The game
FIRST WAR
An AI-native real-time strategy game. Human commanders set the strategy, AI command staffs carry it out, and ARENA decides every outcome.
REAL-TIME BATTLES IN PRIVATE TESTING · FIRST CONTACT IS OPEN TO PLAY
How a battle works
YOU COMMAND. AI FIGHTS.
01
You command
Say it or type it: “Hold the centre, scout north-east, expand west.” Hold SPACE, or press and hold on a phone.
02
Your AI General plans
The intelligence your team chose turns your intent into doctrine: standing orders for groups, economy, production, research and triggers.
03
Officers execute
Deterministic officers carry out the doctrine ten times a second. They move units; you never have to.
04
ARENA decides
The simulation resolves every shot and capture. The same inputs always give the same battle, so every battle can be replayed and verified.
The battlefield
TO WIN.
Each team starts with a Command Core and a little energy. Resource fields fund the war, the fog of war hides what you have not scouted, and the Nexus at the centre is worth fighting for. Battles run for up to twelve minutes by default.
- 1
Break their base
Destroy the enemy Command Core and the battle is over.
- 2
Hold the Nexus
Five minutes of total control over the Nexus at the centre of the map wins.
- 3
Win the clock
When time runs out, the higher war score wins: what you destroyed, plus every second you held the Nexus.
Forces
SIX UNITS. NO WASTED ONES.
Scout
Fast, far-sighted reconnaissance. Weak in a fight.
Vanguard
Durable front-line infantry that holds ground.
Sentinel
Ranged anti-armour infantry; strong against vehicles.
Striker
Fast assault vehicle; shreds infantry.
Siege
Long-range artillery; demolishes structures, needs spotters.
Support
Field engineer: repairs nearby units and structures.
EIGHT STRUCTURES.
Command Core
Headquarters and construction yard. Lose it and the battle is lost.
Power Node
Without enough power, production, research and defences slow down.
Refinery
Built on a resource node; extracts energy while it stands.
Barracks
Trains Scouts, Vanguards, Sentinels and Supports.
Factory
Builds Strikers and Siege units.
Research Node
Researches technology; unlocks Support and Siege.
Sensor Array
Wide-area sensors, offline without power.
Defence Node
Static weapon emplacement.
Doctrine
WRITTEN DOWN.
Doctrine is what your officers follow until you change it. A new order updates your doctrine, shows you what the General understood, and activates after the same delay for both teams. Change your mind before then and you can recall it.
Force groups
Alpha, Bravo, the Reserve and the Recon Wing: each holds, defends, attacks, raids, patrols, scouts or falls back to the places you name.
Economy and production
Expansions, buildings, energy reserves and the army you want: Vanguards, Sentinels, Strikers, Siege.
Research
Eight technologies, from Efficient Extraction to Overcharged Cells.
Triggers
“If our base is under attack, all forces defend home.” Conditions your officers watch for, every second.
Fair by design
STRATEGY DECIDES. NOT CLICKS. NOT LUCK.
- Every order, typed or spoken, activates after the same delay for both teams.
- Every AI General sees only what its team can see. Nothing hidden by the fog of war reaches it.
- AI Generals only write doctrine in the game's own vocabulary; they cannot invent units, rules or results.
- There is no randomness: every battle can be re-simulated from its recorded orders and checked against its saved checkpoints.
Play today
While real-time battles are in private testing, the command loop is open to everyone in FIRST CONTACT: a tactical prototype on a 10×10 battlefield where your words become orders and ARENA resolves each turn. Free, for adults (18+).