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All Forums >> [New Releases from Matrix Games] >> Distant Worlds 1 Series >> Was a Skeptic now I'm a Believer

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Was a Skeptic now I'm a Believer - 4/3/2010 1:46:54 PM

siRkid

Posts: 6650
Joined: 1/29/2002
From: Orland FL
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Ok when I fist bought the game I posted some comments that I was not sure about this game. Well, I've been playing it long enough to appreciate the game. What made me make this post is that my wife just went out to get her hair done and my first thought was "Hey, I can get some time on Distant Worlds before she gets back". I think that says it all. Great game that can only get better. Thanks to all who worked on it.

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Post #: 1

RE: Was a Skeptic now I'm a Believer - 4/3/2010 2:39:43 PM

Erik Rutins

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Joined: 3/28/2000
From: Vermont, USA
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Excellent, glad to hear you've gotten past the initial learning curve, just wait until we release a few more updates.

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(in reply to siRkid)

Post #: 2

RE: Was a Skeptic now I'm a Believer - 4/3/2010 3:41:36 PM

licker

Posts: 46
Joined: 3/11/2005
Status: offline

I'm on the other side of the coin, I was a believer and now I'm a skeptic.

Though with the planned updates I figure that will change, but for now, the annoyance factors are outweighing the fun factors once I get past the first hour or so of game play.

Don't get me wrong, the potential is clearly there, just that some UI and 'balance' (for lack of a longer explaination) issues need to be resolved for me.

(in reply to Erik Rutins)

Post #: 3

RE: Was a Skeptic now I'm a Believer - 4/3/2010 3:56:09 PM

ASHBERY76

Posts: 2136
Joined: 10/10/2001
From: England
Status: offline

I think the game is a few patches away from greatness.

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Post #: 4

RE: Was a Skeptic now I'm a Believer - 4/3/2010 4:04:11 PM

Sarissofoi

Posts: 329
Joined: 2/1/2010
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quote:

ORIGINAL: licker

I'm on the other side of the coin, I was a believer and now I'm a skeptic.

Though with the planned updates I figure that will change, but for now,� the annoyance factors are outweighing the fun factors once I get past the first hour or so of game play.

Don't get me wrong, the potential is clearly there, just that some UI and 'balance' (for lack of a longer explaination) issues need to be resolved for me.

+1
Waiting for patches.

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Post #: 5

RE: Was a Skeptic now I'm a Believer - 4/3/2010 4:35:00 PM

mllange

Posts: 527
Joined: 2/5/2005
Status: offline

quote:

ORIGINAL: ASHBERY76

I think the game is a few patches away from greatness.

I think the game is a few patches away from moving beyond mind-numbing tedium and boredom. Once you exceed 40 colonies it becomes an exercise in drudgery, especially with tech set to normal. By the time I retrofit all of my ships/stations they are practically obsolete again. To compound the problem, the tools available to select and retrofit selected ships are non-existent. Whee! I get to click through every single freaking ship I have individually sending them back to the shipyards... woohoo! Forgive me if I'm not thrilled.

To compound my skepticism about the game's future, the scale is simply wrong. I have scanners that can supposedly see everything in the entire galaxy and yet the most advanced weapons available to any race can barely shoot 4-5 ship-lengths away? LOL Simply ludicrous. (Yes I realize the scale of each ship is intentionally distoted for ease of visibility). My point is, compare the distances with today's naval engagements. We should have fleets launching scouting squadrons inside the system to detect and enemy presence and then fighter and bomber squadrons launching from half-way across the system. Torpedo and missle engagements should be far enough away to make a real difference and we should have point defense weapons to defend against them. Combat is dumbed down and basic to the point of looking silly at this point.

The game has the framework to perhaps become something special, but it will take some major work to rise to the level of greatness in my opinion. It's a nice effort considering the size of the development team, but we're a long way from greatness here; I think the bar has been set far too low.

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Post #: 6

RE: Was a Skeptic now I'm a Believer - 4/3/2010 5:29:50 PM

ASHBERY76

Posts: 2136
Joined: 10/10/2001
From: England
Status: offline

I do not think it is realistic to expect SOTS tactical combat in this game unles you break up the action and have a seperate tactical screen with UI and all.The combat is set up for macro scale like EuropaUniveralis, but with some unit design.

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Post #: 7

RE: Was a Skeptic now I'm a Believer - 4/3/2010 5:35:06 PM

Titanwarrior89

Posts: 3283
Joined: 8/28/2003
From: arkansas
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I would have to agree with you overall. I think people will be playing this one for along time.

quote:

ORIGINAL: ASHBERY76

I think the game is a few patches away from greatness.

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Post #: 8

RE: Was a Skeptic now I'm a Believer - 4/3/2010 5:36:23 PM

Wade1000

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

-updates are on the way

-

quote:

(Yes I realize the scale of each ship is intentionally distoted for ease of visibility).

Altering range of some weapons might be a good consideration for an update.

-fighters and carriers: they�could be added later

-point defense: it could be added later; good when fighters are added. SHIELDS�act as the current point defense against plasma torpedos. Afterall, the ship ARMOR and STRUCTURE are the ships main body.

< Message edited by Wade1000 -- 4/3/2010 5:37:55 PM >

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(in reply to mllange)

Post #: 9

RE: Was a Skeptic now I'm a Believer - 4/3/2010 5:37:53 PM

Titanwarrior89

Posts: 3283
Joined: 8/28/2003
From: arkansas
Status: offline

How can anyone really know how far if any the game is unbalanced in a few playing......I believe it will take more than that to say that a certain item is completely unbalanced. The game has only been out a few days.

quote:

ORIGINAL: licker

I'm on the other side of the coin, I was a believer and now I'm a skeptic.

Though with the planned updates I figure that will change, but for now,� the annoyance factors are outweighing the fun factors once I get past the first hour or so of game play.

Don't get me wrong, the potential is clearly there, just that some UI and 'balance' (for lack of a longer explaination) issues need to be resolved for me.

_____________________________

"Before Guadalcanal the enemy advanced at his pleasure. After Guadalcanal, he retreated at ours".

"Mama, There's Rabbits in the Garden"

(in reply to licker)

Post #: 10

RE: Was a Skeptic now I'm a Believer - 4/3/2010 5:52:34 PM

JonathanStrange

Posts: 114
Joined: 3/13/2010
Status: offline

It will be interesting and enlightening to hear more feedback after players have experienced leading a really large empire through to the end. Maybe the game breaks down at the large stage or at least is no fun to play. Maybe we'll enjoy, once having mastered what's important for a Galactic Emperor, our proficiency at making the big decisions while we ignore the minor problems (and they should be minor to a big-time Emperor by then) of retrofitting, repair, and whether starship Andromeda doesn't have the latest tech.

The opening stages of many games, say like GalCiv 2 or Civilization IV, are often the most fun: everything's possible, there are mysteries everywhere, the novelty of that first encounter with a pirate ship or space monster is refreshing, one's amused by the civilian fleets going about their tasks.

The complaint about the difficulty of retrofitting large numbers of ships scattered around the universe? I don't know how to judge that. It would seem to me natural to have plenty of outdated ships even in the distant future; it "feels" very realistic: the research scientists make a breakthrough 100 parsecs away, but meanwhile your fleet has a job to do in the Gamma Quadrant.

To me, it feels like part of the strategy: you gather your fleet, it's not the most up-to-date but it's what you have here today. The enemy's under the same limitation after all.

The combat - well, if "realistically fought" at range, would seem to require one dot shooting across the screen at another dot. I'm willing and glad to accept a smaller more vivid combat.

< Message edited by JonathanStrange -- 4/3/2010 5:59:44 PM >

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(in reply to Titanwarrior89)

Post #: 11

RE: Was a Skeptic now I'm a Believer - 4/3/2010 5:57:23 PM

Wade1000

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

Explore, Expand, Exploit, Exterminate.
I enjoy all parts of a 4X game. The late game is intersting too. It involves much diplomacy, espionage, border confrontations, wars, alliances, cold wars, technology refinement, etcetera.

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Post #: 12

RE: Was a Skeptic now I'm a Believer - 4/3/2010 6:02:32 PM

HsojVvad

Posts: 1036
Joined: 3/24/2010
Status: offline

quote:

ORIGINAL: Erik Rutins

Excellent, glad to hear you've gotten past the initial learning curve, just wait until we release a few more updates.

You bloody tease you. So do you mean you are going to "add" things, or just do what needs fixing? I shure hope it's the "add" things. This would show you as a developer who improves the game, even once it's sold and patching is done.

(in reply to Erik Rutins)

Post #: 13

RE: Was a Skeptic now I'm a Believer - 4/4/2010 7:54:50 AM

Gertjan

Posts: 698
Joined: 12/9/2009
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I like early game a lot (although I tend to speed up things)
Mid game is great. Because you meet all kind of new races and have to interact/compete with them in many ways
End game (havent done that a lot yet, because I restart a lot), is challenging because of the fleet/fuel management and your empire is so large that it is quite hard to manage, unless you want to let the AI take care of everything.

(in reply to HsojVvad)

Post #: 14

RE: Was a Skeptic now I'm a Believer - 4/4/2010 8:09:21 AM

licker

Posts: 46
Joined: 3/11/2005
Status: offline

quote:

ORIGINAL: Titanwarrior89

How can anyone really know how far if any the game is unbalanced in a few playing......I believe it will take more than that to say that a certain item is completely unbalanced. The game has only been out a few days.

Who said anything was completely unbalanced?

But how many times do you have to play something before you realize that aspects are unbalanced?

Hell even the Devs have said that the economy needs some refinement after the first bug fix shifted things the other way a bit much.

My complaint isn't exactly about balance anyway, it's about tedium and boredom driven by inadequate ship/fleet control mostly.

(in reply to Titanwarrior89)

Post #: 15

RE: Was a Skeptic now I'm a Believer - 4/4/2010 8:10:01 AM

Xenoform21

Posts: 36
Joined: 1/14/2010
Status: offline

quote:

ORIGINAL: Gertjan

I like early game a lot (although I tend to speed up things)
Mid game is great. Because you meet all kind of new races and have to interact/compete with them in many ways
End game (havent done that a lot yet, because I restart a lot), is challenging because of the fleet/fuel management and your empire is so large that it is quite hard to manage, unless you want to let the AI take care of everything.

Agree, esp. with the End game. I find that unless your in a =< small map your end game is just watching what the Ai is doing with your empire. Especially with huge maps. My empire was 200+ colonies and still growing, and the only solution to keep the game from pausing every second because the advisors were advising me was by just automating the buggers. Or let my empire fall apart because managing that huge amount of ships/starbases/colonies is just mind boggling.

(in reply to Gertjan)

Post #: 16