''Star Ruler'' is a

space Space is the boundless three-dimensional extent in which objects and events have relative position and direction. In classical physics, physical space is often conceived in three linear dimensions, although modern physicists usually consider ...

4X /

RTS RTS may refer to: Medicine * Rape trauma syndrome, the psychological trauma experienced by a rape victim * Revised Trauma Score, a system to evaluate injuries secondary to violent trauma * Rubinstein–Taybi syndrome, a condition characterized by ...

hybrid developed and published by American company Blind Mind Studios. was first announced on July 5, 2009 in the Irrlicht Community Forums, the

game engine A game engine is a software framework primarily designed for the development of video games and generally includes relevant libraries and support programs. The "engine" terminology is similar to the term "software engine" used in the software i ...

on which was based. It was released on August 21, 2010. The game was launched in retail outlets in the EU on August 16, 2011 via

Iceberg Interactive Iceberg Interactive is a privately held video game publisher based in Haarlem, Netherlands. The company is known for publishing games of independent developers. It publishes video games for Windows, macOS, and Linux through traditional retail chan ...

and was planned to launch Mid-October in the US via Interactive Gaming Software (IGS). However this deal fell through and never launched in

retail outlet Retail is the sale of goods and services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturers, directly or through a wholesaler, and th ...

s in the United States.

Gameplay

features a 1 to 10,000+ star system count galaxy of configurable shape. The size of the in-game universe is only limited by the processing power of the user's computer. Generated systems may have orbiting planets, moons, asteroids, comets, or aggressive, capturable, NPC assets. Gameplay occurs in a single space in

real-time Real-time or real time describes various operations in computing or other processes that must guarantee response times within a specified time (deadline), usually a relatively short time. A real-time process is generally one that happens in defined ...

with the rate of time determined by the player. also features

Newtonian mechanics Newton's laws of motion are three basic laws of classical mechanics that describe the relationship between the motion of an object and the forces acting on it. These laws can be paraphrased as follows: # A body remains at rest, or in motion ...

in its ship movement. Key differences from other games of the genre are: Detailed unit creation, behavior, and automation customization, physically modeled

star system A star system or stellar system is a small number of stars that orbit each other, bound by gravitational attraction. A large group of stars bound by gravitation is generally called a '' star cluster'' or '' galaxy'', although, broadly speak ...

s and orbiting bodies, and a lack of traditional maintenance and unit count cap

game mechanics In tabletop games and video games, game mechanics are the rules or ludemes that govern and guide the player's actions, as well as the game's response to them. A rule is an instruction on how to play, a ludeme is an element of play like the L-shap ...

Ship building

One of 's most impressive components is the ship construction. Each ship is built around a hull type. Different hulls will fulfil different purposes. For example, a Heavy hull is more resilient, but offers less space for components. A station hull is very resilient, and offers the most component space, but cannot mount engines. Each component can be scaled, and its effects scaled with it. For example, a 2.0 railgun will do half as much damage as a 4.0 railgun, which is the largest size, but will also consume half the power. Things like a bridge, life support, crew quarters, and power generators are necessary for most ships. The most unusual feature of 's ship building system is the ability to scale ships. It is possible to build everything from a near microscopic scout ship to colossal dreadnoughts that are larger than a star.

Sequel

A sequel Star Ruler 2 was announced on August 1, 2013 with a prospective launch date of late 2014.

References

External links

*{{official, http://starruler.blind-mind.com Real-time strategy video games 2010 video games 4X video games Video games developed in the United States Windows games Windows-only games Video games with Steam Workshop support Video games using procedural generation Creative Commons-licensed video games