What’s Next for GEM RTS Engine

The world is changing faster than many of us thought possible, directly affecting how technology companies and game studios operate. Rising expectations for technology and visual quality are extending production cycles and making games more expensive to develop. At the same time, political and economic uncertainty makes long-term planning increasingly difficult.

For us at Best Way Games, this reality has another dimension. Our studio and key team members continue to work in Ukraine, where an ordinary workday may be interrupted by air raid alerts and prolonged blackouts.

But none of this has diminished our passion for making games. We have kept moving forward. These circumstances have also encouraged us to look more carefully at what we create, why we create it, and how we can build a strong foundation for the years ahead.

Today, Best Way Games is moving in two parallel directions: developing a prototype for a new game and establishing GEM RTS as an independent technology platform. These directions are closely connected, but each requires its own resources, approach, and long-term decisions.

GEM RTS Engine as an Independent Technology Platform

Over 25 years of development, our RTS game engine has grown far beyond its original role as an internal tool for Best Way Games projects.

GEM RTS has evolved into a complete development environment combining core technology, ready-made gameplay systems, and a production toolset tested in commercial projects by Best Way Games and several partner studios.

We have therefore made an important strategic decision: to begin licensing GEM RTS and its supporting tools.

The offering will extend beyond the engine itself to include tools used throughout the production process, such as:

• the GEM Importer plugin for exporting models into the game
• a resource analyzer
• a material editor
• additional utilities for integrating content and configuring projects

Our goal is not simply to provide access to technology. We want to offer a practical development environment for independent developers, modders, small teams, and established studios seeking a flexible foundation for their own games.

GEM RTS has already proven its capabilities across multiple commercial releases. We believe the time has come for the technology to support a wider range of teams, ideas, and projects.

Meanwhile, work on our own new game continues.

The New Game

We know that many of you have been waiting for news about our next project.

Together with the community, we conducted extensive research into what players value most about our games and what they would like to see in a new one. Based on your feedback, we identified the core elements that should carry over into the project, as well as those we should reconsider. We discussed this process in an earlier publication and shared some of our initial plans in Your Wishlist, Our Plan: What’s In and What’s Out

So, where does development currently stand?

The honest answer is simple: the game will take considerable time because we must create almost all of its content from scratch.

This includes unit and environment models, animations, visual effects, sound, the interface, terrain textures, map elements, and many other assets, along with story campaigns and multiplayer modes.

We are building an entirely new content base in which every element requires careful design, production, integration, and testing. Significantly accelerating this process would put the project’s quality, consistency, and long-term stability at risk. For that reason, it is still too early to reveal what is happening behind the scenes.

However, we do have something new to share.

Alongside the new game, we are developing GEM RTS 2, a new generation of our game engine. We do not want its feature-rich editor to remain unavailable until the game is complete, as happened with the Men of War II editor.

We understand that creators need more than occasional development updates: they need access to tools, examples, and opportunities to experiment.

That is why we have decided to create a separate project.

Introducing GEM RTS Sandbox

GEM RTS Sandbox will be an open experimental environment powered by GEM RTS 2 Engine. 

Its purpose is to give creators practical access to the technology and let them explore its capabilities without waiting for the release of our next major game.

In addition to the editor, GEM RTS Sandbox will include a collection of sample resources:

• models
• textures
• several maps
• several story missions with cooperative play
• multiplayer modes
• configuration files for gameplay components, accompanied by comments and explanations from our team

The defining feature of Sandbox is that all included resources will be available for study, modification, and experimentation.

Users will be able to examine how the content is structured, modify and adapt it, test their ideas, and create original gameplay scenarios.

A Platform for Creation and Collaboration

We want Sandbox to become more than a demonstration of the engine’s capabilities. We see it as a practical starting point for learning, experimentation, and collaboration.

Modders will be able to study real production examples, developers can explore the capabilities of GEM RTS, and small teams can use it to test concepts and build prototypes. Players will also be able to create modifications and enjoy them with friends.

We want to build a sustainable community where people can exchange knowledge, solve technical challenges, find collaborators, test new tools and ideas, and create projects together.

This community can bring together modders, game designers, 2D and 3D artists, animators, independent development teams, and players interested in creating and exploring new content. Even the best tools only reach their full potential when people come together around them.

What Comes Next?

In future updates, we will share more details about:

• what GEM RTS Sandbox will include
• the engine licensing model
• the supporting development tools
• how new users will be able to get started

We hope this will mark the beginning of a larger ecosystem, one that grows alongside the people and teams who choose to become part of it.

We continue to develop our technology and build our new game, even when the road requires more effort than we would like. At the same time, our journey is expanding beyond internal development to create a space where others can begin building alongside us.

Just like in the old days, we are once again looking for the best way forward.

Are you with us?