Thank you for getting the formula right!

Matrix Games Forums

Forums Register Login Photo Gallery Member List Search Calendars FAQ

My Profile Inbox Address Book My Subscription My Forums Log Out

Thank you for getting the formula right!

View related threads: (in this forum | in all forums)

Logged in as: Guest

Users viewing this topic: none

Printable Version

All Forums >> [Current Games From Matrix.] >> [Science Fiction] >> Armada 2526 Series >> Thank you for getting the formula right!

Page: [1]

Message

<< Older Topic Newer Topic >>

Thank you for getting the formula right! - 2/4/2010 7:41:10 PM

thiosk

Posts: 150
Joined: 2/2/2010
Status: offline

Dear Armada 2526 makers,

I'm a long time 4X space fan. It is a tough itch to scratch. MoO does a good job, MoO2 was wonderful, I count MoO3 among the biggest disappointments of my life (I've led a nice life). I don't like the free-map/goodiehut style of galciv, and while the SoTS series is to be commended for wonderfully unique FTL travel styles, its tack towards multiplayer design is not what I am interested in.

You got the basic formula right in Armada 2526. I commend the developers for getting so much correct, and for giving us such a wonderfully moddable system here. As soon as I noticed the game on Impulse, I digitally purchased and installed, and was delighted. I will spread my experiences with the software by word of mouth and by online community, so please reciprocate by continuing to work on the title; I look forward to installing expansions, updates, and sequels in the future.

Post #: 1

RE: Thank you for getting the formula right! - 2/4/2010 7:48:45 PM

lordxorn

Posts: 768
Joined: 12/6/2009
Status: offline

I can certainly appreciate your enthusiasm, however I disagree. I believe the game is either, a)Expansion away from Greatness b)A sequel away from greatness.

Of course this goes without saying for us to see a sequel, we need to support ntronium games, which I have by also purchasing this game.

I was disappointed after delving deeper into the game, from the boring technology, lack of custom ships, and poorly executed tactical combat system.

SOTS at least presented all the aspects of 4x in a more polished way, and while you have bashed SOTS for being a
MP focused game, it is years older.

(in reply to thiosk)

Post #: 2

RE: Thank you for getting the formula right! - 2/4/2010 8:37:28 PM

Zakhal

Posts: 2494
Joined: 1/4/2001
From: Jyv�skyl�, Finland
Status: offline

SOTS2 is one year away.

Anyways Im looking forward to the new armada patch. Its not perfect but its still one of the most addicting 4x games for me currently.

_____________________________

"99.9% of all internet arguments are due to people not understanding someone else's point. The other 0.1% is arguing over made up statistics."- unknown poster
"Those who dont read history are destined to repeat it."� Edmund Burke

(in reply to lordxorn)

Post #: 3

RE: Thank you for getting the formula right! - 2/4/2010 9:00:26 PM

thiosk

Posts: 150
Joined: 2/2/2010
Status: offline

Absolutely there is room for improvement, needs some polish, but if the atmosphere and gamestyle is preserved this is the basis of the *right style* for a 4x game, in my humble opinion.

I myself am gearing up for work on a tech overhaul mod ( I have a few science publications to submit before I can devote much time to it ) once I figure out what is possible to mod and whether or not the AI will be able to handle the changes.

(in reply to Zakhal)

Post #: 4

RE: Thank you for getting the formula right! - 2/5/2010 4:38:57 AM

Ntronium

Posts: 161
Joined: 10/23/2009
Status: offline

Thanks for the encouragement Thiosk. We're continuing to develop the game. Version 1.02 will be an official patch in a few days, and there will be another substantial patch, and new content coming in early March.

(in reply to thiosk)

Post #: 5

RE: Thank you for getting the formula right! - 2/5/2010 6:24:13 AM

Wade1000

Posts: 771
Joined: 10/27/2009
From: California, USA
Status: offline

quote:

ORIGINAL: lordxorn

I can certainly appreciate your enthusiasm, however I disagree. I believe the game is either, a)Expansion away from Greatness b)A sequel away from greatness.

Of course this goes without saying for us to see a sequel, we need to support ntronium games, which I have by also purchasing this game.

I was disappointed after delving deeper into the game, from the boring technology, lack of custom ships, and poorly executed tactical combat system.

SOTS at least presented all the aspects of 4x in a more polished way, and while you have bashed SOTS for being a
MP focused game, it is years older.

Armada 2526 has just been released and is continuing to improve. Sword of the Stars has been out for several years with a few expansions thus it is more improved than when it was first released.

< Message edited by Wade1000 -- 2/5/2010 10:40:29 AM >

_____________________________

Wish list:population centers beyond planetary(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Culture):Ships,Ring Orbitals,Sphere Orbitals,Ringworlds,Sphereworlds;ability to create & destroy planets,population centers,stars;AI competently using all advances & features.

(in reply to lordxorn)

Post #: 6

RE: Thank you for getting the formula right! - 2/20/2010 9:30:20 AM

DasTactic

Posts: 1083
Joined: 10/10/2005
Status: offline

I bought this game last night so haven't really been playing it for very long.

I am a long term 4X player starting with a game on the TRS80 called Stellar Empires (ASCII but I still think of this fondly), Stars! on the early nineties, MOO2, MOO3 (which was disappointing), rebound to GalCiv 1 and 2, Supremacy (Matrix game that didn't go anywhere but I thought had a lot of promise), SOTS (which didn't grab me), SEIV, SE5, Sins, and recently, AI War and Gratuitous Space Battles.

Initially when I started playing Armada I was disappointed and 'couldn't get into it'. It flagged itself as a 'Space Opera' style game and I was expecting more immersion and less abstraction. I had had issues with the nVidia battle screen but once the shadows were reduced it fixed that issue. After the tutorial I tried a number of custom games but struggled to understand what my short term objectives should have been. The hints were great but i wasn't sure what sort of fleet build-up was required etc etc but that really only comes with playing the game. It appeared very open ended without the MOO style warp points between planets - similar to GalCiv2 (I like constraints of warp points so I can build at my own pace). So after a couple of hours I was experiencing some mis-givings. But there was just enough I liked to keep me trying to play.

Finally, a few hours ago, I tried the second scenario (Twelve Races) and things started to click. I wish I had read the intro to this after trying the Tutorial because - like it claimed - playing this scenario eased me through the choices and objectives. I found I was getting drawn in to the relationships of each race I found and it was indeed living up to it's claim as a 'Space Opera'. Do I make friends for now or are they controlling a choke-point I need access through to expand? It was fantastic! There is no real way to 'personalise' ships or planets and my initial misgivings that this would hinder the RPG aspects and strategic appeal were completely unfounded. The simplicity of each turn is sooooo refreshing! In GalCiv (which is a great game!) you are often analyzing what you need to build on your ships to overcome a specific weapon of an enemy. It works for GalCiv but not needing to delve into this level of complexity is great here for Armada.

Each turn takes a minute or two so the game takes hours rather than days or weeks to play out. I am really seeing now how the developers have struck a very nice balance between immersing the player in the plot on one hand, but keeping it simple and fast on the other hand. It isn't quite right yet, but the latest patch looks to address many more issues.

As has been mentioned by others, this game is just starting out so can only get better and better.

Things I still find annoying (or can't find if they are part of the game) are: not being able to get quick and easy feedback on where I have idle fleets (this should be a feature of the main map); not being able to really gauge the composition of fleets at a planet (perhaps in the roll-over dialog); micromanagement of transports (I'm not sure how to set them to repeat pickups and set-downs - only to move them repeatedly); not being able to alt-tab to hide the game; not having multiple autosaves that go back a number of turns; I would also like to have more say in the layout of the galaxy like in the Space Empires games as I think it would work nicely here.

So I also want to express my appreciation for where this game is heading and like the thread title, wanted to second that the formula looks to be 'right'. :) I'm hoping it gets the required support and sales (I am concerned with the lack of reviews for a game that has been out since November) and doesn't head down the drain like Supremacy did. The forum seems quite healthy so that is a good indicator I hope. :)

< Message edited by Das123 -- 2/20/2010 9:34:54 AM >

(in reply to Wade1000)

Post #: 7

RE: Thank you for getting the formula right! - 2/21/2010 12:43:33 AM

Ntronium

Posts: 161
Joined: 10/23/2009
Status: offline

Thanks for the feedback Das123. You're not the only player to have dived straight into a custom game and felt unsatisfied with it. Giving players the freedom to set the game up as they like is a good thing, but it does allow new players to set things up badly before they understand the game, or what they want from it. Maybe we should disallow custom games until the twelve races scenario has been played.

Re the specific problems you mention.

You can see which fleets are idle using the fleet list in the bottom left. Click on the yellow ship icon to get a list of fleets. You can use one of the icons at the top of the list to sort them by action.

Setting up shuttle runs is easy. Simply set the route by right clicking as normal, load the transports, and select the number of ships to send as normal, but before you press ok, set the number of times you want them to repeat the trip using the control below the list of ships.

The new patch has tool tips that show fleet composition, and another way to automate population movement.

(in reply to DasTactic)

Post #: 8