As soon as we hear about The Ants, a familiar feeling runs through us: that of Bernard Werber's cult novel. The science fiction work that combines exploration of a little-known microcosm and philosophical intrigue has left its mark on an entire generation. The Microids studio, in close collaboration with the author, wanted to exploit this literary heritage by infusing the game The Ants with meticulous respect for Werber's universe. At Gamescom 2024, we were able to get our hands on the insect Game of Thrones, and we loved it.
A deep but accessible strategic gameplay
For an hour and a half, we were able to test out a few facets of the game, in complete autonomy or almost. Gameplay-wise, The Ants offers a hybrid experience that juggles exploration, real-time strategy and tower defense elements. In a sort of hub, it was possible to access three distinct missions. In the first mission, which focused on exploration, you had to catch fireflies, while skillfully maneuvering between blades of grass and natural obstacles and the ant's own movements, all from an immersive third-person perspective.
The second mission combined escorts and strategy, a key aspect of the game that requires protecting certain members of the colony while maintaining resource management and position defense. The third, more focused on pure strategy, resembled a tower defense game, where you had to build nests and strengthen your troops to prepare for a massive enemy attack, reminiscent of fights similar to those in a game like Rust.
Getting to grips with 360° movement can be disorienting at first, especially because of the precision needed to sneak through this microscopic world, where every twig can be an obstacle. However, we notice that this difficulty is compensated for by almost perfect handling, as well as a satisfactory movement speed. The initial difficulty therefore diminishes over time, and we learn to use these controls optimized for the controller with fluidity.
Although real-time strategy games often adopt the top-down view, this choice in no way hinders ergonomics. The gameplay is organic and intuitive, the developers have ensured this, without skimping on the tactical aspect of the game. The management of nests, as well as resources, different units and time, is essential to achieve victory.
Stunning graphics
But what would be the advantage of the game if we stopped at a simple good strategic experience? The visual aspect of The Ants is also simply stunning. From its first trailers, the title had sold us a dream, all that remained was to see the result with the controller in hand. Powered by the Unreal Engine 5, the game reaches levels of realism rarely seen in this type of production. What is immediately striking is the quality of the graphics in the game which are up to the impressive cutscenes that we had already seen before the release. The development team, made up of around twenty people who have been working on the project for three years, has been able to take advantage of the graphics engine's capabilities to create rich and immersive environments that can be adapted in real time.
The insect animations are also incredibly realistic. Ants cling to twigs and navigate between the smallest grasses with a natural fluidity, making the progression in organic environments both fascinating and dangerous. The attention to detail – from the insects’ textures to the lighting effects – contributes to this impression of diving directly into an animal documentary, due to the mimicry of the gameplay, which transcribes the behaviors and roles of the insects.
Final impressions: a convincing experience
After an hour and a half of play, the conclusion is clear: The Ants promises to be an undeniable success. In any case, it is one of the games that will have most marked our time at Gamescom 2024. The care taken in the fidelity of Werber's universe, mixed with impressive graphics and well-designed strategic gameplay, makes it an extremely promising title.
While some players might be slightly destabilized by the 360° handling, it only takes a few minutes to take the measure of this separate world and take full advantage of it. In short, The Ants promises to be one of the titles to watch this year. It releases November 7 on consoles and PC.
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