ICBM: Escalation news & patch notes

Hi everyone, a new update for ICBM: Escalation is out now. It focuses on AI behavior, QoL improvements, fixes and more.

1.1.3:

• Fixed the extreme performance drop caused by helicopters hanging on top of the army base

• Fixed the AI factions issuing the same Unban Geneva requests concurrently

• Fixed the problem with the AI factions suddenly releasing helicopters they don't really have from Army Bases

• Fixed naval monitoring station not auto-engaging against submarines with their naval helicopters

• Added a timeout before the AI players can unban tech/weapon

• Depth Charges and ASROC now check the fire trajectory the same way as torpedoes, to avoid firing through land masses

• Fixed the midcourse ABMs ranges not showing on radar map

Additionally, we are opening the beta sign-ups to test never-before-seen content. Be among the first to join and help test and refine what's coming.

Last but not least, thank you for the enthusiasm you have shown following the release of the AI Rework. We are carefully reviewing your feedback to help plan the next steps and continue improving and refining the experience. Currently, the additional features and improvements planned are:

• Active use of special operations teams and terrorist units

• Expansion into space warfare

• A bio-weapons rework

• Improved use of combat engineers and forward operating bases

• Better unit situational awareness in edge cases

• Improved handling of heavily “turtled” players

• More diverse AI strategies

AI Rework

The team fully reworked the game’s AI. This is a fundamental overhaul, heavily driven by community feedback and incorporating many player-suggested tactics and improvements.

The new AI is more strategic, adaptive, and less predictable in its behavior. Depending on the selected difficulty, it creates constant pressure and makes the world feel truly “alive”, with territories frequently changing hands through ongoing regional conflicts.

It now handles diplomacy, conventional warfare, and nuclear escalation in a far more balanced and coherent way. Conflicts can evolve naturally over time - from early conventional engagements, through limited nuclear use, and ultimately into high-stakes, full-scale nuclear endgame scenarios.

In addition to these gameplay improvements, the update also delivers significant performance optimizations, resulting in a smoother and more consistent overall experience.

If you want to know more regarding the AI Rework process, please check previous Diaries:

S.N.A.R.E. Campaign free content and discounts

Additionally, we are releasing the S.N.A.R.E. campaign for free. A series of five missions set across the decades (1960, 1980, 2000, 2020 and 2040), focused on heavy nuclear warfare. To celebrate, the entire ICBM series is available at a discount for a limited time. Don't miss the chance to enter this nuclear world or complete your collection.

Changelog 1.1.2

• Fixed an occasional game freeze

• Fixed a potential crash

• Fixed the problem with incorrect city handling when loading MP games with destroyed territories

• Fixed the problem with the AI not using all available nuclear bombs

• Fixed the problem with incorrect rate-of-fire for AA gunsites and similar units

• Fixed incorrect missile property caching that had the effect of MIRV missiles not splitting into individual warheads

• Added the possibility to independently configure Production and Science speed multipliers for the game regardless of the game type + Added S.N.A.R.E. campaign

• Changed the Torpedo characteristics

• Specialized Airbases now host different set of aircraft

• Added more logging when checking for Internet/Steam availability

Hello everyone, here’s the next iteration of the Beta AI. This update focuses primarily on fine-tuning existing systems rather than introducing entirely new mechanics.

Nuclear Escalation Balancing

One of the biggest challenges for the new AI - still not fully solved - is determining when to escalate a conventional conflict into full-scale nuclear war.

In the early technological eras, this decision is relatively straightforward. Factions rely mostly on conventional forces, nuclear production is limited, and delivery systems are inefficient. As a result, nuclear weapons tend to be used in a tactical role, such as eliminating hardened targets.

As the game progresses and tactical nuclear weapons become more advanced - particularly nuclear MRBMs - the situation becomes more complex. Factions begin to build up their arsenals, and conflicts can quickly escalate into regional nuclear exchanges that are fast and highly destructive, but still somewhat contained.

However, once launchpad ICBMs, missile silos, SSBNs and anti-missile defenses enter the picture, the line between a localized conflict and an existential threat becomes much harder to define.

During an ongoing conventional war, key questions arise:

• When is the right moment to commit strategic nuclear forces?

• Strike too early, and you may not have enough assets for an effective first strike.

• Wait too long, and the enemy may outbuild you or inflict critical losses on your conventional forces.

• Launching missiles often reveals the location of your assets, potentially allowing opponents to disarm you before finishing off your remaining forces and launching an invasion.

This Beta is an attempt to find the right balance in these decisions. Your feedback on how “right” it feels will be extremely valuable.

Campaign Improvements

Another area of focus in this build is the Campaign.

It should now play more reliably, but if you encounter any issues or inconsistencies, your reports will be very helpful in polishing the experience.

General Fixes

There are also a number of smaller fixes and improvements included. Overall, the game should feel smoother and more stable compared to previous versions.

What’s Next

Hopefully, this will be the final beta build, with the next update planned as the full release.

That said, AI development is an ongoing process and there is always room for further improvement. Even after release, additional features and refinements are planned, including:

• Active use of special operations teams and terrorist units

• Expansion into space warfare

• A bio-weapons rework

• Improved use of combat engineers and forward operating bases

• Better unit situational awareness in edge cases

• Improved handling of heavily “turtled” players

• More diverse AI strategies

As always, thank you for your continued support, it’s been invaluable throughout the beta process!

Changelog:

1.1.2 beta 6

• Fixed the issue with a faction falling into an endless "build army division" loop

• Fixed the issue with interceptor aircraft crashing on patrol

• Fixed a crash related with handling logistics

• Fixed the problem with SSBNs over-saturating the low-priority targets

• Fixed the problem with too restrictive blocked zones preventing air attacks

• Leaders portrait images and faction icons can now have any name and not necessarily be indexed unless the index is supposed to be used in the map file

• Enemy mobile units can now dynamically change position to minimize the chance of being destroyed

• AI is now more passive on lower difficulty levels 

• Added the air-first nuclear strategy

• The AI is now much slower to escalate to the full-scaled nuclear war (if not set to Aggressive mode and not provoked)

The open beta is now approaching the point where the majority of the planned features have been implemented and are ready for testing.

Beta 5 introduces several important improvements to the AI.

Smarter Defensive Planning

First, the AI is now more deliberate in how it builds and deploys its defenses - both anti-air and anti-missile systems. It attempts to produce and position these assets more strategically, while also supporting them through appropriate research and auxiliary units such as over-the-horizon radars and satellites.

This becomes especially important in the late game, when players begin to deploy nuclear arsenals and more advanced delivery systems.

Alternative Naval-Focused AI Strategy

The second major addition in Beta 5 is a new alternative AI strategy. While the original strategy focused primarily on land-based ICBMs, the new one emphasizes naval forces and SSBNs. This significantly changes how different factions behave, making their research priorities and military builds less predictable.

Improved Army Paradrop System

There have also been a number of smaller improvements and fixes. Aside from stability updates, one of the most important changes is a complete rework of the paradrop system.

In previous versions, paradrops behaved differently for AI and human players. The AI could drop units directly into another faction’s occupation zone, while human players were prevented from doing so. This could also lead to frustrating situations where drops would silently fail if the occupying units were hidden from the player.

This system has now been unified and works the same way for both AI and human players.

When a unit is ordered to drop inside an occupied zone, the drop is no longer denied outright. Instead, the game calculates the closest valid drop point - one that does not interfere with existing occupation timers. For example, if an enemy unit is occupying a city, your unit will not be allowed to drop closer to that city than the farthest existing occupier, preventing players from resetting occupation timers through paradrops.

The goal of this change is to remove confusion and frustration when air transports do not drop units exactly where ordered.

Multi-Faction Occupation Changes

Another update affects how multi-faction occupation works.

When multiple factions are attempting to occupy the same region, the number of cities under control is now the primary factor. A faction that controls all cities in a region will always secure that region, even if another faction has more army units present.

Stability Improvements

Thanks to the saved games and reports many of you submitted, I was able to track down and fix several difficult-to-reproduce issues that caused crashes and freezes in both single-player and multiplayer.

Your saved games demonstrating problems are incredibly valuable - thank you for continuing to share them.

Known Issues and Current Limitations

While Beta 5 is closer to the final version than ever, there are still some remaining limitations:

• There are currently only two distinct AI strategies.

• The AI is still not very effective at anti-satellite warfare.

• The Campaign has not yet been fully revised to match the new AI behavior.

What’s Next

The next update will focus on expanding the variety of AI strategies and reviewing the campaign missions to ensure that AI behavior matches the intended gameplay experience.

Another priority will be more extensive testing of the diplomacy system, particularly alliance behavior.

There is also a larger question regarding overall game difficulty. The AI improvements have noticeably increased the challenge level, especially on lower difficulty settings. This raises the question:

• Is Normal difficulty actually normal?

• Is Easy mode easy enough?

It may make sense to adjust AI aggressiveness on lower difficulty levels to provide a more relaxed experience - fewer two-front wars and less pressure to immediately build a strong conventional army just to survive. I’d really like to hear your thoughts on this.

Once again, thank you for your continued support!

Changelog:

1.1.2 beta 5

• Fixed some boarding/unboarding issues for the AI

• Warplans don't cancel follow orders anymore when cancelled

• Fixed the problem with warplans resetting Range Limit when cancelling edit

• Fixed the problem with warplans not saving Range Limit

• Fixed a crash related to the async AI plan management 

• Fixed a crash related to the async AI handling during region transfer 

• Fixed the game freezing when AI starts deploying units

• Fixed the problem with the saves MP games not able to reconnect

• Fixed the problem with incorrect unit costs when distributing points

• Fixed the crash when renaming units with long names in non-English localization

• AI is now placing AA and ABM defences more strategically

• Added one alternative AI strategy

• It is now allowed to drop your units inside the "occupation radius" of other units, however the drop position is auto-adjusted to not cancel the existing occupation timer

What’s New in Beta 4

Hi everyone,

We’re releasing a new Beta, and this update focuses mainly on bug fixes and expanding the nuclear component of the game.

The general idea behind the Conquest game mode is that conflicts should evolve over time. Wars begin as smaller regional struggles focused on land grabbing, but gradually escalate as factions deploy increasingly powerful weapons. Early on, conflicts rely on conventional forces. As tensions rise, chemical weapons may begin to appear, followed by tactical nuclear weapons, and eventually strategic nuclear strikes.

During the early conventional phase, conflicts can last for quite some time, with factions gradually reinforcing the frontlines and maneuvering for advantage. However, the late stages are meant to become far more brutal. At that point, a rapid exchange of nuclear strikes can quickly decide the outcome, potentially leaving one side devastated and unable to resist the invasion of its irradiated territory.

Up until Beta 4, this “nuclear escalation” aspect was largely missing because the AI did not properly understand when and how to build nuclear assets and defenses.

This update addresses that problem.

The AI can now switch between conventional and nuclear-focused production depending on the overall strategic situation and rising global tensions. As a result, if you push too aggressively during the later stages of the game - especially once advanced technologies become available - you should expect the possibility of a nuclear response.

This also means the balance of power can shift very quickly. Nuclear weapons tend to eliminate long-preserved assets in a very short time, dramatically reshaping the battlefield.

Diplomacy Improvements

Another significant set of changes affects diplomacy, particularly interactions with allies.

Allied factions should now feel more like true allies. They evaluate diplomatic proposals using different criteria and are less likely to betray you compared to previous versions.

Several broader diplomacy issues have also been addressed. For example, factions are now less likely to quickly sign peace treaties immediately after exchanging a few strikes, which previously led to unrealistic situations.

Stability and Fixes

Thanks to the save files, bug reports, and feedback many of you provided, a large number of internal issues have been resolved.

As a result, Beta 4 should be noticeably more stable and solid than Beta 3.

Known Issues and Current Limitations

As this is the first Beta that introduces the nuclear build mechanics, some systems are still under development and not yet in their final form. Please keep the following known issues in mind:

• When global pollution reaches around 10%, the AI may occasionally enter a “hate everyone” mode and begin declaring war on multiple factions indiscriminately.

• The AI still does not fully calculate the strategic impact of nuclear weapons. In some situations, it may threaten nuclear-capable factions or make territorial demands without having a sufficient nuclear arsenal of its own.

• Nuclear reconnaissance and defense systems are still being developed and may currently lag behind offensive nuclear capabilities.

• The AI may sometimes be indiscriminate in selecting targets for nuclear strikes, resulting in less strategic targeting than intended.

These systems are still being actively worked on and will continue to improve in future updates.

What’s Next

The next update will focus on refining AI strategies and introducing greater variety in AI behavior.

At the moment, all AI factions effectively use the same strategic approach. This will change. Different factions will adopt different strategic preferences - for example:

• Some factions may prioritize missile silos

• Others may focus more heavily on submarines

• Others may rely more on air power

This should make the game feel more dynamic and reduce the predictability of AI behavior.

Another important task is integrating late-game technologies into AI strategies. Currently, the AI does not properly account for systems such as laser defense complexes or DEW satellites. Addressing this is one of the final steps before the AI rework is complete.

Once again, thank you for your continued support. I hope you enjoy the changes in this update.

Changelog:

1.1.2 beta 4

• Fixed the problem with Naval Stations not being possible to order replenishing its helicopters

• Fixed the problem with units sometimes entering two AI plans the same time

• Fixed a crash related to simultaneous handling logistics of different AI factions

• Fixed a crash related to releasing of graphical objects in secondary thread 

• Fixed a crash related to voting during AI execution

• Fixed a crash related to region ownership change during AI execution

• Fixed a crash related to storing a killed target in AI plans

• Fixed the AI being "stuck" while building certain units that require complex build order

• Fixed some variants of the AI "overbuilding" different kinds of units

• Fixed the AI incorrectly estimated the threat from the factions it has peace treaty with

• Fixed the AI not attacking enemy units in some cases

• Fixed the AI being too willing to agree on ceasefire even when it could steamroll the enemy

• Fixed some diplomacy issues when dealing with allies

• Fixed diplomacy screen buttons overflowing faction info

• Carriers are no more left alone by AI

• No more drawing points on the cities when the selected unit with nuclear weapon cannot attack cities

• AI now tends to groups its navy 

• Added initial Nuclear strategy for the AI

• No countdown timer for Conquest mode by default

What’s New in Beta 3

Beta 3 is finally ready. This update primarily focuses on optimization and general improvements based on your feedback.

Originally, the plan was to emphasize the “nuclear” aspect of the game more heavily. However, smoothing out the game “stuttering” caused by the significantly increased CPU demands of the updated AI required far more effort than anticipated. While working on the planned optimization steps - and thanks to the save files many of you sent - I discovered additional opportunities to further improve performance, especially in the late game. As a result, I decided to prioritize performance improvements for this update.

I genuinely hope you’ll feel the difference.

That said, because the changes to the underlying execution engine are substantial, there is unfortunately a higher risk of occasional crashes. If you encounter one, please follow these steps:

Big thank you to everyone who participated in Beta 1, and especially to those who sent in saved games to illustrate different issues. Saved games are extremely important for us - they’re often the only way to truly see and understand what’s going on. Screenshots or videos usually give very little insight into the actual cause of a problem, which makes them much less helpful.

Reminder: the best way to send a saved game

The AI Rework is getting closer to release and is finally ready for an extensive multi-week testing phase.

If you’d like to help us test and refine the AI ahead of the final release, please follow these steps: Here are the standard steps to join a beta branch on Steam:

AI Steamrolling

As discussed in the previous diary, the original AI did not actively prioritize territorial expansion. As a result, it was often perceived as passive. For human players, opportunities to invade undefended or weakly defended regions are usually obvious, and experienced players tend to “steamroll” opponents rapidly capturing territory with little to no resistance.

For the AI, however, this is a far more complex problem. It must first determine what actually qualifies as a weakly defended region and decide where to strike. From there, it needs to plan the logistics: assembling invasion forces, positioning supporting units, and executing the attack. During the invasion, it must respond to resistance and recognize when to withdraw if the operation fails. Over-the-ocean invasions add another layer of difficulty, especially when capturing isolated territories without access to airdrops, forcing the AI to rely on slow and vulnerable sea transport.

There are also several particularly challenging edge cases. A common example is naval interdiction: even a small group of cruisers positioned near a coastal city can obliterate large numbers of AI-controlled army divisions attempting to control it. Another notorious scenario is the “chem spam” tactic frequently used by experienced multiplayer players, large numbers of chemical-weapon-equipped SRBM or MRBM launchers destroying advancing divisions from long range and outside of direct retaliation.

While the updated AI is still far from perfect, it has made significant progress in this area:

• The AI can identify weakly defended regions and deploy appropriate invasion and support forces.

• The AI can handle isolated territories (such as islands) and plan overseas invasions using both airdrops and naval transport.

• The AI dynamically distributes invading units to respond to resistance.

• The AI recognizes when its invasion forces are under attack from out-of-reach units and attempts to counter these threats using support units.

• The AI now uses its navy to actively support invasions.

• The AI knows when to retreat if an invasion fails.

• The AI can now steamroll.

Example video: AI performing a land grab (God mode used to observe the AI behaviour)

Example video: AI dealing with the player resistance

Example video: AI helps its invasion forces with the navy and SRBM launchers (the explosions next to my carrier is the AI attempts to hit it from the distance)

Example video: Big-scale naval invasion by the updated AI:

When???

And to answer the most frequently asked question: we’re planning to enter Beta at the end of January, with the goal of releasing the AI update 2–3 weeks after that. We'll give you more details about how to join the beta soon.

United States of Annihilation is officially out now for $6.99. Step into a bold alternate history where the United States pursues global dominance from 1949 to 2042, navigating international crises, covert operations, and nuclear escalation across 11 new missions. This DLC also features all-new U.S. unit cosmetics, giving American forces a visual identity tailored to this unique timeline.

Launching alongside the DLC is the massive Update 1.1.1, bringing major improvements, refinements, fixes, and enhancements across the entire game. CHANGELOG 1.1.1

• Fixed a crash when loading points distribution file from uncompatible mod

• Now not dropping the lasting effect if the damage is 0 and only target's missiles are affected

• Now auto-formatting the mission description text to fit into the description window

• Fixed the Execute For not saving correctly

• Fixed the problem with unit unique names being lost on the owner conversion

• workaround for performance issue when more than 20 army bases try to build a transportation network

• War Planner now works better with EMP, Cyber and Bio weapon

• Changed the occupation logic when multiple factions occupy one target, now it counts the total power of the occupying units withing occupation radius

• Fixed Endless October Mission 7 - enemy units should not spawn too close to the cities anymore

• Fixed the problem with the new game screen taking too long time to appear

• Fixed a rare bug with parsing long lines in event files leading to potential problems in scenarios

• Fixed a bug with switching off the "Group Units On Zoom" setting leaving the ghost icons

• Fixed a crash related to audio drivers reported wrongly by Windows

• Fixed a problem with incorrect parsing of "reset" and "delete" statements for unit properties

• Fixed the problem with naval units "jumping" and desync when having the pathfinding issues

• Fixed the problem with Experience resetting to 0 after every MP game and rating climbing

• Fixed a crash when changing parameters in MP lobby when some players have unreadable characters in their names

• Fixed the problem with enemy units not possible to capture on your territory

• Fixed a rare problem with aircraft without host airbase being stuck mid-air

• Fixed a problem with Equalize GDP setting affecting faction GDPs after loading MP game

• Fixed a bug that can prevent game from starting when Annihilation DLC installed but no Endless October installed

• Fixed a bug with AI allies becoming hostile when you capture enemy territory where both you and your ally have divisions and your ally had plans to capture this region

• Fixed the problem in Blitz mode with OTH radars not detecting some missiles

• AI can now select the best combination of the hosted aircraft and weapon loadout to destroy the defended targets

• Orders issued by war planner do not stop the game anymore with "order complete" event

• War planner does not anymore issue attack orders on radar ghost that cannot be attacked

• Fixed a crash when already destroyed missile tries to draw its trace

• Event system-related messages are now permanent to avoid being lost while syncing the games

• Fixed the attack order in events system, to account for the range of non-movable units

• Fixed a pathfinding problem on the standard water map that was leading to performance issues due to the units not being able to find path

• Fixed a problem with prioritization of aircraft building

• Fixed the problem with the AI not considering some units for attack because of the wrong weapon config selected

• Fixed a rare problem with loading saved game

• Fixed a crash related to the drawing buffer overflow when there is too many simultaneous nuclear explosions (1000+)

• Fixed a crash when drawing explosion without images and not DrawWave time

• Fixed incorrect readiness calculation when several attack orders are queued

• Fixed dynamic score handling for Achievements

• Fixed occupation events for Achievements

• Fixed a crash when loading MP save

• Fixed Orders Completed event not throwing under some circumstances

• Fixed incorrect rounding of the mixed integer and float expression in events engine

• Fixed the alliances created at zero time never converting to permanent alliance

• Army Bases are not shown in Advanced War Planner Invasion window anymore

• Fixed the fighters sometimes going suicide

• Fixed the excessive movements of army divisions in combat

• Fixed spec-ops teams not auto-attacking enemy assets

• Fixed some production time glitches

• Fixed the crash when tuning regions of 1980 map in Russian localization

• Fixed a crash when loading a mod with corrupted pack file

• Added United States of Annihilation DLC

• Added Night Map

• added the possibility to completely destroy a region

• added the setting that controls the parameters of region destruction conditions

• added BlockedAttack faction behaviour

• added NoSurrender manual faction behaviour

• EMPs now affect intelligence, research and cyber warfare centers

• Increased Cyber Warfare AoE to make attacks on 'ghosts' effective

• Increased the size of Luanda, Angola

• Added the possibility to define faction-specific tech by faction prefix

• Besieged units cannot execute orders anymore unless they have a special property

• Besieged units and cities are now marked more clearly

• Added the configuration file for the default match settings in different game modes

• Conquest game mode now defaults to Conquest scoring

• The AI does not try nuclear "retaliation" based on score with Conquest scoring

• The AI does not start all-out war by pollution in Conquest scoring

• Events system now correctly handles ON EACH events with multiple conditions like "event then event"

• Explosions can now have flashes of different color and duration, also the flash survives the deletion of its explosion

• Added notification about steam sync in offline mode

• Pre-places units in scenarios now get updates with the techs selected before the mission

• Added USE statement to techlevels and production efficiency

• Buffed SAMs and ASROCs on destroyers

• Increased baseline ASROC precision

• Removed AA weapons from ALCM-N loadouts to prevent plane losses on high value missions

• AWACS units now select different points on patrolling

• Smoother fading out of the tech and unit detail windows

• Increased the space for tech description

• Added the AI considering the no-flight zones

• Now the units listed in a War Plan can move to the targets if they are out of reach

• Significantly increased the speed of War Planner handling very big number of units that target cities (like 1000+ silos)

• Fixed STAT function in the events system now understands the strings as regions and factions

• Added the Cyber Warfare Center

• Geneva Convention decisions now require consensus - configurable

• Added AllowEventsInMultiplayer config setting

• Added "casualties" event

• Added weapon activation delay, sensors activation delay and launch hosted delay unit properties

• Satellites are no more placed randomly as there is now a sensors activation delay

• Conquest mode now has 5 times slower pollution speed by default

• Some AI changes

• Greatly increased the volume of fire for SSGNs, allowing them to destroy targets more easily

• Added several techs that upgrade the performance of spec-ops teams

To celebrate the 25th Anniversary of Slitherine, we've also released a special Night Map as free content for all players. This new visual option completely changes the atmosphere of the game world and is available right now.

Two new bundles are now available:

• World at Stake Bundle

• ICBM: Escalation Complete

And there’s more on the horizon: the team continues working on the major AI Rework, a long-term upgrade aimed at significantly improving strategic behavior and challenge. Expect new updates and details in January.

Smarter Wars – Rebuilding the AI for Conventional Conflict

One of the biggest changes in the new AI is how it handles the distribution of its assets.

As I’ve mentioned before, the original AI was designed primarily for all-out nuclear war. It focused heavily on the positioning of strategic assets, while “conventional” elements (such as army bases, divisions, and SRBM launchers) were treated as secondary.

While the old AI could technically plan an invasion or allocate forces to defend its territory when invaded, it suffered from several serious limitations.

Limitations of the Original AI

Hi everyone,

We’ve got a small but meaningful update to share, we’ve just introduced a custom price for Poland.

We know how important fair regional pricing is for our community, so starting today, ICBM: Escalation will be available at a new price of 89.98zl on Steam.

Our goal is to make sure players in Poland can enjoy the game at a price that feels right for the local market.

We really appreciate all the support from our Polish players, your enthusiasm, feedback, and passion mean the world to us.

If you already own the game, nothing changes for you, but if you’ve been waiting for the right moment to jump in, this might be the perfect time.

Thank you again for being part of our community, and see you in the game.

Let’s dig deeper into the new AI features and examine how the AI handles regions protected by SAMs and ABMs.

Remember: the original AI was tuned for all-out nuclear war, where aircraft were treated as expendable — you’d usually fly a one-way mission, drop a 10-megaton bomb, and that was it. In a conventional-war setting, however, the air force is a support arm: aircraft are expected to perform many sorties, delivering AGMs and GBUs against enemy formations. That raises the question: what happens when those units are operating under a SAM umbrella?

The new AI factors that in. When the AI loses aircraft to anti-air defenses it logs the area as hazardous — and, if possible, identifies the specific enemy anti-air asset. The AI then suspends further attacks that would intersect those danger zones until the threat is mitigated. To resolve the threat it tries several approaches:

Hi everyone!

In today’s diary, we’d like to share a closer look at Conquest Mode. What it was originally meant to be, what challenges we’ve seen with the current implementation, and the big changes we’re working on to bring it closer to that vision.

The Original Vision

Conquest Mode was always designed to be the longest form of play. Slower research, slower build times, and a strong emphasis on territory control rather than outright destruction. The idea was to create a more measured, “light grand strategy” experience, where players advance through all the tech epochs in a controlled escalation.

But as it stands today, the AI doesn’t really shine in this mode.

The Current Problems

Right now, the AI’s primary goal is simply to win by points. That means:

• When it feels ready, it will attack almost anyone—just to maximize score.

• Even when it’s not ready, it will still launch attacks once pollution reaches a certain threshold, because that’s how it can squeeze in a few more points before the game ends.

There’s also a gap between two kinds of conflict:

• All-out war, triggered once pollution is high.

• Retaliatory strikes, often happening when the player acts aggressively.

The problem is that these retaliatory strikes tend to spiral. A player retaliates, then the AI retaliates back, pollution rises, and soon other AI factions jump in to avoid falling behind—leading to premature all-out war and an early end to the match.

A typical sequence looks like this:

Hi everyone!

If you’ve been following the news on ICBM: Escalation, you’ve probably heard that there’s a second DLC in the works! The new DLC, aptly named ‘The United States of Annihilation’ focuses on the United States. Now, anyone who’s familiar with the original single-player campaign is probably feeling a bit of deja vu. After all, the first 6 words in the campaign synopsis are literally ‘Take control of the United States’ so why is there a second American campaign? Well, the short answer is, because we wanted to make a campaign that plays differently than the others, and this one is gonna feel a LOT different.

Here’s a screenshot so you don’t have to check. Six words.

The ‘United States of Annihilation’ DLC focuses on the core tenets of what makes the ICBM series what it is: Nuclear weapons, a complete lack of respect for the consequences of using them, and an abhorrent amount of destruction. You see, in MacArthur’s Revenge and Endless October, the player had to strike a balance between completing demanding military objectives and avoiding diplomatic redlines or spiraling out of control into a total nuclear war. This DLC is different. While the last campaigns had you playing as the hard-pressed general making difficult decisions, avoiding collateral damage and keeping the world from crossing over the brink, this campaign is not like that.

So what’s the difference? Without explicitly putting out any spoilers (but knowing you can probably fill in the blanks with your imagination), in the ‘United States of Annihilation’ campaign, there’s no nuclear counter-balance to the US. It’s not always the solution, and like before, sometimes it will even cause your mission to fail, but if you fire a dozen ICBMs at your enemy, you don’t have to worry about any coming back. The world is your oyster, and you can fry it at 50 million degrees. So what’s the catch? If you’re allowed to nuke absolutely everything with no consequences, then the mission will be easy, right? Well, that’s precisely the thing. The missions are demanding enough that you really have no choice. 

In the previous 2 campaigns, your first mission was to fight over the Korean peninsula and maybe extend your offensive into China or a little piece of the Pacific if you were feeling bold and wanted top marks. Now, not to downplay the significance of the Korean War, because after all, it was a real event that people made the ultimate sacrifice for, but it was a single-theater conflict in a relatively small region. From a gameplay perspective, it’s fairly manageable and linear.

Sure, there’s a lot of enemies, but you’ve got allies and there’s only one front line. Simple.

Meanwhile, in this campaign, there’s no Korean War. The start year is 1949. In this alternate timeline, the US has funneled even more money, time and resources into its nuclear program, giving it a formidable nuclear arsenal before the turn of the decade. And that’s important, because your first mission is to LITERALLY DISMANTLE THE ENTIRE SOVIET UNION.

Sorry, you want me to do -what?-

Yes, that’s right. Instead of making you fight through 10 missions to turn Moscow into a parking lot, we’re going to get that out of the way right at the starting gun. Of course, you’re not going to beat the world’s only other superpower to death with some tommy guns and M46s. The only way you’re going to conceivably wipe them out in time with acceptable losses is by cracking heads and splitting atoms. You have exclusive rights to the world’s nuclear weapons and the only way you can hope to win is by putting them to good use. There’s no diplomatic redlines. There’s no limitations. There’s just you, a few allies, an utterly overwhelming enemy presence, and enough nuclear firepower to change the world. 

Without giving too much of the plot away, the rest of the campaign revolves around the hypothetical American nuclear monopoly. Namely, the clandestine black operations needed to maintain it, the blatant abuse of it to achieve otherwise insurmountable military objectives, and the inevitable consequences that come with doing both of the above. In other words, expect a mix of covert action and raw, unbridled carnage.

So, now that we’ve talked about what to expect in the new campaign, it’s good to briefly touch on some other things quickly as well. This DLC also fills in the gaps in the American cosmetic lineup, so you can finally have American cruisers and interceptors, among other things.

That’s right, the wholesale eradication of millions of innocents, AND there’s also the YF-23!

And, a few other quick notes, just like before, there’s plans for future free updates to the game as well! Just recently, by popular demand, we’ve added a new unit visibility filter, so if you don’t want to see all 4,000 of your radar sites at the same time, you can toggle them off. We’re listening to your feedback, so let us know what you think. There’s also a long list of units and techs that we can potentially add to the game as well. They might not all make the cut, but you can expect some new additions coming up! And, of course, because this dev diary is about a DLC, and because we listen to your feedback, and because I know everybody’s wondering the same thing… Yes, we’re doing a Chinese DLC after this one.

As you can see, PRC for DLC 3, date TBD.

And that wraps up this dev diary! Let us know what you think, and if you’re interested in the DLC, wishlist it on Steam. Your support is what keeps the lights on and the updates coming, so thanks for reading this far and seeing what we’ve got coming up!

We’re excited to reveal United States of Annihilation, the next DLC for ICBM: Escalation. This new campaign explores an alternate history where the United States rises from WWII determined to impose its will on the entire world.

The DLC is now entering beta, and we’re inviting players to sign up and help us test before release. Your feedback will be essential in shaping the final version.

Sign up for the beta and learn more on the official product page. BETA

the developers have fixed the issues that occurred with the previous update, so the changelog for version 1.1.0 is now validated. The latest update is version 1.1.0a, and you can find its changelog below: 1.1.0a

• Fixed the excessive aggressiveness of aircraft units when not in war,

• Fixed the occational crash with the modded game handling transport queue,

• Fixed the problem with MP games failing to perform region transfer,

• Fixed the crash when loading MP autosave,

• Fixed the Endgame achievement in single player in some cases,

• Fixed the incorrect result of the REGION_ORIGINAL_OWNER event function ---------------------------------------------- Hi everyone, a new update for ICBM: Escalation has been released. v. 1.1.0

• Fixed the MP saves not loading when more than 255 units are in reserve,

• Fixed the problem with loading saves for Mission 6 of DLC,

• Fixed the exploit with the possibility to rearm your SSBNs by shift-clicking on config of another SSBN within your territory,

• Fixed the overly aggressive behaviour of the aircraft units towards air transports,

• Fixed the problem of incorrect selection of units to build by the AI (rnd range overflow),

• Fixed the incorrect techmod application for the specific terrain in some cases,

• Fixed the crash when ctrl+clicking on the "up state" icon for a unit that already has his path set,

• Fixed the problem when destroying the entrenched armies when transferring regions,

• Fixed a bug in scenario scripts when creating new units,

• Fixed the Continue button not working for SP some time after having a MP match,

• Changed the unit drawing order in War Planner,

• Added the unit visibility filter

• Not destroying the units when transferring regions to allies anymore,

• Added Saving/Loading of the war plans

• Changed the nuclear attack alert logic. Now it is triggered only by 100K+ warheads

• Army bases, FOBs and Naval Stations can now be set as attackers in the war planner

• HGVs are now harder to intercept

• Increased the production cost for high-yield nuclear ABMs

• Increased the minimum firing distance for midcourse ABM sites

• Reduced the splash damage radius of nuclear ABMs, making MIRV weapons harder to stop after separating

• Increased the range of the fixed laser ABM site

• Fixed a problem where AI factions research new technology in Mission 5

• Fixed a rare problem with certain AI factions failing to produce new units or weapons

We've just released the second episode of How to Win, a video series for ICBM: Escalation that explores different strategies to help you complete key missions from the single-player campaign. In each episode, we'll walk you through one campaign mission and show you a range of tactical options you can use to secure victory. Whether you prefer overwhelming force, calculated strikes, or unconventional weapons, the series is here to offer new perspectives on how to approach each challenge. Episode 2 takes you into the 5th campaign mission, "Bloodied Bowman", and highlights two viable strategies:

• Staggered Deployment - Fly your forces out from a single base one at a time

• Amphibious Assault - Deploy forces overseas by ship for a large-scale coordinated attack

You'll see both strategies in action, giving you a clear sense of how each one plays out and what kind of results you can expect. The second episode is available now, we'll be releasing more soon, each one focused on a different mission, with fresh strategies for you to try. Stay tuned, and get ready to command the battlefield your way.

Endless October has officially launched, and we hope you're enjoying your time commanding the Soviet Union through decades of alternate history. As always, your feedback is crucial to helping us refine and improve both the gameplay and the overall experience. Last week, we also released a new patch that addressed numerous bugs and introduced several balancing changes based on early player feedback. If you haven’t yet updated your game, make sure you’re running the latest version for the best experience. We’ve prepared a short form where you can tell us what you liked, what could be improved, and what you'd like to see in the future.

The form is quick to fill out, and your input will directly influence how we approach future content and updates for ICBM: Escalation.

Thank you for playing and for being part of our community.

• Fixed the MP issue with lagging and disconnecting when the server is run on much more powerful machine than client,
• Fixed the crash on server migration when lagging,
• Fixed the crash on forced sync with out-of-sync hosted units,
• Changed the handling of the diplomacy offers for the Events system,
• Fixed the "My Last Words" achievement (once again),
• Fixed "Down With The Sickness" achievement,
• Fixed the possibility to skip pre-requisite techs when distributing points,
• Fixed the AI not using nukes for air strikes on armies and bases

• Fixed unit model animations for all Soviet tanks, the tier 5 Soviet Spec-Ops Helicopter, and the static laser defence site
• Added flavour text for Mission Pass/Fail screens
• Fixed captured territories carrying casualties over to the player for several missions

• Fixed a bug where losing Cambodia and re-invading it would trigger a nuclear war
• Causing a US retreat now completes an objective, destroying the retreating US units is no longer required
• Visually clarified the time available for the bonus objective

• Fixed a bug where the AWACS tech would not carry over from earlier missions if unlocked
• Visually clarified the time available for the bonus objective

• Changed the Warsaw Pact to be neutral to avoid confusion
• Removed passive research and production from European NATO
• Visually clarified the time available for the bonus objective
• Moved an enemy SSBN to a different location to prevent accidental nuclear war
• Increased player's baseline production GDP
• Territories captured by the player and lost to the US are now auto-reassigned to European NATO
• Fixed a bug where losing a captured territory to the US and re-invading it would trigger a nuclear war
• Fixed a bug where using nuclear weapons in a US-captured territory would trigger a nuclear war
• Increased mission point rewards for next mission

• Changed the mission ending immediately upon finishing the primary objectives if secondary objectives are available
• Increased mission point rewards for next mission

• Overhauled the spawning system for insurgents inside the USSR, which are much more active
• Added periodic enemy army reinforcements to Afghanistan
• Clarified an objective location involving a unit spawn
• Changed timings for mission phases
• Reduced mission time from 30 mins to 20
• Adjusted ISAF landing zone
• Reduced player production GDP
• Added more starting units for the player
• Increased mission point rewards for next mission

• Added several free starting techs
• Added more starting units in Primorsky and south of Japan
• Increased player's baseline production power
• Adjusted aid ship spawns slightly
• Landing spec-ops in Japan no longer triggers war
• Lowered Japanese tolerance for casualties before starting total war
• Increased mission point rewards for next mission

• Fixed the Alaska bonus objective not working properly and causing nuclear war
• Fixed the 'Surface ship' and 'Submarine' objectives not being counted separately
• Adjusted routes for some NATO fleet responses
• Landing spec-ops in enemy territory no longer triggers war
• Added a Carrier to one of the player's Cruiser groups.
• Added resupply ships to several friendly naval groups
• Added the 'Advanced warship' tech to the player for free
• Increased mission point rewards for next mission

• Fixed a bug where Mongolia controlling Baotou after 40 mins instead of the player would cause a fail
• Added several free starting techs
• Increased the player's baseline production and research output

• Greatly increased the budget available from the previous mission for more starting units + techs

New Visual Models

• ICBM is 30% off
• ICBM: Escalation is 10% off

• Fixed Spanish translation of several techs,
• Fixed potential crashes when handling hosted units,
• Fixed the crash when loading saves with ships positioned on ground,
• Fixed the potential problem with hosting the already killed units,
• Fixed the potential problem with armies boarded on ship but keeping the occupation data,
• Fixed "Electric Eye" achievement,
• Fixed "Angry Again" achievement,
• Fixed "Symphony of Destruction" achievement,
• Fixed "Run To The Hills" achievement,
• Fixed "Breaking The Law" achievement,
• Fixed "My Last Words" achievement,
• Added support for parameters in throw event,
• Added new events functions,
• Added support for configurable faction-specific units,
• Pressing Cancel now deselects units

• Fixed multirole attackers not keeping distance to the target
• Fixed a potential crash in events system
• Fixed Mission #6 in the main campaign
• Fixed an incorrect SIEGED select variable in the Events system
• Added the possibility to continuously attack enemy targets with the hosted units (hold Ctrl on launch)
• Fixed a crash in the last tutorial mission
• Fixed a crash on assigning random regions

• Fixed torpedo trajectories and launch distance
• Fixed boats stuck on land borders
• Fixed a potential vulnerability to cheating in MP with research queue and construction queue
• Fixed a potential crash related to autosave
• Fixed a sporadic crash after the system goes sleep/hybernate mode
• Reduced the "tsunamy effect" when hitting naval units with nukes
• When deploying units you can now hold 'Z', 'X', 'C', 'V', 'B' buttons to see the ranges of specific hosted units
• When transferring regions via the diplomacy, the assimilation time is now forced if the factions are not allied
• Allowed production of units by VirtualCity
• Added ProducedByAnotherUnit property for missiles
• Reworked the airdrop/naval transporting for the AI
• Fixed achievements for completing the game with specific faction
• Fixed the problem with tech-improved weapon configs not counted when calculating potential max weapon range for units
• Fixed the saved game configurations not loading
• Fixed the crash related to unit groups referenced in War Planner
• Fixed the problem with torpedoes not hitting ships from behind
• Fixed a potential crash related to the explosions
• Fixed a random crash related to changing unit states
• Not showing enemy weapon loadout for units anymore
• Added new functions to the Events engine
• The default maps now have their Events defined separately for easier modding
• Now cancelling all agreements when breaking from alliance
• Added the support for DLCs
• Added the target re-distribution for SAMs/ABMs
• Added the starting Tech Level for MP games
• Changed the slider ranges for Min rating games
• Changed the event notifications to always store the event position
• Added indication of the Server player in MP
• AI Unit placement is now more random
• Options screen can be now open by pressing "O" or spacebar in the main menu
• Added new Orbital Drop Pod and Quantum Radar techs (localization pending)
• Adjusted nuclear ALCM firing behavior to be less wasteful
• Updated several tech artworks
• Attack submarines now stay submerged when in a strike plan

• A fully fleshed-out alternate history campaign
• New units
• New leader portraits