AI Turrets and the like in AI War 2

[Ovalcircle]

I've noticed some (obvious) differences between AIWC and AI War 2. The biggest one being turrets. I'm pretty sure in the first one there were no AI turrets. In AI War 2, there are AI turrets. This seems to show that the AI has re-purposed Human tech to work for it. My point is, this time around, it actually feels like Humanity was once very powerful (embroiled in a civil war, but still).

My main point is that the AI feels less "alien", I guess. Which is a good thing. You can see how the AI has taken over Human tech and used it to nearly destroy Humanity from within. Yeah, the AI had command stations and stuff in AIWC, but I never really looked at the 2d sprites in detail (Sorry ). But now, with the 3d visuals providing more in-depth details, I can see how the AI has been influenced by the designs of Humanity. It still has its own original ideas (Guardians, Warp gates, the Overlord, Guardposts, etc).

Basically, I really like how the AI has more Human tech this time.

 

[x4000]

Awesome!  Glad to hear it.

That was basically always the goal, but I'm glad it's coming through in this game.

[Draco18s]

I'm pretty sure in the first one there were no AI turrets.

There were, once, a long time ago.

[x4000]

I can't remember when we took those out, or why.  Maybe in 4.x?  Basically that was when "guard posts that can attack and are differentiated" were introduced, and maybe those replaced turrets.

[Ovalcircle]

I looked in the AIWC patch notes to find out why they were taken out, since the comments in this topic interested me and this is what I found:

From https://wiki.arcengames.com/index.php?title=AI_War:4.000_Release (using CRTL+F and searching for "turret")

    AI's no longer use any form of turrets, and any turrets that the AIs did have are now removed from old savegames (including turret remains). This includes sniper turrets, spider turrets, tractor beams, the works.

    Larger-form AI-only replacements for some of the more notably types of turrets will see a resurgence, but they will be easier to see (and thus to strategize against). This will also have a positive performance impact, with fewer AI units doing the job of a larger number of older turrets.

    The emphasis is instead on letting the AIs make use of their ship caps with mobile ships that actually pose a natural form of counterattack risk to players (and which are more interesting, anyway, in the hands of the AI).

    Part of the reason for the shift away from just huge numbers of fleet ships is our new emphasis on larger centerpieces. The AIs have massive new command stations and guard posts, as well as mobile Guardians that not only defend but launch often-brutal counterattacks. Going along with these are the exciting new AI Eye that emphasizes de-blobbing, the new AI Barracks that lets the AIs store up overflow reinforcements for later use, and the AI Carriers which are the late-game AI equivalent of transports. All of these new things take the place of turrets, which the AI no longer uses at all, and in general they lead to a vastly different feel of game. It's a lot quicker to resolve battles (without making you rushed—just no longer a grind), and in general it makes planets feel more unique and fun before you even get into the various special weapons that have always been a cornerstone of AI War.