Empire of the Undergrowth: How to raise an ant colony?
Ants have always fascinated mankind so no wonder there have been ant-based simulation games since the DOS era. There were the Sim Ant and Empire of the ants. Nowadays it’s a huge selection of ant...
The game began in a lab with your formicarium (ant colony) which will be the HQ of your missions. The game takes place in a laboratory where you can set the options or you can exit. In the beginning, you have a queen in a nest, who lays eggs, and 2-3 workers. This shows the photorealistic and easy-to-look graphics of the game. The overall design and the soundtrack which come with it, make you feel like a real ant colony. There are documentary-like voice-overs.
Firstly, you can make space for growing more larvae and expand your colony. As you progress more and more options become available. You need to complete missions to unlock new ant types and rooms. You have to build carefully because a badly shaped colony can be attacked by hostile insects and you endanger your safety. In Between battles you can build more rooms and collect resources. Royal Jellybean is the most valuable resource you can gather. You can upgrade with it. You can improve speed, health, attack, and defense. It was fantastic to see how much the upgrades improved your army and the different tactical advantages they gave you. You would not find fantasy-related ants like in Empire of the Ants where you could breed ants with glue weapons and „tank”-ants.
You can go outside further in the game and you can discover the world of insects. You need stronger warrior ants to take out intruders in your colony or you can kill random bugs in the grass and bring them back as food. This game is about planning and making a good strategy. It is not as easy as Starcraft. The controls look like you just pick and play, but you need to be careful with your base. Fortunately, tips come from the game in the form of little lightbulb icons. They give you hints on what to do. The game tells if you are under attack or your storage is full of food so you can’t gather anymore. The use of exclamation marks on the map demonstrated danger and question marks, and resource materials (food). This simplistic mechanic made planning much easier.
Empires of the Undergrowth is a great RTS with educational elements. You can enjoy life as an ant and work your way through the different missions and each of their objectives. You must have a cautious mind and plan your approach at every stage. The educational elements are there, but it is not so overwhelming. Who does not like to learn about ants and insects? The controls are easy to pick up and play.
