0 A.D. Release 28: Boiorix
The long-anticipated real-time strategy game 0 A.D. has released 'Boiorix,' its 28th iteration, marking a significant milestone as it sheds its 'Alpha' label after years of dedicated volunteer development. This release introduces a new Germanic faction and a host of technical and gameplay enhancements, including improved font rendering and gendered civilians for historical accuracy. Hacker News users lauded the impressive volunteer effort while also engaging in robust discussions about the project's development philosophy, performance challenges, and comparisons to other open-source RTS titles.
The Lowdown
Wildfire Games, an international collective of volunteer developers, has unveiled 'Boiorix,' Release 28 of their free, open-source real-time strategy game, 0 A.D. This release is particularly notable as it's the first to drop the 'Alpha' designation, signaling a maturing development process for the ancient warfare simulator. The announcement calls for new contributors across various fields to help further the project.
- New Faction: The Germans This update introduces the 'Germans,' representing a nomadic coalition of Cimbri, Teutones, and Ambrones, known for their economic flexibility and aggressive siege units.
- Historical Accuracy & Gameplay Tweaks 'Gendered Civilians' have been added, replacing the 'female citizen' unit with male and female models to better reflect historical social structures without altering game balance. Various balancing adjustments for units, naval warfare, and faction-specific abilities (like Carthage and Han) are also included.
- Technical Enhancements The game now features direct font rendering using Freetype, significantly improving memory management, language support (especially East Asian scripts), and Hi-DPI scaling. Engine upgrades include an updated SpiderMonkey JavaScript engine, dropping support for older Windows/macOS versions, and introducing a 64-bit Windows build.
- Quality of Life & Community Multiplayer lobby improvements, new game setup options (like removing players and setting population limits), and a host of new quotes and tips contribute to a better player experience. The team also welcomed a new core contributor, Vantha.
This release underscores the extraordinary commitment of the volunteer team and their ongoing ambition to create a comprehensive and historically rich RTS experience for free, with continuous development and community engagement at its core.
The Gossip
Community Commendation
Many commenters expressed profound admiration and gratitude for the continuous, high-quality work of the volunteer developers. They celebrated 0 A.D. as an 'incredible accomplishment' and praised the dedication required to maintain such a complex open-source project for so long. The release, especially shedding the 'Alpha' label, was seen as a significant milestone, reinforcing the community's appreciation for the project's longevity and commitment to its vision.
Performance Predicaments
A recurring discussion revolved around the game's performance, particularly concerning lag in multiplayer matches with numerous units. Several users pointed to the single-threaded nature of the simulation and inefficient pathfinding algorithms as primary culprits, suggesting that deterministic multi-threading could be a solution. Some noted frustrating multiplayer stability issues, such as game halts or forks upon connection loss, highlighting the desire for more robust netcode.
Open-Source Observations & Competitor Critiques
Commenters delved into the philosophical aspects of open-source game development, with some criticizing the 'rolling release' model of projects that remain in development for decades, contrasting it with commercial games that have distinct, 'final' versions. Others defended this approach, emphasizing the journey and hobbyist nature of such projects. The discussion also frequently compared 0 A.D. to other open-source RTS games, particularly 'Beyond All Reason' (BAR), with several users positing BAR as a more fun and performant alternative, while acknowledging 0 A.D.'s lower system requirements.