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Ant Queen

Ant Queen isn’t a perfect game but it is fun to play for a few hours now and again. The developers also seem very eager to make this game better and are always listening to what fans request. It’s perhaps not the spiritual sequel to SimAnt that I was quite hoping for, but as a casual strategy game it’s a solid, charming, time-waster.
Ant Queen Game Cover
67%Game Brain Score
Most mentioned positive aspects:graphics, gameplay
Most mentioned negative aspects:story, stability
67% User Score Based on 189 reviews

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LinuxPCMac OSWindows
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Ant Queen Game Cover

About Ant Queen

Ant Queen is a single player strategy game. It was developed by inVantage Technologies and was released on June 17, 2016. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

Begin a journey like no other, become the Ant Queen and establish your empire. Ant Queen is a simulation game where you breed different types of ants to ultimately conquer your surroundings and achieve a stable ant colony.

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Ant Queen screenshot
Ant Queen screenshot
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Reviews

67%Audience ScoreBased on 189 reviews
graphics4 positive mentions
stability12 negative mentions
  • Fun and addictive gameplay especially for ant enthusiasts, with a satisfying colony-building experience.
  • Unique concept with a variety of ant types and missions, including an enjoyable endless mode.
  • Developers are engaged and responsive, continuously improving the game with updates and adding new features like sandbox mode.
  • The game suffers from numerous bugs and AI issues causing ants to get stuck, ignore commands, or act unpredictably.
  • Controls and UI are clunky and sometimes unresponsive, leading to frustration during gameplay.
  • Lacks depth and replayability with limited content, predictable missions, and an unfinished feel, which some players feel is not worth the price.

  • story

    32 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    9% positive mentions, 82% neutral mentions, 9% negative mentions

    The story mode is largely a linear, tutorial-like experience with limited freedom, focusing on scripted missions that many find tedious, overly guided, and occasionally frustrating due to bugs and control issues. While it provides a basic narrative for colony development, it lacks depth and player choice, leading some to prefer the endless mode for more engaging gameplay. Overall, users find the story mode challenging but constrained and less satisfying compared to expectations of a sandbox ant simulation.

    • “It's not as in-depth as Empires of the Undergrowth but still a pretty interesting title as far as ant sims go. It really doesn't give you the freedom to run an ant colony; it's very linear and holds your hand through where the game wants to take you. Which is a shame, since if you had the freedom to run it like you want to, it would be a pretty good ant sim. As it stands, I can't recommend it: it's all missions and really you don't do much except produce larva and occasionally dig. I don't get the direction they are trying to go here, maybe in later updates it will let you have a sandbox or at least the freedom to make your own decisions.”
    • “The story mode is a glorified tutorial of building a colony and I got stuck on building the cocoon segment because of the spawn rate of caterpillars just destroying my colony.”
    • “The game consists of about 15 scripted missions for you to complete. As you complete missions, more and more units get unlocked for you to breed. Instead, there are missions that go through the development of a colony at a relaxed pace.”
    • “The story mode is a glorified tutorial of building a colony and I got stuck on building the cocoon segment because the spawn rate of caterpillars kept destroying my colony.”
    • “Story mode is annoying (meant to teach you how to play the game, like a tutorial) in that most lessons are overly drawn out, tedious, and not fun.”
    • “It's very linear and holds your hand through where the game wants to take you, which is a shame since if you had the freedom to run it how you want, it would be a pretty good ant sim. As it stands, it's all missions and really you don't do much except produce larvae and occasionally dig. I don't get the direction they're trying to go here.”

  • graphics

    15 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    27% positive mentions, 53% neutral mentions, 20% negative mentions

    The game's graphics are generally considered decent and suitable for a non-AAA title, with some users appreciating the art style while others find them simplistic or inconsistent. Although not highly detailed or realistic compared to similar games, the visuals are adequate but could benefit from smoother animations and more refinement. Overall, the graphics are acceptable but not a standout feature.

    • “Beautiful artwork.”
    • “Graphics are pretty decent for a non-AAA game.”
    • “Solid response, good graphics, and I've been wanting to raise a real colony myself, so this is one of the best ant games on Steam I've played.”
    • “The graphics and mechanics of the game are pretty 'meh' at best but it is still ultimately your decision to buy this half designed game.”
    • “From an ant fanatic myself, this is a good game, however, Empires of the Undergrowth has better graphics, more realistic models, etc.”
    • “It's hard for me to write a detailed report on what's wrong with the game - but the short version is 'everything you thought might be wrong with it when you decided to check out some reviews before you purchased it yourself.' The graphics are so simple as to be childish, but set in a realistic design that prevents them from being cute.”

  • stability

    14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    14% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 86% negative mentions

    The game suffers from numerous bugs and glitches, leading to an overall unstable experience with inconsistent mechanics and occasional unresponsive controls. While some players find it fun and somewhat playable—especially given its low price—the game feels unfinished and abandoned by its developer, impacting its stability and polish.

    • “I love this game. For the price, it's good. I have an older computer and it runs great!”
    • “I would say $18 is a little steep for a game like this, but it is relatively bug free so far.”
    • “Quick answer: no, there's lots of bugs/glitches and settings that need to be established. The game feels like a 78% finished product; I would say it's worth around 1.5 dollars at most.”
    • “Though of course I was wrong, the game is now abandoned by its designer and I am left with a buggy and hardly finished game.”
    • “Awesome concept was exciting to play but from the start there were inconsistent levels of graphics, some pixelated, some not. UI was buggy, controls were difficult, mechanics were not working correctly. For example, the fast ants did not seem any faster. The part that made it unplayable was a constant high-pitched noise when you are attacked, which was very irritating.”

  • gameplay

    12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    58% positive mentions, 17% neutral mentions, 25% negative mentions

    Gameplay reviews are mixed, with some finding it enjoyable and well-conceptualized, while others criticize inconsistent mechanics, buggy controls, and vague decision-making. The game feels incomplete, suggesting it is still in beta, and certain design and audio issues detract from the overall experience. Enhancements are needed to improve control clarity and polish.

    • “Enjoyable gameplay.”
    • “It has nice graphics and good gameplay.”
    • “Smooth gameplay.”
    • “Colony management mechanics are not hard-edged enough to make you feel in control; instead, you make vague decisions that conflate with other vague factors, leading to a vague sort of direction towards either success or failure.”
    • “The design of the gameplay mechanics wasn't good enough; the graphics aren't good enough, the sound is equally lackluster - and so it goes.”
    • “Awesome concept was exciting to play but from the start, there were inconsistent levels of graphics (some pixelated, some not), UI was buggy, controls were difficult, mechanics were not working correctly (like the fast ants did not seem any faster). The part that made it unplayable was a constant high-pitched noise when attacked that was very disturbing.”

  • music

    3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    33% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 67% negative mentions

    Users find the music to be a nice and challenging background element that enhances the experience, though some encountered technical issues with it not starting automatically. Overall, the music is well-received despite minor playback glitches.

    • “Nice challenging background music”
    • “It opened, I pressed play and the tab opened but nothing happened. I was still on my desktop and I clicked on the tab and the music started playing but nothing happened.”
    • “Bad sound and music.”

  • emotional

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    Users find the game emotionally engaging, as it effectively immerses them in the experience of being part of a collective struggle for survival, despite its age and flaws.

    • “I only ever owned the SNES version of that, and while it is old and has many flaws, it still made me feel like I was one of the ants fighting with my fellow ants to survive and win.”

  • replayability

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions

    The game offers no replayability, with players finding little to no incentive to play beyond the initial experience.

    • “No replayability at all.”

  • grinding

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions

    The grinding in the game, particularly in the story mode tutorial, is perceived as overly prolonged and tedious, making the learning process frustrating rather than enjoyable.

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Play Times

17h Median play time
15h Average play time
9-20h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 2 analyzed playthroughs
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Frequently Asked Questions

Ant Queen is a strategy game. Common tags for Ant Queen include indie.

Ant Queen is available on PC, Mac OS, Windows and Linux.

On average players spend around 15 hours playing Ant Queen.

Ant Queen was released on June 17, 2016.

Ant Queen was developed by inVantage Technologies.

Ant Queen has received mostly positive reviews from players. Most players liked Ant Queen for its graphics but disliked it for its story.

Ant Queen is a single player game.

Similar games include Ant Colony - Ants Simulator, Basement, Empires of the Undergrowth, Feed and Grow: Fish, Pocket Ants: Colony Simulator and others.