Empires of the Undergrowth

Empires of the Undergrowth is a real-time strategy game developed by Slug Disco Studios and published by Hooded Horse. Players control a colony of ants by expanding the colony, gathering resources, and fighting enemies in standard RTS fashion.

Empires of the Undergrowth
Developer(s)	Slug Disco Studios
Publisher(s)	Hooded Horse
Engine	Unreal Engine 4[1]
Platform(s)	Windows, MacOS
Release	June 7, 2024
Genre(s)	Real-time strategy
Mode(s)	Single-player

Gameplay

Gameplay:

In the main campaign, Players assume the responsibility of the ant colony that they are assigned to. Tasked with overseeing side missions that place them in challenging scenarios and dealing with their main colony of "Gene thief" ants, a fictional species of ant that steals genetic data from other species & adopting foreign ant larvae to grow them on their side. On side missions they must lead struggling or threatened ant colonies to success. Each side mission is narrated in a documentary style, with an in-game narrator providing both context and key information. The narrator offers insights into the situation of the ants and helps the player by alerting them to critical information, much like a nature documentary, creating an immersive and educational experience. Alongside other optional missions and gameplay included with the game.

Which are: a Sandbox mode, extra levels & few Demos for incoming levels, and few DLC.

Gameplay Loop:

The core gameplay loop involves completing these side missions, where players will experience different ant species and their unique abilities. Once the mission is complete, the player returns to the main colony—the Gene Thieves—where they are rewarded with resources from the laboratory scientists. These resources help to develop and strengthen the colony.

As the game progresses, the player unlocks the species they led in the side missions, integrating them into the Gene Thieves colony. Once a specific stage is complete, the laboratory staff will conduct a "test," sending in enemy forces such as rival colonies or other dangerous insects, small animals to challenge the player’s colony. The player must defend against these threats to prove the strength of their colony, progressing back to their main colony until deciding to head to the side missions once more.

Development

Developer Slug Disco Studios is based in the United Kingdom.^[2] Empires of the Undergrowth entered early access in December 2017. Hooded Horse released it for Windows on June 7, 2024.^[3]

Reception

PC Gamer called it "an absolutely excellent RTS".^[4] GamesRadar said it is a very satisfying SimAnt-style game.^[5] The Games Machine said it did nothing new and was missing several features common to real-time strategy games, such as multiplayer, but they enjoyed the variety of enemies and the boss battles.^[6]

Cancelled features

There were originally meant to be honeypot ants, bull ants, Saharan silver ants, and Rasberry crazy ants, although they were never added. The game was also meant to be a mobile game with tug-of-war like features above ground and a dungeon-keeper like underground game play.