I would still like to get you guys thinking about some function for the standard map tiles. Right now, their only function is to provide distance between points of interest. I think this is inefficient in terms of the fun potential: man hours ratio. You already have to make the map tiles, now you just have to make them do fun things.
Some games have a focus on economic logistics, and they are often very fun, but if that is not Elementals focus, it is good to abstract it. I think it's a mistake to try and make a game that is all games to everyone. It's like trying to write a song that is all songs to everyone. Nobody wants to hear a funky rock ballad rap symphony marching band medley. Actually I would like that but only out of curiousity, not for listening at home.
I’ve noticed a trend in strategy games lately that I’m not entirely satisfied with, and I wanted to give my opinion here on the Elemental discussion. It seems that game designers often want to force an early conclusion of their game, perhaps reasoning that it&rsqu
[quote who="Simplicity123" reply="87" id="2579567"]Oh that's right. I forgot about them nicking him for Spore. Civilization phase.... (shudder). [/quote] Commercial Civ: "Hi, wanna start a trade route between our cities?" Military Civ: "No." Commercial Civ: "Ah great! Well, I guess that means you win?" Military Civ: "Yep." [e digicons]:blush:[/e]
Another thing that I think will greatly benefit the maps is to allow for an L-System type functionaliy for map tiles, so that every forest tile is not a complete clone of all the others. So instead of modding a new single model for a map feature, you would have an editable system of rules for placing models randomly or procedurally in some way. For example, taking a tree model and scaling it slightly while placing it in randomly accross the forest tile would look more natural and blen
I sure hope I will be able to mod a map generator! On that note. However you end up doing rivers, make sure you allow individual rivers to flow together. Even if you guys don't know exactly what you will do with river junctions, just put them in. I promise that as soon as modding time rolls around, I'll make it worth your efforts! You will be glad you did it! I have a really nice algorithm for making a nice looking river network. I'd like to have a use for it in Elemental.
I haven't tried it yet... It kinda reminds me of those old coffee commercials. Some guy in a suit and tie shows up at your breakfast table and says "You should try the fresh taste of Folgers". Nobody ever asked in those commercials, "What are you doing in my house?"
I have to say I'd really like to see normal land tiles serve a purpose. Otherwise it's like the resource tiles are just floating in space. I think theres a limit to how interesting the map can be unless normal tiles do something too.
[quote who="Redaxe" reply="38" id="2578063"]Hey Just to change topic here a bit but I'm also a little concerned about the barrenness of the world. I understand that it is supposed to be after the Cataclysm but exploring a wasteland environment just doesn't quite seem as enticing as exploring a world like that in the Avatar movie. Some deserts are ok but they will get boring pretty quickly if that's all there is too look at so I think it would be nice to have coral reefs, cloud fore
Good post. One thing I've noticed is that when you start in a dead world, the map is initially very uninteresting. I'm glad you guys are addressing that. Though I think it's important for the map to have some initial interest, I would also like to see the players be able to change how the land tiles look and function. I want my lands to take on the characteristics of my chosen magic path, not just good or evil, but in various combinations. I want to be able to create various types of
I usually don't stress about DRM, but this is really infuriating. If your connection (or their connection) goes bad, the game shuts off! I've had two instances yesterday where I just couldn't play the game I just bought. When I'm playing a single player game, I feel no need whatsover to be bothered with the status of my internet connection, much less be forced to stop playing. That is totally unacceptable. People might put up with this for a great game, but I'll be watching out for this in th
[quote who="cynicalP" reply="78" id="2574319"]I have CIV IV - the complete edition still in it's shrink wrap. After playing alot of Civ II and Alpha Centauri I just couldn't maintain my interest level in Civ III for very long ( Been there done that ) . I bought Civ IV really just to support Firaxis and TBS PC gaming but I still haven't muster any motivation to play it. Gal CIV II on the other hand keeps me plenty busy and I'm throughly enjoying the ri
I think Rigma sounds like a medical condition that you would only feel comfortable discussing with your doctor or perhaps veterinarian. "I had to put my dog down because he had rigma..." Gildar is nice but kinda common sounding. It needs to be something that sounds shiny and valueable.
[quote who="Tasunke" reply="41" id="2568333"]@ cephalo ... I think the point of this personalization is to add a "Soul" to the game. For without a soul, the game will not make it very far. Now, mechanically, there has not been a significant strategical element in place ... however I can see the barebones present of what they will attempt to do. Some of the pieces have already been placed together, in an element of synergy that appears to be fun. Now, realizing that
I'm not sure I like where this is going. I think you guys are working too hard on what will amount to a 'random events' system that has little to do with the player's choices. From what I have seen, Elemental still has not found it's core focus and decided what kind of game it wants to be, and this kind of mechanic can only ever be an embellishment. We shouldn't be talking so much about frosting when cake hasn't even been invented yet. So far in the beta, I'm not seeing alot of s
Personally, I love customizable stuff. I love games that allow the player to show some creativity. Making my own units will be very fun. It will be like the good parts of Spore, but with a gameplay element.
In the game 'Merchant Prince' you could build roads just by clicking a road tool on a square. It just required funding, which you could get from being appointed to the 'road builder' position in the government, or you could use your own funds. It was very simple and gave the player complete control over the exact route.
[quote who="Wintersong" reply="35" id="2542374"]THe problems I have with MoM, Diplomacy aside, is that it needs DoxBox (cycles and all) and resolution is too small. [/quote] You can alleviate that somewhat with the 'scaler normal3x' command before starting the game.
The unit design thing is the coolest part about Elemental so far. I loved it in MOO and all the space games that came after. I expect that in a fantasy game it will be even more fun.
[quote who="Jon Shafer" reply="45" id="2545676"]I know I'll be buying Elemental on day 1, for what that's worth. Jon [/quote] Hey Jon, Which one will you be modding? Just kidding...[e digicons]O:)[/e]
[quote who="Rishkith" reply="30" id="2546258"]You're looking at a very difficult proposition. Make auto-resolve too good and there is no point to doing a tactical battle. Make it too bad and everybody will feel obligated to use tactical battles. You can't have both "be the best" and the AI can never replace the human's capabilities because every person is different and may even have different tactical abilities day to day (get some sleep, then battle!). This is an equati
[quote who="Frogboy" reply="29" id="2544060"]I dunno. You guys have to realize, from our perspective, Firaxis are the good guys. It's a small industry and we're friends with these guys. Soren Johnson, at Firaxis at the time, is in the GalCiv II credits. He's not there but it gives you an idea of how close knit our group is. That's why it always pains us to see people taking sides. We're all on the same side. I realize people who aren't in the ind
You guys are all right of course. I just got a little excited.
Civ5 will be coming out this fall! I hope that doesn't cut into the success of Elemental. Maybe SD should slow things down and see what they're up against. You wanna make sure you can top Civ 5.
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