Arcen games are each an unique niche gem. I am especially fond of AI wars. This new game turns the table around, and you now play an emerging distributed AI that just wants to... to do what exactly? The game reminds me of syndicate, with an added rich mix of borrowed events and reference from beloved sci-fi books and movies. It's clear the author puts much love in this game. The setting, when it unravels, is intriguing. And I'm curious to see how it will evolve during the next iterations. The game loop is already pretty good, especially for a game in early access. The game is already solid, and can only go better.
1st note: I'm not a native english speaker. Be indulgent with my language errors. 2nd note: [Fair Warning] this is not an everybody visual programming game. you will have to learn some (simple) assembly language mnemonics (and actually use your keyboard to type instructions). Don't be shy about it; you will learn to like it (because of its elegance). You will have to invest a bit of your time at first. And that time spent will be very rewarding. I'm afraid I'm a fan of Zachtronics games. Reasons are: - designing great programming puzzle games. - get rid of annoyances (that's the difference between a game and engineering: only the fun parts are in the game) - empower user/players with great tools, and some frustrating limitations to offer a challenge ;-) - fun stories along the way. - statistics about your performances, so you know how to improve your designs. That game is no exception, and follows the previous predicates. Emphasis is on: - coding behavior of EXA (a kind of bot) in a simple assembly language. - coordinating a fleet of EXAs to reach goals. - EXAs are like viruses: a self replicating efficient little code base. - comments in your code are your best friend (I really mean it :-). - Mike Resnick / William Gibson-like 90'cyberpunk scenario (for the best). If you want a bit of fun programming challenge, just buy it. BTW: if you finish the game, you may consider an engineering degree. ;-)
