Drengin Digest: February 2008

Status report

from GalCiv2 Forums

Galactic Civilizations II: Twilight of the Arnor is being worked on heavily. This week we started implementing a new feature that allows players to have the AI design ships for them. So for new players in particular who just want a decently designed ship, they can now get it with this new option.

Obviously the AI is going to be a major element of what we start working on. Beta 5, which is due out later this month to those who have pre-ordered it, will be the first beta with significant AI enhancements. It will also have a host of other tweaks based on increased internal play testing.

The last beta, beta 4C, was the first one to provide updated AI to the minor races. We haven't seen too many reports on any differences in their behavior. We'll be making a lot more tweaks to them. Basically, minor races will behave the same as major races in the final version except that they won't colonize new planets. But they'll invade, research, and just generally behave smarter than they have in the past.

For the past couple weeks, Stardock has had its collective attention on Sins of a Solar Empire. It's been a lot of work to get that out but the results have been fantastic. It's currently the #1 game in North America according to Gamerankings user interest polling. Sales have been phenomenal as well and the first few reviews have been very positive.

In the next week or so, we'll be migrating to an updated forum back-end that should be (in theory) much faster than what we have today.  It should also have a lot of cool new features. Naturally, everyone will hate it. :)

Most of the Stardock games team is working on the upcoming 4X fantasy strategy game which will be turn-based and have turn-based tactical battles and support multiplayer.  It uses a brand new engine we've been developing that allows players to zoom out and see the world as a cloth (Tolkien-esq) map or zoom in to see individual leaves on trees. The reason we've developed our own engine is so that we can have fine control on the hardware requirements. We want people with 5 year old systems to be able to play the game easily (and I mean play it VERY easily) but at the same time allow players with the latest DirectX 10 cards to get an incredible visual experience too.  We'll open that up for pre-orders (which will allow users into the beta) probably by end of Spring.

So that's what's happening.  Let us know if you need anything.

Cheers!

 

47,899 views 63 replies
Reply #1 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Thanks for the info. It sounds like it's going to be a great year for StarDock and it's customers :) .
Reply #2 from GalCiv2 Forums Top

Can hardly wait for the next beta! Sounds like it is going to be great.

As for "sins", the jury is still out. I will have to try a demo first, it is a rare RTS that is able to grab and hold my attention. I pre-ordered GalCiv2-TA because I know I like the genre but RTS is a different story.

As for this turn-based "4X fantasy strategy game", that sounds very interesting. Can anyone name another game that something like this would be like? I just never have heard of a turn-based "4X fantasy strategy game" before??

Thanks
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Reply #3 from GalCiv2 Forums Top


Can hardly wait for the next beta! Sounds like it is going to be great.

As for "sins", the jury is still out. I will have to try a demo first, it is a rare RTS that is able to grab and hold my attention. I pre-ordered GalCiv2-TA because I know I like the genre but RTS is a different story.

As for this turn-based "4X fantasy strategy game", that sounds very interesting. Can anyone name another game that something like this would be like? I just never have heard of a turn-based "4X fantasy strategy game" before??

Thanks
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Age of Wonders II :)

Can't wait to see the new fantasy strategy game.
Reply #4 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
The new game sounds very interesting! Sins is very nice - it's something different between your GalCiv2 sessions and you can even play it with one other PC via LAN with only one Serial (Great!) - but I prefer Round Based Games. GalCiv 2 with Multiplayer would be one of the best games ever. :NOTSURE:


One thing about the minor races: If they can invade they can have more than one planet, right? Isn't that almost the same as using colony ships? Is there a chance to add an option to let them colonize without invasions, too? :)
Reply #5 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Did Society get canned? I thought that was the next project. Not that I mind, since I'm definitely pre-ordering the fantasy game.

Reply #6 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
As for this turn-based "4X fantasy strategy game", that sounds very interesting. Can anyone name another game that something like this would be like? I just never have heard of a turn-based "4X fantasy strategy game" before??
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The Heroes of Might and Magic series is sort of a 4X-Lite Fantasy strategy game. HOMM3 is my personal favorite. HOMM5, last I heard, has a horrible "cheating" AI, but is otherwise good. HOMM4 is so different from the others, but I still like it.

There was also Masters of Magic (or something like that), that, I believe, Stardock tried getting the permission to do a direct sequel of. There's Dominions series too, of course.

Either way, I am highly looking forward to this 4x fantasy game.
Reply #7 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Did Society get canned? I thought that was the next project. Not that I mind, since I'm definitely pre-ordering the fantasy game.
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I was worried that this 4x project had turned in to Societies...Wasn't too excited about that, as I don't do the MMO thing. Really excited to hear more about this new fantasy game. I'll pre-order like I do everything else...
Reply #8 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Hmm I like to betatest things but I usually don't preorder games which I could not test or take a closer look at. :NOTSURE:

Is there no way to help betatesting without preordering it? Or can you cancel the preorder and get your money back if you don't like it??
Reply #9 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Thanks for the update Brad. Vocal as my frustration with Sins has been, you guys are still my favorite gaming company (after all, you didn't develop the thing) and I'm sure to preorder that 4x fantasy game when you open it up.
Reply #10 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Besides the AI improvements, what else is slated for Beta 5? Are Custom Races being officially turned on?
Reply #11 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Vocal as my frustration with Sins has been
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Huh...never saw those posts. I'm enjoying Sins quite a bit (a lot, really), but I'm not farting rainbows like most people over on those boards. I was beginning to think I was missing something...
Reply #12 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Very nice update. I'm very much looking forward to the next beta, and very very much looking forward to the fantasy game.

For those who asked, the only other commercial "4x fantasy strategy game" in the conventional sense is really Master of Magic. Age of Wonders and Heroes of Might and Magic have aspects of that genre, but they're missing some key aspects needed to make you feel like you're actually running an empire. Dominions 3 is another candidate, though the province-based instead of tile-based map is a significant difference. The Fall From Heaven 2 mod for Civ4 is also a good candidate, though it doesn't have tactical combat.
Reply #13 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
As for this turn-based "4X fantasy strategy game", that sounds very interesting. Can anyone name another game that something like this would be like? I just never have heard of a turn-based "4X fantasy strategy game" before??
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I probably don't know enough to answer this but aren't most or all TB games 4X? I have heard that the new game will be a take off on Masters of Magic, a classic TB game that I never played but I assume it was 4X.
Reply #14 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
im going to add to the list Fantasy General also an old mindscape game.and the War Lords series by SSG if I remember correctly.










Reply #15 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Most of the Stardock games team is working on the upcoming 4X fantasy strategy game which will be turn-based and have turn-based tactical battles and support multiplayer.
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About tactical battles, could you make sure that it doesn't play like Rome: TW? I hate that game so much...

What I would like to be able to do is, program my armies to use the strategies I develop. If the battle is different than the last 100 battles I fought, I would be interested in fighting that battle, otherwise I would rather that my armies follow my strategies I developed.

...Beta 5, which is due out later this month...
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...It will also have a host of other tweaks based on increased internal play testing.
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Will this tweaking include balancing the different civs? I find that the Yor have difficulty managing their economy without the ability to build as many economic structures as they want. I've got used to them. I build charging stalks to increase my taxable population, and build efficiency centers, and maintaince grids. However, the situation is bad enough that I consider the "Recuitment Center" a valuable economic structure with its +10% bonus to economy.

In any case, I would find it helpful the Yor got some economic structures to fill in those tiles I leave empty to prevent my maintaince and spendings from draining my economy to nothing. The morale bonus from the charging stalks can only do so much. Morale becomes nearly nothing once population become 25 bil.
Reply #16 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I have heard that the new game will be a take off on Masters of Magic, a classic TB game that I never played but I assume it was 4X.
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Yes, Master of Magic is a 4x game with round-based tactical battle. Back then I played it very often. One of my most favorite games.

im going to add to the list Fantasy General also an old mindscape game.and the War Lords series by SSG if I remember correctly.
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Wasn't Fantasy General more a Hex type game. The old War Lords series was also very good. But it lacked komplexity compared to MoM.

Reply #17 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Did Society get canned? I thought that was the next project. Not that I mind, since I'm definitely pre-ordering the fantasy game.


I was worried that this 4x project had turned in to Societies...Wasn't too excited about that, as I don't do the MMO thing. Really excited to hear more about this new fantasy game. I'll pre-order like I do everything else...
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Society is a separate, long-term project. It's currently on hold for a couple of years until we have the appropriate personnel and infrastructure in place for an MMOG.
Reply #18 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
ALong with the MMOG stuff, you guys should also like totally do an Earth and Beyond style MMO since EVE sucks and the only decent MMOG out there is WoW and it lacks any depth whatsoever.
Reply #19 from GalCiv2 Forums Top

Society is a separate, long-term project. It's currently on hold for a couple of years until we have the appropriate personnel and infrastructure in place for an MMOG.
End of quote


Well, make sure that - you know, when you have a title and such - you get a website up for this new game as soon as possible. This way we can get down to the important business of wildly speculating and preemptively yelling about stuff in the forums before realizing that it's going to be the next awesome thing in gaming.
Reply #20 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
[quote]
Most of the Stardock games team is working on the upcoming 4X fantasy strategy game which will be turn-based and have turn-based tactical battles and support multiplayer.


About tactical battles, could you make sure that it doesn't play like Rome: TW? I hate that game so much... [quote]

Blasphemy!

I'm all for using a system similar to RTW. Warhammer: Mark of Chaos shamelessly copied it, but shamelessly copied it rather well (the battles, that is).

Reply #21 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
In a way, I don't want Stardock to do an MMO, too much chance of failure due to the 800-lb gorilla in the market, and a bunch of hyperactive chimps as well.
Reply #22 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I'd really rather you guys didn't tie yourselves down with an MMOG of any stripe (and yes, I know Society's different than most, but it doesn't matter). I don't play those things, have no desire to play them in the future, and can only imagine the massive drain it would be on your personnel and ability to support and create new products. You got my attention by producing the best single player strategy title I've ever seen, please don't sacrifice support and development of single player titles to create yet another online social community.
Reply #23 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I honestly can't wait for Stardock to break out of just their 'strategy' type games and apply their vision and quality to some other genres. I have an absolutely phenomenal design in my head for a multiplayer-style FPS game that would mesh beautifully with Stardock's devotion to overarching strategy (thus far at least).

The theory behind the game is that both (or more) teams are placed on a map of enormous proportions. Each team is given an irreplaceable, portable spawnpoint that, if destroyed, will cease their spawning (and therefore lose them the game). Players can equip themselves in a variety of ways and use certain equipment - amongst that equipment are vehicles, power generators, base defenses, etc. Basically you evacuate your undefended starting area, and then are to ideally occupy one of the dozens of abandoned buildings / fortresses in the area. You need to build up your own base, defend at home, locate the enemy, and it's pretty much sandbox play from there. You can take a stealthy role and forgo external defenses for cloaking devices and radar scramblers, or go all-out and 'tech up' to more advanced weapons of war, including artillery.

The biggest problem I can see is that strategy gamers WANT more cerebral gameplay, which is what GC2 and SoaSE gave. FPS gamers tend to have shorter attention spans and are more spastic for pretty explosions and a high score at the end, though that's perhaps because 'cerebral' FPS gamers haven't had an FPS that took any brains to play in about 8 years.

This vision for my dream FPS game has been influenced by a mod that attempted something vaguely similar - for what it's worth, the mod had a ridiculously dedicated playerbase that was utterly addicted to the strategic gameplay it offered. Other games have attempted rough iterations of the same thing - some mod for BF2, Natural Selection - they all were actually rather successful, but there's always been, in all these games, too much focus on the player and less on the team. Commander modes in Empires mod and NS put the power in one player, which meant the game could literally be decided by who was commanding. By putting the power on each person you end up with a much more willing and cohesive team.

Stardock used the success of their applications to jump-start their gaming direction, so maybe it's not too far 'out there' to think that this may happen someday.
Reply #24 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
MMOG - yeck!!! I dont mind paying 30, 40 or even 50 (if really good) for a game but trying to charge a monthly fee there after is something I will never do. Buying water in a bottle is one thing but MMOG is where I draw the line  ;) 
Reply #25 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Most of the Stardock games team is working on the upcoming 4X fantasy strategy game which will be turn-based and have turn-based tactical battles and support multiplayer.
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I just hope you are making a multiplayer engine (turned-based as mentionned) compatible with GalCiv2, to bring multiplayer to this wonderful game without putting aside the single-player development you are doing. This sounds like the best of worlds:

1- People who don't want Stardock to focus on a multiplayer addon won't complain, because the multiplayer engine is being developped for the new game.

2- People who want multiplayer will cry of happiness :)

Tell me I'm right...
:)