Engineering a 4X Strategy Game for Mobile

A deep dive into Unity optimisation, procedural map generation, and performant AI for a complex strategy experience on mobile hardware.

4X StrategyMobileProcedural GenerationAI Systems

Client

Internal IP

Platform

iOS & Android

Role

Full-Cycle Development

Rating

4.5+ Stars

Empires Rise was an ambitious internal initiative: bringing a deep, 4X-style turn-based strategy experience to mobile devices without sacrificing depth or performance. While the mobile market is flooded with hyper-casual titles, our goal was to engineer a complex system of economy, warfare, and exploration that ran smoothly on mid-range hardware. This project served as a proving ground for our core competency: optimising high-complexity Unity logic for mobile constraints. Developing a turn-based strategy game presents unique technical hurdles compounded by mobile targeting - procedural generation without long load times, complex AI without freezing the main thread, and dense management UIs on 5-inch screens.

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Our Contributions

🌍

Procedural Map Generation

Implemented modified Perlin Noise with cellular automata and chunk-based Tilemap loading for near-instant, unique maps on limited RAM devices.

🧠

Performant Mobile AI

Developed a Utility-Based AI system with Coroutine time-slicing, keeping UI responsive while calculating complex pathfinding and military strategy.

🧩

Scalable Architecture

Built modular code architecture decoupling core logic from input systems, enabling rapid porting to PC or Console with minimal refactoring.

The Results

Dual-Platform Launch

Empires Rise shipped on both iOS and Android, validated as a technically complex strategy game running smoothly on mid-range mobile hardware.

Proven Mobile AI

The Utility-Based AI system with Coroutine time-slicing maintained responsive gameplay while calculating complex strategic decisions, without frame drops on target devices.

Reusable Architecture

The modular code architecture built for Empires Rise informed the design of our reusable framework, accelerating development on subsequent client projects.

The Tech Stack

Unity

Android

Apple

Gallery

Unity Mobile Strategy Development – AI & Procedural Generation video thumbnail — Unity Mobile Strategy Development – AI & Procedural Generation - Video

End-to-End Game Development - Unit Training Systems & Low-Poly Art Direction in Unity

Multi-Civilisation Design - Sourcing & Integrating Themed Art Assets for Consistent Visual Identity

Campaign System Architecture - Multi-Biome Story Progression for Turn-Based Strategy

Faction System Development - Playable Civilisations with Unique Leaders & Environments

Turn-Based Strategy Core - Hex Grid Map System with Resource Management & Territory Control

Mobile Store Integration - In-App Purchase & Ad Mediation Systems for Self-Published Titles

Frequently Asked Questions

We use chunk-based Tilemap loading combined with modified Perlin Noise and cellular automata. The map generates in segments as the player explores rather than all at once at startup. This keeps initial load times under a few seconds even on mid-range devices while still producing unique, varied maps for every playthrough.

We use Coroutine-based time-slicing to spread AI calculations across multiple frames. Instead of computing all AI decisions in a single frame (which would cause visible stuttering), we break the work into small chunks that execute alongside rendering. The UI stays responsive while the AI calculates pathfinding, resource evaluation, and military strategy in the background.

Yes. Empires Rise demonstrates our ability to engineer complex 4X strategy systems, including procedural map generation, AI opponents, resource management, and turn-based combat, all running at stable frame rates on mobile hardware. See our mobile development service or contact us to discuss your project.

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Location

London, United Kingdom

Response Time

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