Since I cannot get past the introductory screen in the Beta (immediate crash), I still feel compelled to have some sort of discussion regarding the questions on gameplay content!
Exciting for us too! In your Questions for July thread I had posed some questions about the upcoming work on Elemental AI which I hope you will answer at your convenience. In the meantime, may I ask about a fundamental AI concern with Elemental? It seems that your job with the AI gets easier the fewer numbers of variables are involved; thinking about the undercomplex combat system in GalCivII, for example, an
It's almost October, and I am just wondering if the questions that have been posed here have been deemed unworthy of attention? I could imagine that the people at Stardock want as much constructive criticism as possible as early as possible, do you think that some FAQ will be forthcoming? Thanks much!
Thank you! I would like to say 2 things. 1. I REALLY LIKE the new screenshot on the Media page which shows the cloth map and what appears to be sovereigns and other figures as avatars resembling figurines, complete with pedestal. I think that is an EXCELLENT solution to the cloth map, a perfect blend of abstraction and concreteness. Bravo. And it even looks good. 2. I am still skeptical about the Family Dynasties, for two reasons. Reason 1: Internal Lo
Thank you, Hunger. I want to try it out. I like SP. Are the developers actually working on it? I thought it was in Stardock's hands now, and they are busy with Elemental? I don't see any new maps or demigods out either, maybe I am mistaken, but it doesnt look like patches are being mentioned. 2. In the game options menu, there is an option for Game Speed. There, you can choose Slow, Normal, Fast, or Adjustable. When I choose Adjustable, I see no way to actually adjust the speed in-gam
Hmn ok thanks. How does one adjust the speed during the game?
Thank you. I see how to start a "SP" game in the multiplayer demo, I thought some of it was nice; two last questions, if I may (because I am thinking of purchasing it if it is on sale, I do so like Stardock...!) - Is the "AI" actually any good, in your opinion? - In the game setup screen, you can opt to have the speed "adjustable" in game; if I select this, I see no way to actually slow down or speed up the game in-game -- how can one do that? Thank you! <
bizarre ... ok i suppose i'll try it, but if it's primarily MP then I guess im out anyhow... thank you
I just installed the demigod demo from impulse -- and I do not see a single-player mode. Am I totally blind or is this intentional?
That looks very promising! Particularly pleased that I will be able to play it on my only computer, a two-year-old laptop. Will you soon be showing off not only graphics, but some of the core concepts (how shards are controlled, how influence is expanded, how combat mechanics work, etc.)?
Well we're into September but I still have some questions -- I hope I haven't offended? I'll just continue here, if I may? - Are You Human? Brad has indicated many times that he wants AI personalities that play and feel like real people. If so, that could be one solution to a problem many 4X games often have, and one to which Brad has also made reference many times (yet without, it seems to me, having made it clear exactly what truly satisfying solutions to the proble
I think it is hard for me, like for many other posters here, to give a qualified answer. Most of the posts here have been very subjective -- which is not surprising, since most of us here are not specialists in computer art. I can only say which screenshot "appeals" to me slightly more than the others (75), but I think most of us need help in learning the details so as to give a qualified feedback.
I agree with Saber Cherry on almost all points. I would merely like to add two very minor points: (1) that diminishing returns (no matter how you want to calculate them) are important for balance reasons, and (2) no matter how realistic any gameplay element may be, unless the game is a simulation (e.g. flight simulator), all elements of any game should always help contribute to or at least not be a deterrent to FUN. (Fun is most certainly open to debate, but, I believe, in a TBS game, must at
OK last day last question! - Time : In most of the screenshots, we can see that buildings, units, or tech require X number of "days" to complete. Yet apparently, you also want to be able to erect dynasties over generations and hence tens of thousands of days. Taking scale of map size (for travelling) into account, what turn length do you feel most comfortable representing?
That was very insightful. I particularly liked the way that Scott was able to articulate the reasons behind their choices in art -- they are not merely contingent or aesthetic. Thank you for posting that!
Well August is almost gone, and none of my questions have been addressed, so I will be so bold as to include 2 last ones before time is up! Thank you in advance. - Diminishing Returns : For balance reasons, many games include diminishing returns in tech structures and unit/building composition. This also has some basis in reality -- almost everything involving achievement or performance, and hence everything modelling achievement or performance, is asymptotic. At the h
Oh hey thank you for that reply! Sadly, the results seem to be just as irregular when I try to "test". Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. I think maybe there is some Asus security thing that is acting irregularly -- 95% of the time it will not let me connect, 5% it will. I cannot figure it out. Can I supply any other details, what could they be? Thank you so much
Hello, and thank you in advance for your helpful replies! I use an Asus M50Sa laptop running Vista Home Premium (32 bit), I am pretty sure it is updated to the current version. My problem: Under Network Connections, I must manually find and log in to my W-LAN router manually every time the computer starts or wakes up from "sleep" (including the times the lid is shut), thus also disconnecting me from online programs etc., although I have "Connect To This Networ
That looks very promising indeed. The family element looks intruiging. I hope, however, that the family system will not take the upper hand in all things diplomatic. Additionally, I would also prefer to spend more energy making strategic choices about technology, magic, and army placement than breeding. Of course, this is merely a simple statement of my taste and hence gentle constructive criticism and is not meant to poo-poo novel ideas or fans' enthusiasm. As long as the family
That was a favorable preview, even if it did seem to focus on graphics. That, of course, does continue to look nice! The Pedigree element sounds a bit like it could (also) have been inspired by Roger Zelazny's Amber quintology (and its hideous sequels as well perhaps). Good luck further!
I agree, zigzag, in most respects. I think I did a suboptimal job in suggesting the mechanisms behind the way that units of culture be obtained; it was supposed to be a combination of: Resource control (where only the prerequisite of mining the resource requires a spell), adventuring (convincing entities to bestow you with culture), and building (building "temple"-like structures and making these attractive for "priests".). It should definately be very distinct from magic research and mana bu
Thank you. From what I gather, Kefka, there is already supposed to be something like a Spell/Magic victory condition in (which I mentioned in my OP). I think it would be a good idea to make it work as you suggest. Scoutdog: I wouldn't want the essence of divinity / arcane power / culture to cause any "flips" in Civilization style, but I could imagine that having a particular Culture value should offer your realm some bonuses besides just counting towards a victory condition.</
The idea of multiple discrete victory conditions is excellent. In the following, I would like to introduce an idea
[quote who="BoogieBac" reply="22" id="2317870"] Just because the economic system is simplified doesn't mean domestic management won't be engaging...streamlining economics was done to prevent tedium, not to de-emphasize the importance of a strong imperial backbone. If we do it right, 1.0 will have players that ONLY want to build massive, sprawling cities and have their fun focusing on growing settlements and keeping their cities prosperous. [/quote] Often less means more. Sim
Brad has hinted a number of times that he wants magic to be truly world-shaking in a literal sense of the word -- higher level spells should be so powerful as to lay waste to entire landmasses. But what measures are being taken to avoid no-brainers here? 1 very powerful spell might be 100 times more potent than a low-level spell -- but the player should be able to weigh her options and have a difficult time choosing which is wiser: casting a single, vastly powerful and truly cool-looking spel
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