Old Light
Blog
Strategy, design notes and updates from the Old Light galaxy.
How combat works in Old Light: rounds, rolls and odds
Old Light battles resolve the moment a fleet lands: one round, two at most, and every shot is a hit roll then a kill roll. The rules, with worked examples.
AnnouncementOld Light now asks how you want to rule: governments & policies
Old Light, a free browser space strategy game, now has governments, policies and edicts. Every advantage comes with a drawback. Here is how they work.
AnnouncementOld Light now has named regions and regional leaderboards
Old Light's galaxy now groups its sectors into named regions, each with a leaderboard ranked by sector bonuses held and a public page anyone can read.
EssayHow empire borders and territory work in a shared galaxy
Every Old Light system claims the hexes within two of it, and the older claim wins where empires overlap. How territory, capture and sectors interact.
AnnouncementOld Light's galaxy now has its own pages: live stats and sector pages
See how busy the Old Light galaxy is without logging in, from live galaxy stats and records to a public page for every sector that has held a star.
ArticleGames like Neptune's Pride
Games like Neptune's Pride: slow real-time space strategy you play over days or weeks, from Solaris and Subterfuge to a persistent browser galaxy.
ArticleThe best strategy games for Chromebook in 2026
Strategy games that run on a Chromebook with nothing to install: browser games, Civilization VI on Android, Stellaris in the cloud and a free browser pick.
EssayPeace treaties in a browser strategy game
Old Light has binding peace treaties: 14 days, signed in a deal, and neither side can walk out alone. How diplomacy works in a browser strategy game.
EngineeringDelta encoding multiplayer game state
Delta encoding and game state sync in a multiplayer browser game: what goes in a galaxy state patch, and why each viewer gets a different diff.
ArticleGames like Tribal Wars, set in space
Tribal Wars in space: browser strategy games where star systems are the villages you conquer on a shared map, and how close the match really is.
EssayNo publisher would fund a browser MMO
No publisher would fund a browser MMO in 2026. Notes from a solo indie dev on what it costs to build and run Old Light alone, and why that math works.
EssayGratuitous Space Battles and the case for auto-resolve combat
Gratuitous Space Battles made you design a fleet, then took away the controls. What auto-resolve combat costs a space strategy game, and what it buys.
EssayEmergent gameplay from plain rules
Emergent gameplay explained with five concrete examples from a live strategy game: plain rules, and the situations nobody scripted falling out of them.
AnnouncementYour empire now has a public profile page
Old Light empires now have public profile pages: rank, score, territory map, every system they hold, and the empires they border. Settings can hide yours.
AnnouncementSee the whole galaxy: Old Light's in-game map and search
Old Light now has a full galaxy map inside the game and on the web. Search it by name or coordinate and jump straight to an empire, sector, or system.
ArticleGames like Pardus: browser alternatives worth playing in 2026
Pardus alternatives for 2026: browser games still alive in its lane, from a trading sim to a newer shared galaxy you check in short sessions.
EssayWhy Elo ratings don't work in a persistent strategy game
Elo and MMR suit matchmade session games, not a persistent 4X where nothing resets and there are no matches to score. What a galaxy leaderboard uses instead.
EngineeringGame networking for a slow strategy game
Game networking for a slow browser strategy game: WebSocket deltas instead of FPS netcode, and the time-anchor bug where both sides do time math.
Article6 things every good browser strategy game needs
What makes a good browser strategy game: six things the format has to get right, from no pay-to-win to a world that runs while your tab is closed.
ArticlePersistent universe games that don't need 20 hours a week
Persistent universe games keep running while you are offline. The big ones want your life; living-galaxy games for short sessions, and where Old Light fits.
ArticleGames like EVE Online, without the 20-hour weeks
Games like EVE Online sorted by what you miss most about it, from Elite Dangerous and X4 to EVE Echoes, Prosperous Universe and Old Light.
ArticleGames like Astro Empires and Anacreon
Browser games like Astro Empires and Anacreon in 2026: OGame, Neptune's Pride, Interstellar Empires and more real-time space 4X, compared side by side.
ArticleFree space browser games worth playing in 2026
Space browser games worth your time in 2026: OGame, Astro Empires, Neptune's Pride, Pardus, Xterium and newer free picks, compared by price model and pace.
ArticleHow to play Old Light: a beginner's guide
How to play Old Light, the slow, free browser strategy game: your first build order, the five-day shield, probes, and claiming a second system.
EssayMessaging first, alliances next
Old Light now has private messages, and alliances are next. Why sending is something you earn, and how to add alliances without flattening the galaxy.
AnnouncementEmpires now fly their own colours on the map
Old Light empires now show their own banner colour across their territory, the same in-game and on the public galaxy map. A look at the new empire borders.
EngineeringBrowser strategy game backend
How Old Light runs a real-time galaxy for thousands of players: no tick loop, combat as a pure function, deterministic NPCs, and designing every path for scale.
ArticleBest browser strategy games of 2026, still alive and active
16 strategy games still alive in 2026, from OGame and Travian to Old Light, with launch years, server models and what each store sells.
EssayI built a strategy game you only have to check twice a day
A slow, async browser strategy game you check twice a day. Short-session, play-while-offline strategy for busy adults, and where Old Light fits in.
ArticleGames like Grepolis, Ikariam and Forge of Empires
Games like Grepolis, Ikariam and Forge of Empires, how Grepolis and Ikariam differ, and a slower browser alternative where money buys no power.
ArticleGames like Hades' Star
Games like Hades' Star in 2026: what changed with Dark Nebula, plus Pixel Starships, EVE Echoes and other space strategy games with a shared galaxy.
ArticleGames like Stellaris, from deep PC 4X to free browser picks
Free and mobile games like Stellaris, and simpler ones for a first space 4X, set beside the deep PC alternatives with platforms and prices for each.
ArticleGames like Travian and OGame in 2026, and one without pay-to-win
Games like Travian and OGame in 2026: eleven strategy games compared by setting, launch year and premium currency.
EssayPay-to-win killed the browser MMO. I'm trying to bring it back.
The browser strategy games I grew up on were hollowed out by pay-for-power. What that did to the genre, and why money can't buy a stronger empire in Old Light.
AnnouncementOld Light is live: a slow strategy game across a shared galaxy
Old Light is a slow, real-time multiplayer 4X you can play in twenty minutes a day. One shared galaxy, one empire each, no download and no pay-to-win.