Ashes of the Singularity: Escalation (2016)

In a future where humanity has achieved a technological singularity and expanded across the galaxy, a new enemy, the Substrate, emerges to annihilate them. As a commander in the Post-Human Coalition, you must wage war against this alien threat and renegade human factions across entire worlds. This massive-scale real-time strategy game tasks you with managing vast armies, a sprawling economy, and crucial research to achieve victory. Whether playing as the technologically advanced humans or the enigmatic Substrate, the key to controlling the galaxy lies in your ability to strategically command thousands of units in epic, planet-spanning conflicts. What solidifies *Ashes of the Singularity: Escalation*'s place among Stardock's best is its sheer ambition and technical innovation. It was a flagship title for the then-new DirectX 12, leveraging its proprietary 64-bit Nitrous engine to put an unprecedented number of units on screen at once. This technical feat directly served the gameplay, which eschewed traditional small-squad micromanagement in favor of "macro-RTS" warfare where players command entire fronts and massive army groups. This focus on grand-scale conflict, powered by groundbreaking technology, makes it a quintessential Stardock experience and a landmark title in the RTS genre.