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[EMcNeill]

I've just released my game Aurora, an abstracted RTS in the vein of Galcon or Eufloria.

As a promotion, I'm making the game free for its first day online, so get it while it's hot!

Let me know what y'all think.

[Widget]

I've been trying to get into it this-evening but I think I must be hopeless at it. The game's great (graphically, musically, ease-of-control) but every map I try just bogs down into a stalemate.

Each of the AIs and me all pick up the easy targets at the start (corners of the triangle, spokes on the Y-shaped map) and after that we're all so evenly matched we can't break the deadlock. I've tried choosing less obvious suns to target, focusing on territory over upgrading and focusing on upgrading over spreading widely. I've also tried staying back to stockpile units but the AIs just keep whittling them down anyway. Sometimes unconventional tactics break the logjam but only by making me an easy target. I either leave myself wide open due to an indefensible empire or stuck with too few units to hold the line.

Is there something obvious I'm not picking up?

[EMcNeill]

No, breaking the stalemate is the game's central puzzle.

[Danmark]

Just finished all the easiest levels. It's quite a game, and I'm sure to play through it all (assuming I'm worthy).

I love how bizarre the solutions can be. I don't recall ever seeing a game that more successfully explored the boundary between strategy and puzzle games.

Biding your time is an important strategy, since you're often best off letting your opponents whittle down each others' numbers. Considering that, you ought to be able to compress time, which would also help with the dull early stages of matches. On the other hand, it could make players too slow to react to enemy mobilizations.

My biggest problem, exacerbated by the waiting game as discussed above, is with the way ships are dispatched. It seems you can only order ships to locations as they come, and cannot in addition set rally points for planets. This makes dexterity an inappropriate part of the challenge in certain situations. More importantly, it makes an extended play session a tedious, RSI-inducing struggle. Endlessly cycling through your stars and dragging your ships to locations that seldom change feels like the worst kind of busywork. I find this the only major obstacle to enjoyment of this game.

I realize that resolving either of these problems (assuming you consider them as such) would threaten the game's minimalism. Perhaps in dispensing with the most basic player aid, the game is too minimal.

[Eclipse]

downloading it right now, seems quite interesting

[iffi]

Is there any way to run the game windowed rather than fullscreen? I do think it looks better fullscreened, but I'd also like the option to run it in a window. Having the option to mute the music so one can just listen to the sound effects would be nice as well.

I agree with Que that you should be able to set rally points. That would significantly reduce the tedium of repeatedly ordering units to move from remote planets to where the battles are actually happening.
Also regarding the interface, is there a way to easily divide a planet's units into two or three groups and order each to move to a different planet? It's sometimes hard to estimate where to divide the units with the circular selection.

That said, this game is quite enjoyable to play. I especially liked the sound effects when units are attacking each other!