Considering getting AI war. Couple questions.

[J HG T]

So, I found AI war through Distant Worlds (Which I just love) forums where one guy mentioned it. It sounded quite great and I went and watched some videos and trailers which got me even more excited. I downloaded the demo and been positively surprised. Great Neo-retro graphs, easy to play once learned, needs genuine thinking and tactics, extremely diverse and hefty arsenal of things to play with. Now I'm thinking about buying it from impulse.

So, my only consern here is that can the AI war be fully enjoyed in single-player? I've always been more single-player type of gamer who want's to enjoy games in their own pace. AI war seems to put great emphasis to its multiplayer co-op so this makes me think. I hope to get some advices from everybody who has been playing AI war. Although I have a feeling that I won't be disappointed with AI war I still wants some honest opinions from veterans.

[TheMachineIsSentient]

I would say just the reverse; it's really great single-player, and this is emphasized more than multiplayer.

Either way, it's a really good time, I hope you stick around on the forums. We have a nice little community going.

[keith.lamothe]

Welcome to the forums

Since you're asking about the enjoyability of the game rather than an objective does-it-do-this question I'll leave that to the people who don't derive income from the sales  But I know that the majority of players play single-player (as with almost all games that support both sp and mp), and have a lot of fun doing it.  And our design and efforts are certainly based on making that both experiences be fully enjoyable.

[Diazo]

Pretty much pure single player here and I'm having a blast with it.

Easily my most played game for the past several months.

D.

[Ktoff]

I have almost exclusively played this game in Single-player mode and it has been really fun. Especially since the game is under constant development and gets constant updates and additional content, this is the game i spent most time playing. I think one of the older Civs might be the only game i have spent more time on...

The multiplayer game is not all that different, even if it is a different experience. It basically is the same game, only with more aggressive AI, more resources and of course the fun shared with other players and one of the few games that is so consequently coop.

In summary it is a brilliant game that becomes even more fun when played with others. However, i have managed to finish almost no game due to the length of one session and the difficulty to coordinate the free time. Buy it! You will rarely get this much fun for your money. In fact, buy two and give one to a friend :-)

[J HG T]

Thanks for the comments. I'd probably bought it anyway sometime, but after those recommendations seems like I'm buying it sooner than later. Ironic; Earlier this year I was mourning the complete lack of great, fun and easy to play epic sci-fi strategy games, and surprise, surprise: Now I have both AI war and Distant Worlds eating up my already crowded gaming-freetime. Being hardcore gamer is like hard work you enjoy.

[Vinraith]

Speaking as a primarily single player gamer (who gets annoyed with games that favor MP), AI War is one of the best single player strategy games I've ever encountered. While co-op is fun, it's really just multiple people controlling what one person would control in single player, so you're not missing out on anything by playing solo.

[Spikey00]

We're glad you are enjoying the game, OP!  Remember there are the expansions for AI War which add more content:  the Zenith Remnant (a lot more content, ships, map types, AI types, minor factions) and Children of Neinzul (cheap micro-expansion, introduces more AI-oriented additions along with more map types and ships).

All the best!

[J HG T]

Sure do Spikey. Was my plan pretty much from the start. "The more content the better" is what I think of most games. Especially about grand scale strategy games.

[Spikey00]

Definitely!  I'm usually a single-player person too, though I do have small two-three player games occasionally (actually more so in AI War).

Hope you enjoy the game and dissolve well into our community!

[Mánagarmr]

I do both SP and MP and I can say that while MP definately offers more enjoyment for me (due to shared joy being double joy), SP is a blast nontheless. You definately do not miss out by not playing MP. In no way, AI War is as excellent no matter if you play it SP or MP.

[Lancefighter]

Speaking on distant words, has it gotten any better recently? 

I'm mostly SP myself, but only because I'm not that active in seeking out people to play with.. AI war is certainly worth playing both ways, and I've put a good deal of time into AIwar games..

[superking]

I play AI war almost exclusively SP and it has kept me hooked for nearly 5 months now

[RooksBailey]

I'm a new recruit to the AI War front and can say that the single player experience is great fun!  I have five hours in my current campaign and the game really is getting me to think!  I just survived a massive assault on a Golem I captured...that AI attack left me exhausted!  Now I'm afraid to tick off the AI any more!    Very few games do that to me!

So, yes!, this game is great for a single player experience.  Just a heads up:  GamersGate has a bundle deal for AI War and the Zenith Remnant expansion (20% off).

PS:  After playing AI War, I would like to hear your thoughts on how Distant Worlds compares to it.  That game looks interesting, but I hear it needs a patch or two yet, so I've been waiting to give it a try.  I wish a demo would come out....

[Fleet]

I've played AI War for about a year now. so heed my word!

Although AI War is designed to have great multiplayer mechanics, this is in addition to the solid single player experience. In multiplayer, some changes are made to tweak the difficulty to make it appropriate. But apart from the social experience of co-op, you are not missing anything.

If you already know you are comfortable playing single player, I 100% recommend a purchase. If you like to play solo, you lose nothing except for the blindingly obvious (not playing with other people).

I'm more of a co-op guy myself. I like to play with a friend, and I tab out all the time to read forums. Its very casual for me, although I do play on the higher difficulties so its not like I don't pay attention.

I've put many, many hours into this game. Re-playability will last you for years. And that means you are getting great value for the purchase price.

And these developers work with the community to make the game better and fix bugs all the time, responding personally to many topics. Although they are busy!