update

Version 1.4 "The Living Strategy Update" Adds a new Living Strategy Game View, Improves AI, Reduces Micromanagement Get Ara: History Untold for 50% Off: Steam Stardock Entertainment and Oxide Games, in partnership with Xbox Game Studios, today announced the release of a major update to their ambitious new turn-based strategy game, Ara: History Untold today. This update marks the first significant content release for the title since Stardock assumed direct oversight of the game's ongoing ... [read more]

6/18/2025 By wasabi_md in Ara: History Untold News

Untold Scenarios DLC Now Available for Ara: History Untold

Untold Scenarios DLC Now Available for Ara: History Untold Get it Now: Steam | Microsoft Stardock Entertainment and Oxide Games, in partnership with Xbox Game Studios, today announced the release of the Untold Scenarios DLC for the historical strategy game Ara: History Untold. Untold Scenarios includes several different situations to choose from, which place you right in the center of critical moments in human history as well as some hypothetical “what-if” scenarios ... [read more]

6/18/2025 By wasabi_md in Ara: History Untold News

Sins II Ship Series: The Advent Progenitor Mothership

The Progenitor Mothership is another core capital ship of the Advent fleet. Equipped not only with ‘colonization’ (read: occupation) pods, the Progenitor also employs more than a thousand Psintegrat that allows the Unity to practically bend reality to their will. Despite the versatility of its abilities, the Progenitor is not designed to be a front-line unit like the Radiance Battleship. Instead, it helps to augment and support Advent forces from a distance. Armament 2 x Heavy Plasma ... [read more]

6/18/2025 By Yarlen in Sins Dev Journals

GalCiv IV Dev Journal #104: v3.0 Update - Drengin Human Wars XXVII Pt.2

Two years later The Atherish Sector continued to develop. The Terran Alliance in this sector was pondering whether it was worthwhile to trade with the Drengin in this sector. After all, the two civilizations were not actually at war. There was actually no specific treaty stipulation that said that the Drengin were to be confined to their homeworld after the war. It’s just that no one foresaw the development of slipstreams opening up far flung parts of the Milky Way Galaxy. Ins... [read more]

6/16/2025 By Frogboy in GalCiv IV Dev Journals

Massive v3.0 Hyperlane Update Now Out for Galactic Civilizations IV

Massive Space 4X Strategy Game, Galactic Civilizations IV Version 3.0 Now Available A year’s worth of feedback, suggestions and general improvements make their way into Stardock’s massive update.  Join us today from 1pm - 3pm EST for a livestream event on Steam ! Full Changelog Here   |  Buy GalCiv IV   Steam, Epic Games Store , or Direct from Stardock Stardock Entertainment has released the v3.0 Hyperlane Update of its space strategy... [read more]

6/12/2025 By redskittlesonly in GalCiv News

GalCiv IV Dev Journal #103: v3.0 Update - Drengin Human Wars XXVII Pt. 1

Background The Terran Alliance was formed shortly after the confirmation of intelligent life in the galaxy following a probe from a mysterious alien civilization known as the Arcean Empire. This contact soon resulted in the development of FTL travel which quickly spread throughout this area of the known galaxy which inevitably led to an encounter with the quadrant’s most powerful civilization, the Drengin Empire. The saga of the various conflicts between the Drengin and the coaliti... [read more]

6/12/2025 By Frogboy in GalCiv IV Dev Journals

Sins II Video Blog: The Vasari War Doctrine

Mastering the Vasari: A Tactical Guide to Sins of a Solar Empire II The Vasari are not just a faction; they are a relentless force of nature, honed by centuries of survival against an all-consuming nightmare. Their martial prowess is both terrifying and effective, blending asymmetric warfare tactics with advanced Phase Space technology. If you’re looking to elevate your gameplay in Sins of a Solar Empire II, you’ve come to the right place. Today, we’ll explore some of the ... [read more]

6/11/2025 By wasabi_md in Sins Dev Journals

Dev Journal #2 - A Preview of the v1.4 "Living Strategy" Update for Ara: History Untold

Hey everyone, It’s been about a month since we took on the responsibility of overseeing the design and production of this ambitious new historical 4X strategy game. Stardock has been making turn-based 4X strategy games since the 1990s and we have really loved the opportunity of working with our friends and colleagues at Oxide Games and Microsoft. For the first week, we dug deep into player feedback to identify the core areas of the game that needed meaningful improvement. With the up... [read more]

6/11/2025 By wasabi_md in Ara: History Untold Dev Journals

GalCiv IV Release Day Livestream: v3.0 Hyperlane Update

Attention, Galactic Civilizations fans! We are thrilled to announce an exciting livestream event showcasing the highly anticipated v3.0 Hyperlane Update! Join us as we delve into the universe of Galactic Civilizations IV and explore the groundbreaking features that will elevate your gameplay experience to new heights.   📅 Thursday, June 12, 2025 at 1:00 PM EST 📍Location: Galactic Civilizations IV Steam Page   Some of the major updates in the Galactic Civilizations IV Hyperla... [read more]

6/10/2025 By redskittlesonly in GalCiv News

GalCiv IV Dev Journal #102: UI Improvements in v3.0

Improvements to a game’s user interface go a long way towards improving the experience you’ll get when you’re playing it. The v3.0 Hyperlane update made some significant changes to gameplay, which we’ve covered in the past few developer journals, but today we’ll take a quick look at the new UI features that it adds too. One of the most essential changes we’ve made to the user interface comes in the form of a much improved Civilization Data Tab. There’s been some major reorganisation to make... [read more]

6/5/2025 By BATTLEMODE in GalCiv IV Dev Journals

Sins II: Inside the Hive - Building the Vasari Hive Asteroid

In a galaxy defined by exodus, exploitation, and extinction, the Vasari have always been in motion. As part of this year’s updates to Sins of a Solar Empire II , we asked ourselves: What happens when some Vasari stop running? That question became the foundation for the Vasari Hive Asteroid, a rare planetary gravity well that flips expectations. Not a base built on an asteroid, but one burrowed deep within it. A city inverted. A colony that reflects not hope or conquest, but resignatio... [read more]

6/4/2025 By Unikraken in Sins Dev Journals

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