Ender's Game is a 1985
military science fiction novel by American author
Orson Scott Card. Set in Earth's future, the novel presents an imperiled mankind after two conflicts with the "
buggers", an
insectoid alien species. In preparation for an anticipated third invasion, children, including the novel's protagonist,
Ender Wiggin, are trained from a very young age through increasingly difficult games including some in
zero gravity, where Ender's
tactical genius is revealed.