Strategy games where the AI doesn't cheat?

[DakaSha]

Race for the Galaxy is a bit like competitive solitaire...

Yes it is. And im not saying everybody will like it. However when it comes to AI you cant beat it.
I did have fun with it. Its hard as fuck to learn though (for a card game)

I downloaded the opensource version and dont know what is going on. Is there a manual somewhere?

Yeah there is if you search around. Its gonna take some practice hehe

 

[Zeus]

Posted: Mon Apr 11, 2011 1:19 am

I'm playing Shadow Magic for the first time (having only played AoW1 previously), and I love it.

Posted: Thu Apr 21, 2011 12:34 am

I'm looking for a strategy game

Yeah, I'm looking for a strategy game where the AI doesn't cheat at higher difficulty levels. And, having played Shadow Magic, I'm still looking for it.

Now I'll see your and raise you a

 

[Lonely Vazdru]

Is that hand sign supposed to mean "zero" ?

 

[MetalCraze]

MAX doesn't cheat on higher difficulty levels, just gets more tricks unlocked (actually it cheats only on two highest ones but the game tells you that a la by selecting these two levels AI will have such advantage blablabla).

Also AI knowing your location there is kinda logical. I mean you are always on the opposite side of the map from AI. And so AI is from you.

 

[DakaSha]

MAX doesn't cheat on higher difficulty levels, just gets more tricks unlocked (actually it cheats only on two highest ones but the game tells you that a la by selecting these two levels AI will have such advantage blablabla).

Also AI knowing your location there is kinda logical. I mean you are always on the opposite side of the map from AI. And so AI is from you.

Yes with 4 players that are all supposedly against eachother

 

[DakaSha]

Is that hand sign supposed to mean "zero" ?

AoW could have much better random maps fanboy

 

[Lonely Vazdru]

Drop it kitty.

 

[GarfunkeL]

AI doesn't cheat in Paradox games if you play on "normal/normal". But then again, even with cheats the AI is hardly capable of "whipping you good". But it doesn't cheat.

Wasn't the AI supposed to be pretty good in GalCiv2?

 

[Malakal]

AI does cheat on normal/normal in Paradox games. For example it lacks naval attrition and in other areas simply plays by the different rules.

 

[MetalCraze]

Don't know which different rules you mean because I've never noticed AI suddenly having an advantage over me out of the blue. In fact at times fighting against Normal AI seems too easy.

Don't want to set it on hard though because that does make AI cheat. And cheat hard (like +25% of bonuses to every major combat/economics-related thing)

 

[Johannes]

There's pretty good AIs made for SC:BW, but then again if you want to play that why not just play vs humans when it's so easy to get and finish a game.

 

[DakaSha]

AI doesn't cheat in Paradox games if you play on "normal/normal". But then again, even with cheats the AI is hardly capable of "whipping you good". But it doesn't cheat.

Wasn't the AI supposed to be pretty good in GalCiv2?

Not good enough to justify playing it

 

[Mortmal]

That doesnt really exists , at some point you really need multiplayer and true opponents to have any challenge , try some dominion 3 . You probably played too many of those games to be tricked by any computer IA, it hasnt evolved much since i was playing them on floppy disk, for example civ 5 isnt more challenging than the very first one i got on the amiga.
The best ive found was gal civ, and even that wasnt truly hard, heart of iron and in overall paradox games already mentioned are pretty good too.

 

[ecliptic]

Galactic Civilizations II advertises its cheat-free AI.

 

[Zeus]

GalCiv has a great reputation, but I'm really disappointed with Elemental's AI. Not in terms of cheating--for all I know, they don't cheat. And not in terms of being easy to mess with, because they do win games, or at least the little I've played.

What bothers me is the braindead diplomacy. I have no idea how they "value" things, but it's all wrong. One minute, Guy X is calling me, saying we have to unite against Guy Y. The next minute, he's laughing at my offers for peace or alliance, as if I'm an insignificant bug. This, when he has one town left on the verge of extinction. It's so rotten to the core stupid, it's not even worth bothering with. And don't even get me stated on trading. I can tell you how Elemental handles trade with one easy formula: Their Junk = 10,000x the value of YOUR junk. Seriously, the prices they demand are ridiculous. You have to ridicule the game, because the CPU enemies aren't behaving like a person, they're behaving like trollish jerks.

 

[mr.doo]

All of elemental is shit not just the ai. galciv's ai isn't particularly awesome, it just works like it's supposed to, unlike some 4X games where the ai is so broken it ruins the entire game (moo3 im looking at you)

 

[oldschool]

The AI in Armageddon Empires doesn't cheat, although you can select an option to give starting bonuses if you want. On Ironman mode, it can sometimes give you a tough game, although that has more to do with the luck of the card draws than it does a great AI.

 

[DakaSha]

Was gonna mention AA
Advanced Tactics has one of the best AI's ive ever played against but thats a (sandbox) war game.

If you like operational level wargames Advanced tactics may beat you a few times on the easiest setting (it does get bonuses there as well but they arnt huuuge)

----

On that note: You will not find a good AI. BUT you can find AI's that cheat and dont act retarded. I dont mind a cheating AI if it fits with the games structure and it can do things like coordinate attacks and use all or at least most features.
The whole concept of AI War for instance is that the AI DOES have the upper hand.. but its designed in a way that makes that fun.

Zeus: If you like AoW and Master of magic and you want a good AI.. Try the Master of mana mod for Civ4
Its an amazingly deep game and the creator has written an extremely good AI. It cant use navel units yet but that will be added and you can play on pangea maps for now.
It has been keeping me very very busy

 

[Destroid]

Their Junk = 10,000x the value of YOUR junk. Seriously, the prices they demand are ridiculous. You have to ridicule the game, because the CPU enemies aren't behaving like a person, they're behaving like trollish jerks.

That was the most frustrating thing about Civ3 diplomacy.

The AI in Armageddon Empires doesn't cheat, although you can select an option to give starting bonuses if you want. On Ironman mode, it can sometimes give you a tough game, although that has more to do with the luck of the card draws than it does a great AI.

I found AE laughably easy, never lost a game or had great difficulty, even in my first couple of games.

 

[DakaSha]

The problem with AE as far as i could tell in the couple games i played was crap like demolitions/espionage was way to overpowered. And as a human you make better use of it
I took out an enemy base before turn 10 or maybe 15 once. thats when i quit playing.

The thing is the AI actually knows how to use the mechanics. The designer is a fag for saying he programmed in the boneheaded mistakes on purpous for realism sake.

If its true hes a fag for doing so and if its not true hes a fag for being a liar

 

[felicity]

Vantage Master Japan. The AI WILL rape you in the most shameful way possible. It does not cheat, it plays 100% the same rule as the human player. Unfortunately the game does not have a English translation though the mechanic is very simple to grasp. Alternatively its prequel Vantage Master Online is translated. VMO's AI is still pretty strong. FE, FFT, Tactical Ogre are shit in comparison. Their difficulty relies on massive bonus to AI and restriction on the player's part.

 

[GarfunkeL]

AI does cheat on normal/normal in Paradox games. For example it lacks naval attrition and in other areas simply plays by the different rules.

In HoI1+2 AI could ignore the naval range limits. That was fixed for HoI3 as they finally taught the AI to rebase (semi)-efficiently. I seem to remember that AI having no naval attrition was only in EU2, but could be wrong.

But AI doesn't automagically know where your armies are (like in Civ) or get money/resources out of thin air (like so many other games) and AI units are not buffed against player units. But yeah, I guess my statement was, technically wrong :D

 

[Trash]

Apart from chess there has been no game in which the AI can provide a real challenge without it either cheating or having game mechanics that are heavily in favor of it. Perhaps in the future but not now.

Still plenty of challenging (and fun) strategy games out there though.

 

[Lightknight]

Try the Master of mana mod for Civ4
Its an amazingly deep game and the creator has written an extremely good AI.

How can it possibly have good AI ? They mashed together twice as much random shit as FFH did, and none of it is even documented ! There are way, way too many options, its simply impossible to expect an AI that can actually use them with any degree of competentness.

 

[felicity]

Civ4's AI is shit. Seriously no 4x has good AI. Not GalCiv, Dom3, MoM, HoMM, AoW, AC... etc. NONE.

If you want good AI look for card games like RftG as someone mentioned, or chess-like SRPG like Vantage Master. You will be surprised.