Empire of the Ants Preview – Stirring up a stunning ants’ nest

thesixthaxis.com:

There’s a fascinating side to our natural world that we can only imagine. From the dark depths of the sea, to the leafy jungle canopy, and the uninhabited spaces in between, the world of Empire of the Ants might be closer to home, but it’s no less mysterious and unknown. You take control of ant 103.683e, planning, surviving and strategising in the midst of a micro-environment: the outdoors.

Based on the best-selling novels by Bernard Werber, Empire of the Ants charts a story set within the same world, putting you in direct command as leader of the antennaed forces.

What we’ve got here is fundamentally an RTS, though there’s a sleek fluidity and stripped-back feel to proceedings that should help it to be more accessible and approachable than some of the genre’s stalwarts. There are also different mission types that play with the formula, or even discard it completely, taking you away from commanding the army to go exploring the environment, collecting items, capturing creatures or even platforming, hopping from vibrant leaf to leaf.

There are three core troop types – Workers, Warriors and Ranged – with an ant-infused weapon triangle meaning that each is strong against one and weak against the other. That means that encounters and skirmishes require more than simply sending every ant in your nest in the same direction, placing the emphasis on choosing the correct unit to fight against the correct enemy.

It’s all very clearly orchestrated and organised, despite the myriad ants scurrying across the dirt. Each unit in your army and your enemy’s is indicated by a large, recognisable icon, and it’s these that you target rather than the ants that make up the units on the ground. You begin with five units, raising that number to seven once you’ve progressed, and once again there’s a focus on tight and controlled skirmishes rather than an overwhelming force. Admittedly, just one unit is made up of a multitude of ants, so it would otherwise get immediately overwhelming.

Perhaps