Continued thoughts playing through the tutorial
Posted: Sat May 14, 2011 2:08 am
A thought: Once you have completed all of the victory objectives for a campaign scenario, consider providing the player with the option of ending the scenario or continuing at the end of each turn. If I have 4 turns remaining for a decisive victory, I would rather extend for another turn to allow me the opportunity to reinforce my units, otherwise I am forced to do this on the first turn of the following campaign scenario, wasting valuable time toward my next objectives. It is (usually) more realistic to allow forces to rest & refit between battles anyway. As it is now you are automatically brought to the next tutorial mission without the option to rest & refit or purchase new units.
Red boxes around unit numbers following an artillery barrage. I didn't notice an explanation provided (without reading the manual). I can guess that it means the unit is shocked or demoralized in some way, but this isn't clear from the tutorial at this stage.
As others have noted, the text can be an issue on larger resolution monitors for those without keen eyesight.
Contrast: the contrast between the gray and olive green is probably too slight on busy scenarios with a lot of units, sometimes it is easy to lose sight of the overall tactical position. Consider a hotkey or button selection to highlight each force with an optional background highlight (i.e., red vs blue) to provide a stark contrast when planning your next moves.
Supply network: is there anything like this implemented? Can it be displayed? Can a unit be isolated from supply without being adjacent to an enemy unit or completely surrounded? What about a unit in a city that is completely surrounded? Can they receive supplies (for a limited time perhaps)?
Purchase and upgrade screen. For new players make certain that the transportation for a ground unit is clear. It would be easy to miss adding your motorized transport and this makes the game almost impossible to win if you need reinforcement.
Make certain the tutorial text describes important concepts, such as your core force limit and how the core force concept plays out over the course of the campaign.
Is there an option (button, hotkey, etc.) to visually depict the range of a unit, (i.e., artillery)?
Red boxes around unit numbers following an artillery barrage. I didn't notice an explanation provided (without reading the manual). I can guess that it means the unit is shocked or demoralized in some way, but this isn't clear from the tutorial at this stage.
As others have noted, the text can be an issue on larger resolution monitors for those without keen eyesight.
Contrast: the contrast between the gray and olive green is probably too slight on busy scenarios with a lot of units, sometimes it is easy to lose sight of the overall tactical position. Consider a hotkey or button selection to highlight each force with an optional background highlight (i.e., red vs blue) to provide a stark contrast when planning your next moves.
Supply network: is there anything like this implemented? Can it be displayed? Can a unit be isolated from supply without being adjacent to an enemy unit or completely surrounded? What about a unit in a city that is completely surrounded? Can they receive supplies (for a limited time perhaps)?
Purchase and upgrade screen. For new players make certain that the transportation for a ground unit is clear. It would be easy to miss adding your motorized transport and this makes the game almost impossible to win if you need reinforcement.
Make certain the tutorial text describes important concepts, such as your core force limit and how the core force concept plays out over the course of the campaign.
Is there an option (button, hotkey, etc.) to visually depict the range of a unit, (i.e., artillery)?