Why Early Access?

“The Price of Empire is already a complete, playable strategy game: the whole Earth as a map, your own nation, economy, research, war and diplomacy, up to 20 AI rivals on four levels, and multiplayer for up to four players.

I develop the game on my own. But a strategy game of this size only gets really good through many, many matches: whether a victory condition is too easy, whether the AI rivals act smart, whether wars stay exciting in the late game, whether the prices on the world market feel right – all of this only shows when many people play on many different worlds.

Early Access gives me exactly that: feedback on balance, AI and controls, experience with multiplayer over all kinds of connections, and performance data from all kinds of hardware – the game has a built-in benchmark for that. I want to keep developing the game together with its players instead of guessing on my own what they are missing.”

Approximately how long will this game be in Early Access?

“I expect the game to stay in Early Access for about six to twelve months. The exact timing depends mostly on player feedback: the full version should be released once balance, AI and multiplayer hold up well over many matches and the most important player requests have been addressed – not on a fixed date.”

How is the full version planned to differ from the Early Access version?

“The full version will build on what is already there and above all make it more polished and deeper. As of today, the plans include:

- Warships and naval battles – right now troops can only be shipped across the sea, all fighting happens on land
- Smarter AI rivals, especially in the late game and in long-running wars
- Balance refinements: economy, the cost of expansion, battles, research and victory conditions
- Better performance on weaker PCs, especially laptops without a dedicated graphics card
- Polish for controls, texts and the in-game manual

What exactly gets added, and in which order, depends on player feedback. These plans may change along the way.”

What is the current state of the Early Access version?

“The Price of Empire is playable from start to finish. It includes:

World
- The whole Earth as a 3D map with more than 150,000 land hexes, real elevation, climate zones, forests, rivers and lakes
- Territories that ignore today's borders; found your own nation wherever you like

Game modes
- Single player against up to 20 AI rivals on four levels (Easy to Hardcore), each with its own character from Normal up
- Multiplayer for up to 4 players via Steam or LAN, alongside AI rivals; matches can be saved together and continued
- Three victory conditions (hold territories, conquer nations, score points) in three lengths each – or an open game without an end

Economy and research
- Wood, iron, coal and oil; cities in five stages, mines, harbors, factories, barracks
- A world market with shifting prices
- Administration costs that grow with the size of your realm
- Research in six branches

War and diplomacy
- Eight unit types, battles with strength and morale, supply, fortifications and sieges, shipping troops across the sea, fog of war
- Defensive alliances, non-aggression pacts, rights of passage, supply contracts

Also
- A guided start for your first match and a detailed in-game manual
- Save games and autosave, photo mode, built-in benchmark
- Fully playable in English and German

Known limitations
- No warships or naval battles yet
- If an update changes the map, older save games can no longer be loaded
- In multiplayer, all players need the same version of the game
- On PCs without a dedicated graphics card, the game runs smoothly only on the lowest graphics preset; in the late game with many units it can stutter there
- Windows only”

Will the game be priced differently during and after Early Access?

“Yes. During Early Access the game costs less than the full version will. The price will rise step by step as updates add more content, and at the latest with the full release. Buying now means paying the lowest price, and all updates up to the full version are included at no extra cost. I will announce any price change in advance in the Steam news.”

How are you planning on involving the Community in your development process?

“Player feedback decides what I work on next.

- Steam discussions: this is where I collect bug reports, suggestions and questions. I read along and reply in English and German.
- Discord: for quick exchange, questions and ideas – and for trying out new updates early with volunteers.
- Steam news: every update comes with notes on what changed and why. I will put bigger plans up for discussion there in advance.
- Easy bug reports: the game keeps a log and stores save games as files – both can be attached to a report so I can reproduce the problem exactly. Multiplayer has its own report in case a match gets out of sync.
- Performance data: the built-in benchmark creates a file with the results for your own PC. These numbers help me improve the game specifically for weaker hardware.
- In the first weeks after launch I plan especially frequent updates to fix reported bugs quickly.”