So we're starting to put together stuff for the alpha.
This week we're putting together the list for the private alpha group (basically a lottery).
The exact day of the release of the alpha remains to be seen. Part of it depends on the weather up at Higgins Lake (where I'll be on vacation until early next week). If it rains, I'll be going home sooner which means the alpha will likely come out a bit sooner. If it's nice, I'll be staying a bit longer and the alpha will have a couple more days to bake. Kind of a reverse groundhogs day.
In either case, we plan to start making public to those interested in seeing the sausage factory that is game development our internal bug reports.
Those of you not used to a Stardock beta will find these quite...something I suspect. Most people don't realize how games are made.
A game, at the end of the day, is a piece of software that is tuned to be "fun" where fun is a debateable concept.
On a new property like Elemental, that means the software is taking a bunch of technologies that have been developed over the previous year or two and integrated together.
If a game takes say 3 years to make, 2.5 years of that time will be spent on the underlying tech. The lsat 6 months spent putting that tech together into a working "game". That is where we are now, taking the techs and integrating them together.
You'll be able to see all our foibles in the journals area starting next week as the good, bad, and ugly of the game's develpoment starts to come together.
So if you have any questions for the August FAQ, post them here.
Cheers!
No doubt!
Frankly speaking I think a big x-pack is the way to go with a game that has a fully supported modding community. The community stuff can keep things dynamic and growing until the devs come out with a new feature set and content. I would consider doing mini graphic release packs however every two months or so just to add spice.
[Delete me]
Well, the main thing that attracted me to the proposed "complex" and "semi-complex" systems was that you could basically produce your units' equipment and it could fork along several paths. You could give them a well crafted sword, or you could send it to an alchemist to have enchanted and then give them that.
Is this kind of thing still possible where the player can customize their equipment and create some powerful combinations, or was this simplified as well?
I imagine there will be at least some equipment since Brad's July FAQ said that there are no stock units and the player will be creating them, I'm just curious how deep this aspect of unit creation is
Way back many moons ago, Brad mentioned that they have two release windows. Ah, here it is:
That was before Demigod, obviously.
It depends on what they're going to do. If the expansions are all going to do things like change how modding works (ie: force modmakers to change things in order to ensure that old mods continue to function), less expansions is better then more. If the expansions are mostly just adding things without breaking compatability, then it's less of an issue.
I wonder how much overhead there is in doing more releases, though? Let's say you want to put X features into an expansion, and it'll take 9 months to build it as one big thing. Would splitting it into 3 microexpansions result in each one of those taking 3 months, or due to extra release testing and such are we looking at 4 months per?
If it's going to slow things down, I'd rather just get one bigger expansion. If it's not going to cause much overhead, microexpansions are pretty nice because they let you get extra features out gradually, so there's always something new going on.
Just because the economic system is simplified doesn't mean domestic management won't be engaging...streamlining economics was done to prevent tedium, not to de-emphasize the importance of a strong imperial backbone. If we do it right, 1.0 will have players that ONLY want to build massive, sprawling cities and have their fun focusing on growing settlements and keeping their cities prosperous.
I hate to say it, but you might be looking at it from the perspective of someone who didn't want the complex system in the first place (as I recall, you were supporting the "camp 2" simplified system). For the people who find complex and detailed economies fun, a simplified version won't be as fun. No matter how well done it is.
I haven't seen what system is in the game yet, of course, but the concern that it was oversimplified is there.
If I wanted to know if players could mod in their own spells (despite that already being answered) I would have asked that. I would also point out the "Will there be mounts?" question from July's FAQ had altered wording. Most people wanted to know if there would be more then just horses as mounts which had not been answered. Just because you don't like a question doesn't mean it shouldn't be asked for future reference.
I fear the war of 'simple' vs 'complex' is over-complicated in its own right.
What we will be doing is implementing a system that is straightforward and easy to expand upon so, as people play and flaws/concerns are noted, we can come up with FUN solutions. There were alot of great ideas in the 400+ posts from that journal entry on the economy, and I can't wait to implement some of them, but until the seed is sown...the basic system is put in place, polished, and made enjoyable...we don't feel comfortable trupeting some 'new, revolutionary economic system' if 2 months for release we get it done and realize 'This is the dullest thing we've ever played.'
Now that we have most of the game technologies done, our new motto is 'Start small and build the fun from there'...with our beta testers help, of course
Whether I'm involved in alpha or not, this sounds like it will be a good read. Those not chosen for alpha ascension should feel somewhat participatory in the process when these reports are made public.
Looking forward to it.
Honestly, don't you people ever sleep? In any event, I am reasonably sure I will get into the alpha, and am actively looking into buying one of those cloud-seeding airplanes.......
My biggest questions still have to do with essence: is levelling linear or exponential, can you invest it into objects, what are the finer points of the hero system, and so on. However, I would also like some more info on the metaphysics involved in magic, and explanation of what exactly a "perverted" ecology is.
Thanks FB! have a great holiday. Even if it is raining, being out in the wilderness is lots of fun. Did some of our most productive fishing in the rain.
Actually I would suggest big expansions to help keep everyones experience more stable otherwise combinations of all micros would require more stability testing. Will micro A, D and F work as stable as micro A, C, and D ? Unless you have a solid seperation amongst all micro expansions.
Except when it rains hard enough that your tent doesn't stay dry. How hard that is of course depends on your tent and where you pitch it, though
Back onto off-topic: like DrGuppie, it depends for me. If there's a lot of high quality player-created content then I wouldn't be as interested in mini-expansions as in bigger, meaty ones. But if player-created stuff falls short, then mini-expansions would be very welcome. In the best of worlds I'd actually prefer a combination of the two: mini-expansions that provide a little extra content and there, and major expansions that actually add gameplay.
I am curious about the level of 'macro controls' available. There is nothing more annoying than having to micro a battle simply because the AI doesn't know how to use the 'unbeatable' units I've provided it with properly, or having to go through and set every single stupid little variable on a city by hand... times however many cities I have.
I'm all torn up inside... Want rain so I get my mits on this sooner, or want no-rain because I want the frog to have a nice, relaxing vacation and come back at 150% capability.... Decisions, decisions...
OK, decisions made. Good weather, and ask the Doctor (Doctor Who?) to use the TARDIS to bring you back early. That works!
Questions:
*Could you provide any more information about the various factions or races? Which ones will be playable in the alpha and/or Beta 0?
*Could you expand upon the diplomacy system? How similar will it be to other games? How large of a role will it play?
*Could you give some targets of what a "typical" game might look like. For instance:
-How long should a "standard" game take to play?
-How many cities would a player expect to own on a normal map (I think you mentioned like 8 or so)?
-How many shards would a typical player own in the course of a game (2? 10?)?
*What are all of the victory conditions available (military, diplomacy, tech, magic, etc.)?
*How are things going for BoogieBac in his new lead position?
*What levels of the user interface will be customizable? How much of this can be done regularly vs. modding vs. not at all?
Regarding micro vs. regular expansions:
What if you made a micro expansion available as a mostly content-oriented update on or after launch? I'd think people would pay around $10 for good quality unit pictures, animations, and various other graphics alone, which would almost entirely be farming this out to graphic artists. Then, later you could incorporate this into the expansion. I'm sure I'll buy either, but the question for you is what is the best use of your resources and what do players want and how can you fulfill that with micro vs. a regular expansion? (sorry to answer a question with one- I know that can be annoying some times).
In the end is a matter of money but that one option may be profitable doesn't make it available.
About changes in code like new game options, microexpansions can hurt modders making them adapt now and then. Patches for bug fixes should be more than enough. Microexpansions that only add art/graphics should be easier and could benefit more from microexpansions.
Let's say that Stardock decides to create a bunch of art/graphics of scifi style. Many user surely wouldn't be so much interested in such content as they could prefer more fantasy style one. If the meaty expansion pack without that scifi content were to cost $30 but with the scifi content the cost raised to a total of $35, the people that didn't want that content would complain about paying for something that they don't want in the first place. Specially if that would raise the price of the expansion pack.
But, following the previous example, if Stardock sees that the scifi material would be profitable if sold (becuase there are enough people in it... maybe for an Alpha Centauri mod), to sell that contento trhough a microexpansion would be the solution (and sell the meaty expansion pack without it). The problem with this approach is if this scifi content include new gameplay elements. That could be a problem when patches arrive... But if the microexpansions are only eye candy, that wouldn't be a problem, right? Or not so big at least.
It's also nice not to hae to wait for 9 months for something that was finished in 3 months. Specially if it's just art/graphics.
I used scifi as example because it's the one that breaks more the Elemental style but I could have chosen Ancient Greece, Ancient Egypt, Acient China/Japan... or some D&D (slightly) based content. Just saying. In any case, I suppose that Sins of Solar Empire's case should give you some nice data to study about the topic, right?
And thank you for answering, BoogieBac.
Will there be pre-game strategy decisions (for example, about your character or faction)?
Not really for the faq but when will we know if we are in the alpha or not?
I didnt say I didnt like it. Im mostly trying to gather what type of information you're after. Maybe you could be more specific in your question so Brad (and others) can give you the answer you're looking for. The rest of your questions were great. But when I see "Can player create spells?" That can be taken a couple ways. I thought it was a modding question. And if I mis-intrepted it, others might make the same mistake. Just trying to prevent another "mounting question" As you pointed out...other's were after one type of information but got another based on how they worded it. That's all. Sorry, if I came off in a bad way
I have a few questions:
1) Can we remake (retrain, respec, or whatever you want to call it) once we give them essence? Simply put, I don't want my champions to be forever stuck with using an outdated bronze sword when I can create new unit with adamantine greatswords or other higher grade equipment. I want my champions to be representive of my power and might, not be some lagacy from the past.
2) Can we create creatures like undead or constructs? If given the chance, I would want to send powerful units of my own creation against my enemies to test to see which is better, man or machine.
Hmm... Good question.
On one hand, I would want the features I want developed given the focus of a full blown expansion, while restricting the features I don't care much for the attention of a micro-expansion. On the other hand, what I expect to be fun may turn out differently than what I hoped for, so I may in hindsight would have wanted things to be done differently. This is something that I need to think about.
What you could do is a bit of both. You could do 2 micros followed by a full expansion and then consider where you want to go from there. Its not like you guys have mixed micros with full expansion before (to the best of my knowledge you guys only came up with the concept of micro-expansions only recently). It might turn out well for you guys.
Will the technology tree also include "fantastic" technologies (like astrology actually working, or deepened divine knowledge giving blessings and bonuses) or will it be reality-based only (leaving all such stuff to magic)?
How many spells do you plan to include, in total?
Will there be (neutral) barbarians on the map when the game starts? (in that case, please make it optional)
What religions will there be and can you found your own?!
Will there be an HP Lovecraft-inspired faction of mad conjurers calling up demons, devils and even Older abominations or do you just stick to the old necromantic skeleton mantra ...?
I hope so. That would be great.
I don't think there will be religions, but they may still put them in.... but they've been ingored so far, and generally that's a bad sign.
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