The Return of the RTS Golden Age

For fans of RTS games, Apoceus is a love letter to the genres Golden Age, blending the timeless appeal of classic RTS gameplay with the power and scale of modern systems. By combining traditional mechanics like resource gathering and base building with unprecedented scalefeaturing upscaled units and colossal battles - Apoceus delivers a fresh yet familiar experience. Were deeply inspired by our predecessors, and are heavily influenced by the pioneering success of Age of Empires and the StarCraft franchise, amongst others. The revolutionary and lasting legacy of these titles inspires us to craft something innovative and unique with Apoceus.

Old with the new: tradition interwoven with innovation!

At the outset, I would like to place our glorious forerunners colossal impact under a magnifying glass. This will allow us to hone in on their vast successes and illustrate why we think these breakthroughs should remain fundamental in the inception of our RTS. Age of Empires was a deeply transformative entry into the real time strategy genre, showcasing the depth of economic and territorial management interwoven with diverse factions, rich historical setting and vast control over base construction and management. These features gave the game staying power, with dedicated discord communities spanning the world over continuing to mod the game, host competitions and maintain its legendary, undying status.
AoE seamlessly blended historical authenticity with gameplay innovation, with each civilization offering distinct benefits, tech trees, and units. This served to immerse its players in a world steeped in historically intriguing narratives, varying and advanced gameplay loops which lent themselves to endless replayability. Now that weve examined the pillars upon which AoE built its success and how they came to shape our own vision, lets open up the tech research tree and examine possible paths forward, with modern capabilities.

Building on a Legacy

Scaling Battles: Colossal Conflicts at Your Command

The pinnacle of Apoceus is the leviathan scale of the combat encounters on offer. Whilst AoE was able to capitalise on meticulously engineered skirmishes and raids, Apoceus enlarges and intensifies gameplay by offering upscaled unit sizes and being able to field a vast amount of troops on the battlefield. With a greater host, there is more at stake, and a greater success to be had when the enemy is decimated!
Armies clash in a way that feels epic and overwhelming, offering a visceral experience of commanding a true RTS battlefield. Were thankful to be living in an era of constant hardware and software evolution, enabling the innovations outlined above through modern systems that are equipped to handle just that. This way, Apoceus will be able to stay true to its concept of bringing to life a spectacle that appeals to players seeking both a visually striking experience and strategic challenges to overcome.

Master the Supply Game

In Apoceus, resource gathering is fundamentally inspired by the delightful simplicity of AoEs medieval economy but expands on its premise with a bit of dwarven flavour. Rich veins of ore and other materials become critical to powering both structures associated with traditional RTS (House, barracks) and blending this with newer innovations employed by our dwarven engineers. (Airship workshop, and the like)
This blend of old and new adds a layer of strategic depth to your playthrough without straying far from the core medieval RTS experience of swords, shields, and castle sieges. Ultimately, as a commander in Apoceus, youve got to adapt your tactics to carefully balance the extraction of those later stage materials while preparing for massive, upscaled battles. This serves to ensure a dynamic and rewarding gameplay loop that blends innovation with tradition.

Closing thoughts

Were fortunate to be developing Apoceus at a time of unparalleled modern capabilities. Our teams are able to put together something truly captivating, by interweaving quality of life allowed by these steps forward since the dawn of the Golden Era. From UI enhancements to the sheer scale of units permissible within the game, and unique environments, Apoceus delivers on the premise of those fundamental aspects of the games that pioneered the genre. Whilst amalgamating newer innovations for a fresher take that brings something new and exciting. The result is a game that feels both nostalgic and groundbreaking, offering a bridge for veteran RTS players and an inviting entry point for newcomers. Enjoyed reading about our game? Get involved by joining our Discord community! Links Community Discord

[ 2024-12-18 15:08:50 CET ] [ Original post ]