DasTactic
Posts: 1083
Joined: 10/10/2005
Status: offline
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Congratulations Elliot and Eric on where you have taken the game with this Beta. The AI plays very well - especially in the way it handles invasions. Very nice work. :)
Following are my feedback notes on 1.0.6.0:
Moon Names
As has been mentioned earlier, this improvement still doesn't give us meaningful feedback. It also seems strange having unique-named moons yet system-named planets. Having the unique names is definitely an improvement and makes the game more immersive, but even in a small empire the naming does become confusing.
My choice would be SystemName1a nomenclature but Woodman's suggestion of SystemName1a (Title) would be OK as well. Just as long as the system name is clear please.
Also, in my current game, the name of the other planets in my starting system were named as per the old moon naming system.
Red Text
I'm slightly coloured blind and I really struggle with the dark red text on the dark background. It vibrates and I need to stop and isolate each letter to be able to read it. Lightening (not brightening - if that makes sense) this slightly would make a world of difference. This is in a number of places within the UI including the planner and the empire summary.
The relative values of the two colours is the key. If you have some contrast in the values then it should be fine.
Shields and Troops
Not having quick and easy feedback on shield levels and troop levels when evaluating fleets or collections of ships is a real issue. The existing fuel display is only a small part of the battle-readiness story. For example, if you build a bunch of ships they all start with zero shielding but full fuel. I will often place these sort of ships into a fleet as they are being built but if they enter battle before the shields have had a chance to charge I'm often just sacrificing them.
A battle-ready ship needs both fuel and shielding feedback. Having a blue shielding bar next to the green fuel bar is an essential part of the required feedback when working out if a fleet is worth throwing into a battle. And when they are in battle, having a summary of shield strengths will help enormously working out when to pull ships back.
Having a troop display is also important for invasions or to work out which ships to try and protect. I often have my troop transports clustered in a fleet and without being able to see which ships have full troop contingents makes this a micro-management nightmare. You need to select the fleet, then select the first ship, then select the fleet, then select the next ship, and so on and so on. Having the troops part of the summary display would dramatically improve the current click-fest.
Empire Relationships
The AI is awesome now but my advisers keep advising me to kill my positive relationships and I'm not sure why. As an example, I have a peaceful relationship with a Securan empire where we have a trade agreement. Both of us have satisfactory reputations and we both have friendly relationships with each other. Why would my advisers want me to surprise attack/cancel treaties/etc?
Also, these suggestions tend to come thick and fast. I would prefer the advisor AI to learn my likely responses if possible. By that I mean if they make a suggestion once and I say no, that they put in more of a delay before they advise the same thing against the same empire. If I say no again, the delay becomes even longer.
Derelict Fields
Not sure if this is a function of the new Beta but I'm not seeing many derelict fields any more and when I do they tend to have less high-powered ships. I like this! It means the game can no longer be turned so sharply on its head by repairing an uber-fleet in the early game. I'm hoping this is a change in the game and not just the result of a few lucky games.
In my current game I also wasn't given the coordinates for the Devastator until after I could already build cruisers so it had much less impact on the balance of the game. I had come to rely on getting this ship in particular early and it was really refreshing to be left to my own devices for so long.
Dead Zone and Background Story
I have never been able to figure this out. You have a section in space where a heap of krators are swarming around a base. If you don't take over the base that location will keep appearing as the coordinates you receive from pirates and other sources. If you do take it over the krators will destroy the base in seconds. And also to get close enough to the base you need to sacrifice an explorer.
I know this is supposed to be part of a bigger storyline but personally I'd just drop the story as a theme requirement and let the living galaxy create its own interest. The story doesn't add anything to the openness or the enjoyment for me and is like a speed bump that you need to keep crossing to play the game.
Current Money
When purchasing ships for construction or conducting diplomatic transactions it would be really helpful if the white money display in the top right of the screen was also updated rather than requiring the game to be unpaused.
Thanks :)
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Printable Version
Some thoughts about Beta 1.0.6.0 - 
--I was very pleasantly surprised by how much more aggressive the AI (except for the Zenox, for some reason) is with its colonizing in 1.0.6.0. They're really competitive!
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