The idea: multiplayer without waiting

Singularity is a turn-based strategy game set in 1920s Manhattan. Visually it sits somewhere between Anno and the isometric classics of the 90s like X-COM and Command & Conquer.

The biggest problem with turn-based online games is waiting for other players. Our answer: asynchronous multiplayer with sync points.

• Epochs: The game is divided into epochs of about eight turns. Within an epoch, everyone plays as fast or as slowly as they like.
• Sync point: At the end of an epoch, all timelines come together. Trades, deliveries and conflicts are resolved at once.
• Away? Anyone who doesn't arrive in time is played by an AI steward. Nobody has to wait.

So why do players drift apart in the first place? Because each of them lives in their own universe. More on that in the next post.