The Ancients

About

The Ancients is a turn-based survival strategy game where you will manage a hunter-gatherer tribe through the ice age. Every decision you make will affect the tribe culturally and politically.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

53%

Audience ScoreBased on 30 reviews

gameplay10 positive mentions

graphics3 negative mentions

The game has a unique concept and interesting mechanics that differentiate it from other strategy and management games.
Despite its current issues, the gameplay is solid and offers intense decision-making and survival pressures.
The developers are responsive and actively working on fixing bugs, showing potential for future improvements.

The game is plagued by frequent crashes, bugs, and a non-working save system, making it currently unplayable.
The tutorial is lacking, and the gameplay can be confusing and poorly explained, leading to a steep learning curve.
Overall performance is poor, with many players experiencing resolution issues and a confusing user interface.

gameplay
26 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
50%
12%
The gameplay features a solid foundation with interesting mechanics and a tech tree, allowing players to eventually navigate the systems with ease. However, it suffers from confusion and poor explanations, leading to imbalances that detract from the experience. Despite these issues, many reviewers see potential for improvement and recommend trying the game for its unique aspects.
- “But after some quality time with the game, you start to navigate the mechanics like it's second nature.”
- “In short, do not hesitate to buy it to experience this kind of unique gameplay because there is no other like it.”
- “The idea is interesting, the gameplay definitely has potential.”
- “The gameplay is confusing and poorly explained and managed.”
- “Notice how I only have an hour of gameplay time?”
- “Also, I streamed my gameplay and after some time my video camera froze.”
graphics
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17%
58%
25%
The graphics of the game have been widely criticized, with users noting that even high-end systems struggle to run it at optimal settings. Many reviewers emphasize that the visuals do not meet AAA standards, describing them as poor and underwhelming, although the soundtrack is praised for enhancing the overall atmosphere.
- “Graphics/design:”
- “[h2]Graphics & details[/h2]”
- “I played on an i9, 32GB 4070 graphics and still had to lower specs to run properly.”
- “The graphics are poor.”
- “To experience the game, I played it in a few different graphics modes.”
music
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
67%
The game's soundtrack has received high praise from users, with many expressing a deep appreciation for its ability to create an immersive atmosphere, despite the game's non-AAA status and less impressive graphics.
- “I fell in love with the soundtracks of the game.”
- “This is not a AAA game, so don't expect the graphics to promise you great things, but the soundtrack of the game can definitely put you in the atmosphere.”
atmosphere
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
50%
17%
The atmosphere of "The Ancients" sets it apart from other 4X games, providing a unique experience despite its non-AAA graphics. While the visuals may not impress, the game's soundtrack effectively enhances the overall ambiance, immersing players in its world.
- “The ancients definitely differentiates itself from other 4X games with its atmosphere by offering a unique experience in this regard.”
- “This is not a AAA game, so don't expect the graphics to promise you great things, but the soundtrack of the game can definitely put you in the atmosphere.”
stability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game currently suffers from significant stability issues, with users reporting frequent bugs and problems with saving and reloading progress. Overall, performance requires further improvement to enhance the gaming experience.
- “Very buggy still and performance needs more work.”
- “The game is buggy and won't reload saves.”
story
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
75%
25%
The game features a campaign mode, but reviewers note that the story is not particularly expansive or deep, suggesting that expectations for a complex narrative should be tempered.
- “The game has a campaign mode, but it would be ridiculous to expect such a big story.”
optimization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's optimization is criticized for being significantly buggy and requiring further performance improvements, indicating that it is not yet in a stable or polished state.
- “Very buggy still and performance needs more work.”