Todd_Hawks

Todd_Hawks

Joined Member # 639372
1 Posts 17 Replies 7,470 Reputation
Reply to AI in need of a tune up, or a boot to the head? in Game Talk Stardock Forums

I agree in general: We always get told how great the AI is and how much better it is than in any other game out there but in reality it's not that bright at all (and not better than the Civ4 one, for example. In fact it's worse, if only due to poorly balanced and exploitable features that the AI can't handle too well). It's still pretty good but it could be so much better. And should be, if we are to believe Stardock marketing. Oh, and yes, I am quite disappointed with how the AI enhanc

33 Replies 15,163 Views
Reply to Full 3d Maps in Game Ideas GalCiv2 Forums

No, please no 3D. While the idea sounds nice (and being a scientist working in space engineering I am the first to say that realistically and atmospherically 3D space is needed... along with gravity and a whole bunch of other stuff ;)), it is a horrible nightmare when done on a 2D computer screen. All games that I know of that are true 3D are nearly unplayable. You constantly have to readjust your point of view and zoom level to get an idea of what is going on and to select stuff (havin

28 Replies 70,556 Views
Reply to The amazingly strong "don't rush" sentiments re TA in Off-Topic Stardock Forums

This has nothing to do with "sympathizing with the producer". Not that I don't sympathize with Stardock, but the real reason I voted for the delay is that in the last year or two each and every game I bought was so buggy that I had to wait weeks, months or forever until it was patched to a level that I considered playable. And I am *so* fed up with this. Since a bugged release rarely gets the patches it needs to be really finished (mostly, just the worst stuff is fixed), I support every publishe

24 Replies 25,262 Views
Reply to update 1.6 in Bug Reports GalCiv2 Forums

Uncheck the "Show pre-release versions" (refresh, if necessary) and it should work. Edit: Cursed be my slow typing!

11 Replies 2,921 Views
Reply to Argh. Stardoccckkk. :( in Galactic Civilizations II GalCiv2 Forums

1.4x *is* the latest patch. After that came Dark Avatar (which is version 1.5) and currently they are working on 1.6, but only for Dark Avatar. (I know, Dread Lords has been upgraded to 1.5 as well but that was only to make it ready for Dark Avatar)

10 Replies 5,476 Views
Reply to ai game play questions? in Dark Avatar GalCiv2 Forums

No problem, Belanos. So, we still don't know whether the AIs "cheat" regarding their colonization... still looks like it to me, though. The problem I see here is that the initial colony rush is extremely crucial. And it's one thing to lose out because of bad luck or because you made a wrong decision but it's completely different when you don't even have a chance due to the cheating AI. I sto

70 Replies 35,317 Views
Reply to ai game play questions? in Dark Avatar GalCiv2 Forums

Yeah, but I didn't reveal it. Only after a few turns, I revealed the map and looked at where they went so far. Nonetheless, you may have a point there and that would explain many things. Including why sometimes the AI seems to know exactly where to go and sometimes it doesn't have a clue. And why there are tests which hint at the AI cheating as well as those that hint at the opposite. The question is: Does the AI only see what *you* reveal or also what the other AIs reveal? Alr

70 Replies 35,317 Views
Reply to ai game play questions? in Dark Avatar GalCiv2 Forums

Being curious, I did some tests myself, using the "reveal map" cheat after a few (3-6) turns and looking at what the opponent did so far. The first thing I noticed is that the AI's scouts always have a habitable planet as destination, often way out of sensor range. First I thought that was an indication for the AI cheating, but I found out that the AI immediately recalculates the destations after you reveal the map. How I found out? I saw several scouts which evidently moved in one dire

70 Replies 35,317 Views
Reply to ai game play questions? in Dark Avatar GalCiv2 Forums

Belanos, you are just repeating arguments that have been made before in this thread. And which have been rendered irrelevant by the tests made so far. No offense. It's interesting... many people (myself included) have the distinct feeling that the AIs are cheating heavily when it comes to finding suitable planets and it can be "proven" by several tests. Yet at the same time Kryo makes a test more or less proving the opposite and Brad always vehemently claims that the AI doesn't cheat in

70 Replies 35,317 Views
Reply to Beta 1.6 status in GalCiv II News GalCiv2 Forums

Guys, the one on SDC wasn't the beta. It came out even before this news post by Brad. This is the beta: https://forums.galciv2.com/?aid=149434

25 Replies 24,615 Views
Reply to InFAQ #3 – Exactly How Do Influence Starbases work in Galactic Civilizations II GalCiv2 Forums

Perhaps I am thinking about it wrong. Perhaps every square on the map has a ratio of influence for all the civs, based on its distance (?) to planets creating influence plus bonuses? You hit the nail on the head here. The colors just show who has the most influence at a given position. Influence starbases only *amplify* that influence within their radius (that's where the percentage comes into play...

13 Replies 15,246 Views
Reply to Should Winning Always Be the Goal? in Off-Topic GalCiv2 Forums

What I think is that you should try Europa Universalis (II and after a few patches III). It has most of what you mention (like leaders with certain (dis-)abilities (which do have a quite big effect), no real goal, states usually stay in existance for long since annexation is penalized and difficult to pull off etc...).

20 Replies 16,855 Views