Just a few thoughts before game is finished

PSP/DS/PC/MAC : WWII turn based grand strategy game

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vveedd
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Just a few thoughts before game is finished

Post by vveedd »

Must say you this so when it happens to your game I can say ??“ I told you so :P . From Strategic Command 2 (SC2) game playing experience there are a few things you should know (have):

1.It is bad idea to have lots of turns in game. Except singleplayer this is heavy problem for every multiplayer kind of game. If playing one game will last 3-4 months there is very big possibility that will pop up some reason to one player because of he must stop playing and in most cases PBEM games never are finished. Similar reason is for TCP/IP games ??“ if it will last more than 3-4 hours who have time to play it? Very few workless people. And DON??™T SAY that most of players are interested for singleplayer only. Just look SC2 game. They said the same at the beginning and you have world tournament in multiplayer, lots of clans for playing multiplayer AND lots of mods in which game time (turns) is (are) reduced.

2.You must have swapping units option. No matter how map is huge you will need it if you don??™t have stacking of temporary stacking, at least. It is very stupid and annoying that you must have minimum 3 hexes free and two turns to replace places for two units. Second solution to solve this problem is to have partial movement but you will not have it, as I know. My suggestion is that you should have or, at least, you should have divided movement from attack. Simple explanation: I would like to move all my units first and then attack. To be more precise you should have movement and attack concept like Panzer General 2 game has.
And forgive me if I am comparing your game to SC2 game too much but you must admit ??“ it is very similar to SC2 :D .
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Re: Just a few thoughts before game is finished

Post by firepowerjohan »

vveedd wrote:Must say you this so when it happens to your game I can say ??“ I told you so :P . From Strategic Command 2 (SC2) game playing experience there are a few things you should know (have):

1.It is bad idea to have lots of turns in game. Except singleplayer this is heavy problem for every multiplayer kind of game. If playing one game will last 3-4 months there is very big possibility that will pop up some reason to one player because of he must stop playing and in most cases PBEM games never are finished. Similar reason is for TCP/IP games ??“ if it will last more than 3-4 hours who have time to play it? Very few workless people. And DON??™T SAY that most of players are interested for singleplayer only. Just look SC2 game. They said the same at the beginning and you have world tournament in multiplayer, lots of clans for playing multiplayer AND lots of mods in which game time (turns) is (are) reduced.

2.You must have swapping units option. No matter how map is huge you will need it if you don??™t have stacking of temporary stacking, at least. It is very stupid and annoying that you must have minimum 3 hexes free and two turns to replace places for two units. Second solution to solve this problem is to have partial movement but you will not have it, as I know. My suggestion is that you should have or, at least, you should have divided movement from attack. Simple explanation: I would like to move all my units first and then attack. To be more precise you should have movement and attack concept like Panzer General 2 game has.
And forgive me if I am comparing your game to SC2 game too much but you must admit ??“ it is very similar to SC2 :D .
1. One idea to speed up games is to use the time limit system. The game is currently 18 axis, 18 allied turns per year, meaning one year is 36 turns and if game happens to go into 1945 it will be roughly 240 turns for one game. Game is playable at 3 minutes per turn once you learnt the game (beginners need 5 minutes at leist) and then the max time would be 720 minutes i.e 12 hours if and only if both sides use up all time plus game goes on until 1945. We have 1-5 minutes per turn settings, all to satisfy both newbies and veterans, turtles and blitz players :)

Also, it is possible for players to start in 1942 to play a quicker game. For the future, we are planning special scenarios that are played with specific victory conditions can just be played in 1-3 hours!

For instance a battle scenario Barbarossa starting in 1941 where only Axis, USSR are active and rest of map is frozen and that the game ends in like 1 year where Axis need to take Leningrad, Stalingrad, Moscow to win and USSR win if it held all three of them.

Similarily we can make short scenarios for D-Day, Stalingrad or the Battle for France in 1940, with their own specific victory conditions. But that is futire plans and wont make it into the release version but is rather for future patches. At this stage, we rather solidify and balance the game than adding too much untested features. We DO want the game ut before summer but I can assure you, if we get good interest from players then we will GLADLY expand and make the game even better :)

2. Swapping is on our list since there seem to be alot of players requesting it. I am telling you, just a few more ppl requesting this and I will do that feature ;)
Last edited by firepowerjohan on Fri Mar 02, 2007 2:45 pm, edited 8 times in total.
jimpyle
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Post by jimpyle »

OK, I'll request a swapping units feature! :D

Jim
vveedd
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Re: Just a few thoughts before game is finished

Post by vveedd »

firepowerjohan wrote:
1. One idea to speed up games is to use the time limit system. The game is currently 18 axis, 18 allied turns per year, meaning one year is 36 turns and if game happens to go into 1945 it will be roughly 240 turns for one game. Game is playable at 3 minutes per turn once you learnt the game (beginners need 5 minutes at leist) and then the max time would be 720 minutes i.e 12 hours if and only if both sides use up all time plus game goes on until 1945. We have 1-5 minutes per turn settings, all to satisfy both newbies and veterans, turtles and blitz players :)

Also, it is possible for players to start in 1942 to play a quicker game. For the future, we are planning special scenarios that are played with specific victory conditions can just be played in 1-3 hours!

For instance a battle scenario Barbarossa starting in 1941 where only Axis, USSR are active and rest of map is frozen and that the game ends in like 1 year where Axis need to take Leningrad, Stalingrad, Moscow to win and USSR win if it held all three of them.

Similarily we can make short scenarios for D-Day, Stalingrad or the Battle for France in 1940, with their own specific victory conditions.

But warning that this wont make it into the release version but is rather for future patches. At this stage, we rather solidify and balance the game than adding too much untested features. But I assure you, if we get good interest from players we will GLADLY expand and make the game even better :)
I appreciate your efforts; really do, but 12 HOURS? It is half of day! Come on! ??“ who has half day for playing? Also I would like to play whole campaign from 1939-1945 in PBEM but 240 TURNS? For common people normal PBEM play dynamic is one, maybe, two turns per day so I have to play almost whole year to finish campaign? You are kidding me? Playable game has minimum 4 turns per year (like Third Reich game) or maximum 6-9 turns per year. I am looking forward to play your game but, I am afraid, this game will have short life if you will have so much turns which will make multiplayer games almost impossible. AND you can be SURE that game without good multiplayer options will have short life. Exceptions excluded, of course but they are only few.
firepowerjohan
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Post by firepowerjohan »

Is there any other new game where playing all the way from 1939 until summer 1945 takes less than 10 hours playing TcpIp? :?:
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Post by vypuero »

You can save the TCP/IP games and play them over the course of a few evenings.

Vote for the swap feauture but I have been playing and it is not necessary. Not once has it been an issue - you are simply thinking of other games where it matters and in this one it does not.
vveedd
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Post by vveedd »

firepowerjohan wrote:Is there any other new game where playing all the way from 1939 until summer 1945 takes less than 10 hours playing TcpIp? :?:
I honestly don't know. Don't have time to play tcp/ip games. My only option to play strategy games is PBEM which is today most popular option because same reason. 1 turn per day, 240 days for one game. You got to be kidding??¦.
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Post by firepowerjohan »

vveedd wrote:
firepowerjohan wrote:Is there any other new game where playing all the way from 1939 until summer 1945 takes less than 10 hours playing TcpIp? :?:
I honestly don't know. Don't have time to play tcp/ip games. My only option to play strategy games is PBEM which is today most popular option because same reason. 1 turn per day, 240 days for one game. You got to be kidding??¦.
Then you could play the 1942-1944 scenarios and with 2 minute/turn timer on you can have a quick TcpIp resolved :)
vveedd
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Post by vveedd »

firepowerjohan wrote:
Then you could play the 1942-1944 scenarios and with 2 minute/turn timer on you can have a quick TcpIp resolved :)
But if I want to play 1939-45 campaign? Must quit my job? :evil:
Actually, when I am looking to all my posts it looks like I am the harder critic and I don't want to be the same without good reason. So I have been thinking - is it still possible to join in beta testing?
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Post by vypuero »

I think there will be more beta spots coming in. I am always up for playing TCP/IP games.
jimpyle
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Post by jimpyle »

vveedd wrote:
firepowerjohan wrote:
Then you could play the 1942-1944 scenarios and with 2 minute/turn timer on you can have a quick TcpIp resolved :)
But if I want to play 1939-45 campaign? Must quit my job? :evil:
Actually, when I am looking to all my posts it looks like I am the harder critic and I don't want to be the same without good reason. So I have been thinking - is it still possible to join in beta testing?
No, you don't have to quit your job. You just won't want to play this game. And that's fine. I don't mind spending two to three years playing a game like this PBEM because up front I know that is what it's going to take and the think the game will be worth it.

We just have different taste and that's great! Be awful boring if everyone was alike. :D

Jim
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Post by IainMcNeil »

Send a mail to info@slitherine.com vveed and we'll see what we can do!

Edit

Sorry - we can no longer accept beta testers for CEaW - places are full. Please try for our next game!
Last edited by IainMcNeil on Thu Mar 15, 2007 6:42 pm, edited 1 time in total.
vveedd
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Post by vveedd »

jimpyle wrote: [No, you don't have to quit your job. You just won't want to play this game. And that's fine. I don't mind spending two to three years playing a game like this PBEM because up front I know that is what it's going to take and the think the game will be worth it.

We just have different taste and that's great! Be awful boring if everyone was alike. :D

Jim
The point is not in wanted or not wanted. I want to play the game. Point is in enable or disable to play the game. When game has 270 turns, with play dynamic, let say TWO turns per day, it is great possibility that one of players will not be enable to finish the game. Something will pop up for sure (business trip, exam, new girl friend, wedding, kid, sickness etc.) Time frame for playing is too long if you understand what I mean. And I am talking about PBEM only. TCP/IP game with 10 playing hours is also too long but, as people have said, you can stop and continue next day (or night).
vveedd
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Post by vveedd »

iainmcneil wrote:Send a mail to info@slitherine.com vveed and we'll see what we can do!
I have sent you an e-mail but received MAILER-DAEMON notice.
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Post by IainMcNeil »

Sorry info@slitherine.co.uk - my mistake!
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Post by ungers_pride »

vveedd wrote:
firepowerjohan wrote:
Then you could play the 1942-1944 scenarios and with 2 minute/turn timer on you can have a quick TcpIp resolved :)
But if I want to play 1939-45 campaign? Must quit my job? :evil:
Actually, when I am looking to all my posts it looks like I am the harder critic and I don't want to be the same without good reason. So I have been thinking - is it still possible to join in beta testing?
heheh

I think it's called "saving your game", so that you can continue to play it again another day....

I don't want this game dummed down or shortened in scope or length....
bromley
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Re: Just a few thoughts before game is finished

Post by bromley »

firepowerjohan wrote:1. One idea to speed up games is to use the time limit system. The game is currently 18 axis, 18 allied turns per year, meaning one year is 36 turns and if game happens to go into 1945 it will be roughly 240 turns for one game.
Another way to speed it up is a WEGO game system. Too late for that? :lol:
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Post by IainMcNeil »

Sorry - we can no longer accept beta testers for CEaW - places are full. Please try for our next game!
canuckgamer
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VVEEDD Comments

Post by canuckgamer »

Sorry VVEEDD, but I totally disagree about your comment concerning limiting turns and PBEM games not been completed. I have been playing dozens of games by PBEM for years (all the way back to Talonsoft) and have never failed to complete one. I have numerous friends who also play by PBEM and they have all finished their games as well. The whole point behind PBEM is that you can make a move at a time that suits your schedule so unless you are going to give up PBEM games completely I do not understand why a game would not be completed. I look forward to enjoying many PBEM games of Commander Europe at War regardless of how many game turns there are!
vveedd
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Re: VVEEDD Comments

Post by vveedd »

canuckgamer wrote:Sorry VVEEDD, but I totally disagree about your comment concerning limiting turns and PBEM games not been completed. I have been playing dozens of games by PBEM for years (all the way back to Talonsoft) and have never failed to complete one. I have numerous friends who also play by PBEM and they have all finished their games as well. The whole point behind PBEM is that you can make a move at a time that suits your schedule so unless you are going to give up PBEM games completely I do not understand why a game would not be completed. I look forward to enjoying many PBEM games of Commander Europe at War regardless of how many game turns there are!
I am just trying to say that it is much bigger possibility to finish the game if game has less turns. This includes every type of game (PBEM, TCP/IP, hot seat etc.) From the same reason you mentioned I love PBEM type but in today??™s life everything is fast and people have less and less time for family and for fun, especially. I am also looking forward to play CEAW game. Actually I joined to beta testing because I want to help.
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