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The red velvet ant (Dasymutilla occidentalis) is not actually an ant at all but is a kind of wingless wasp. She has a docile nature but if she's threatened her sting is so potent that the species has been called the "cow killer". Expect to see her face off against your fire ants in Empires of...

Ecosystem now has a date for its early access release - March 16th 2021! Thanks to everyone who's played the sim, given feedback and helped Tom as he's gotten things to this point. Here's the release trailer: We will soon be running a short beta (with limited functionality) for it for...

Another species that will be tussling with fire ants in Empire of the Undergrowth's 4th tier is the big-headed ant (Pheidole morrisii). Like many species, it has minor and major castes, but it also has a category of major often called "supersoldier" in literature. This beast has a huge head...

If you suffer a persistent crash in the game, it is important that you email in the crash reports that the engine generates to us. Simply clicking "Send and Close" does not work - those reports go to the engine makers, not us, where they will be ignored. If you get any crashes, we ask politely...

Titans - huge creatures with unique behaviours that differentiate them from the regular denizens of the undergrowth - will be coming to the game along with the fire ant update. The first of these we've announced is the great blue skimmer (Libellula vibrans), a large American dragonfly. It's a...

The January 2021 Empires of the Undergrowth Newsletter has been published! All about new fire ant tier critters, extra levels and more. Perhaps even a tiny preview of a fire ant mission. Insert it into your mind now! https://slugdisco.com/january-2021-newsletter/

It’s time for an optional beta! This beta has some fixes for long-standing issues and, more excitingly, comes with 4 (!) new extra levels for testing and balance. Extra levels are fast to develop as most of them don't need extensive new systems and artwork; we can make one of these in just a few...

The little black ant (Monomorium minimum) is a tiny North American ant species that your fire ants will come up against in the 4th tier levels of Empires of the Undergrowth. Although small (very likely the smallest ants that will ever be in the game), they are fierce and territorial - they wave...

The great blue skimmer - an American dragonfly - will feature alongside the fire ants in the next major update coming to Empires of the Undergrowth. This large dragonfly is an aerial predator, well adapted to a life in the wetlands of North Carolina. Here's a show reel of some of her...

Thanks for the people who have helped us identify a crash with the recent short optional beta. This has now been fixed and we're ready to move this patch to the main branch just in time for Christmas. It is now possible to save your freeplay games that include AI colonies! This should make them...

Here's some finished animation for the six-spotted tiger beetle (Cicindela sexguttata), which will feature in tier 4 levels of Empires of the Undergrowth. These day-time predators are fast and deadly, with a taste for ants. We're loving that elytra (wing casing) action! Matt's skills as an...

We’ve made big strides towards getting the freeplay AI save-able, and we’re at the point where we could do with some extra feedback before we declare it good to go. This opt-in beta build adds saving to freeplay games with AI colonies, which should make them much more viable in a long game. If...

It's time to show another model from the Empires of the Undergrowth fire ant update, and reveal a species. Hovering over the swamps of North Carolina will be the great blue skimmer (Libellula vibrans), a large dragonfly that can reach a titanic 63mm in body length! It's native to much of the...

Here's some recently-completed artwork from the 4th tier levels of Empires of the Undergrowth - the six-spotted tiger beetle (Cicindela sexguttata) will be clashing with your fire ants in the swamps of North Carolina! This daytime predator's jewel-like beauty belies its speed and deadliness. We...

Thanks to everyone who's tested our short optional beta over the weekend. We're confident that it's good for everyone now, so version 0.22103 is available for everyone from this point. There is one known issue detailed below the patch notes that didn't quite make it into this build on time -...

Coming very soon to Empires of the Undergrowth - if you beat the extra level Excavators, you'll unlock uber mole crickets as enemies in freeplay! We promise there won't be as many of them as in these pictures, though.

We're running a very short optional beta for this one. It's mainly a bug fixing patch, but the fixes potentially have some far reaching implications and we'd like to be sure we haven't missed anything huge. We'd appreciate any feedback on issues you experience in this beta - if you're on Windows...

This update has been bubbling in the cauldron for quite some time, and we think it's finally tender enough for everyone to sink their teeth into. Thank you so much to everyone who has been helping us test this patch for the past couple of months - we've been able to resolve issues much faster...

This is hopefully the last release in this current beta before we move it to the main branch. Enjoy the new extra level, Excavators, that features spooky crickets lurking in the dark, grouping up to attack you! We’re fairly sure that’s the first time anyone has ever called crickets spooky, but...