Experimental Branch Now Available
One of the biggest challenges in balancing Artificial Extinction 2 is finding the right relationship between turret strength, turret cost, and enemy wave intensity.
Rather than making those decisions in isolation, I would like to involve the community.
The new Experimental Branch allows you to adjust core gameplay variables and discover what settings create the most enjoyable experience.
This is not intended to simply make the game easier or harder. It exists to help find the best balance.
How to Join the Experimental Branch
Open your Steam Library
Right-click Artificial Extinction 2
Select Properties
Open the Betas tab
Select Experimental Branch
Steam will automatically download the Experimental build.
New Experimental Settings
A new menu has been added:
Settings → Experimental Version
You can adjust five gameplay variables before starting a mission:
Turret Armor
Turret Cost
Turret Rate of Fire
Turret Reload Time
Enemy Spawn Rate
All settings default to 1. Each slider ranges from 1–10.
Increasing Turret Armor, Turret Rate of Fire, and Turret Reload Time strengthens your defenses.
Increasing Turret Cost and Enemy Spawn Rate makes the game more challenging.
The goal is not to maximize every slider. The goal is to discover combinations that create the most satisfying gameplay.
For example, one possible starting point is leaving Enemy Spawn Rate at 1, increasing turret firepower, and balancing that advantage with higher turret costs.
New In-Game Experimental Tab
Most experimental settings can also be adjusted during gameplay.
A new Experimental tab has been added to the Top View interface, allowing you to change the following variables in real time:
Turret Armor
Turret Cost
Turret Rate of Fire
Turret Reload Time
Enemy Spawn Rate remains locked once a mission begins, since it affects wave generation.
The Test Range is a great place to start experimenting before jumping into the campaign.
Additional Changes
Level 4 Balancing — Added more resource nodes.
Time Dilation Duration — Increased from 20 to 30 seconds.
Bug Hunting — Additional fixes targeting the rare “unkillable Mech” bug and “sliding soldier” bug.
Quality of Life — Equipment blast radius is now displayed while placing buildable equipment.
I Need Your Feedback
This branch exists because I want to hear what players think.
If you discover a combination that feels especially fun, or one that completely breaks the game, please let me know.
Your feedback will directly influence future balance updates and help shape the final gameplay experience.