- Publisher: Microids
- Release Date: Nov 6, 2024
- Also On: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X
- Critic score
- Publication
- By date
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Nov 13, 2024Empire of the Ants is a gorgeous video game that gives players an ant’s eye view of both combat and platforming. It looks spectacular most of the time, especially the environments, but takes plenty of liberties when it comes to ant society and general creature abilities to create a decent narrative. The strategy game elements work well, although there aren't many complex systems to master, while platforming feels unnecessary. The single-player campaign offers some interesting tactical challenges, and the free-for-all three-sided multiplayer is pretty exciting. Empire of the Ants does not innovate much but offers a unique strategy experience.
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Nov 4, 2024Out of nowhere a small ant comes and overturns the entire gaming industry, showing that knowing one's limit and enduring in creating something unique and true to its nature can be much more rewarding than following the law of the market. Empire of the Ants is a feast for the senses and arguably one of the best games of the year. A masterclass on how to bring videogames to the next level.
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Nov 4, 2024Empire of the Ants is wonderful for many reasons. First of all, it is wonderful to look at, and then it is also wonderful for its naturalistic value, for the theme that is rarely seen in video games and for how it manages to open our eyes to a world that is everywhere around us, but we do not see. From a gaming point of view, the developers have created a gameplay that is not very deep, perhaps to attract a wider audience, and this brings with it some limitations that could alienate veterans of strategy games.
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Nov 4, 2024Empire of the Ants looks great and, despite some texture issues, presents a visually impressive, convincingly insectoid world. This, alongside some fairly engaging RTS bug-on-bug battles, scratches a specific itch and makes for a unique game worth trying.
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Nov 4, 2024A unique genre mix, Empire of the Ants positively surprised me with its beauty, story, and smooth controls. Tower Five and Microids didn’t deliver perfection, but something thoroughly enjoyable.
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Nov 18, 2024The beautiful Empire of the Ants is more than just exceptional graphics, but it can’t reach its full potential.
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Nov 15, 2024Quotation forthcoming.
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Nov 6, 2024Empire of the Ants is one of the most visually-stunning strategies I have ever played. However, the game suffers from a clear lack of strong identity. It is an entertaining and novel experience with unique perspective and impressive visual prowess for a short while, but it is up to you to decide whether it is worth its price.
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Jan 2, 2025This iteration of Empire of the Ants is certainly an improvement over the original game released over 20 years ago. It looks absolutely gorgeous and has a fitting soundscape to boot. The lack of micromanagement makes it more accessible for most but alienates those looking for the next coming of SimAnt. The strategy elements and platforming are basic, but the game remains enjoyable in short bursts. As a whole, it's a good game that you'll only jump into if you want something that feels strategic without going too deep into what the genre offers.
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Nov 28, 2024Accessible real-time strategy with stunning graphics and wasted potential. There was more potential!
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Nov 7, 2024Empire of the Ants is an original experience that combines real-time strategy with nature exploration, immersing players in the life of an ant within a miniature world. Powered by Unreal Engine 5, the game offers impressive, detailed visuals enhanced by an orchestral soundtrack that deepens the immersion. However, while the visuals are superb and unique, the gameplay sometimes feels too simplistic, especially during real-time strategy phases. Nonetheless, it remains a good experience, utterly fascinating for anyone with even a slight interest in nature.
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Nov 6, 2024Empire of the Ants is a beautiful and ambitious ant adventure that illustrates the universe at our feet in fantastic quality. Beyond its insect simulator, however, the real-time strategy falls a little short. There is too little variety in the missions, the controls offer too few tactical options and are a little too confusing when building the nests. In addition, there are strange exploration missions that contribute little to the plot, but are more annoying than enriching with their game mechanics. At least there is a multiplayer mode, but this also suffers from a lack of variety in the armies.
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Nov 22, 2024Empire of the Ants features a lavish rendering of the world from a few millimeters high, but fails at the basics of interesting RTS play.
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Nov 10, 2024Empire of the Ants is visually beautiful and narratively fascinating but isn’t consistently fun to play.
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Nov 7, 2024It's gorgeous to look at and has some depth to its tiny battles, but a lack of modes and unit variety means Empire of the Ants's multiplayer isn't likely to have a lot of legs.