My brief return to the game told me that godlike AI has +1 flat move bonus AND +200% movement speed modifier. I understand +1 flat bonus, I understand insane economy bonuses, but the +200% movement speed? That's just blatant cheating. And that is the reason why my return to this game was a brief one.

That blatant cheat made me simply annoyed. How am I supposed to outsmart the AI when they can just zerg rush me? How am I supposed to protect my space assets when the AI can alpha strike everything I own on the first turn of war? Heck, how am I supposed to GET any resources when the AI can outrun AND outproduce me. This isn't a challange, it's an exercise in restarting the game. Heck, I had to turn off the pirates altogether as my first colony ship died the moment I send it anywhere. The AI obviously had no troubles with pirates.

The biggest problem is that this game is simply boring. On lower difficulties the AI is so dumb that a bunch of monkeys could outsmart it, on higher ones it's so annoying that I simply don't want to play anymore. Oh, it is STILL dumb as a brick. Just a very fast moving brick aimed at player's face.

Ok they are right at normal difficulty which is the difficulty the ai uses with no bonuses to no one. Lower difficulty the player gets bonuses. At higher diffuculty the ai gets bonuses. The ai gets no more information than you. Its just good at math where through averaging makes it good at predicting. It uses the ratings to figure out what kind of syradegy you are currently using.

Now if you play godlike expect the ai to get bonuses. If you dont like the bonuses play a lower level. 

I would like a better ai mean harder ai not just bonuses, but right now the ai is at its smartest at normal difficulty. If you increase level it gets bonuses. Anything stardock says its meant towards normal ai. Yes the ai gets bonuses above normal difficulty.