Firaxis looking for community???

Aragorn · October 24, 2001, 04:34

Hi guys,

this is what i found on the civ3.com site.
Does apolyton needs to suggest to to make its platform the official community for civ3 mod and scenario creators?

The editors in Civilization III are only the beginning. Based on feedback from the mod and scenario community we will make additional improvements and incorporate new features. The editors are just tools, ones that the fan community needs to make meaningful by creating new scenarios with. As those in the 'trenches' of creating new content run into limitations, we'll work on eradicating those barriers. Firaxis is very interested in Civilization III having an active mod community, but need to know where our efforts are best spent. Together we can make Civilization III a potent platform for not only exploring factual history, but also your creativity and interests.

Earthling7 · October 24, 2001, 04:41

Exellent! Given that Sid gave an interview on Apolyton and Dan's frequent visits, I'm sure Firaxis is well aware of this little community here.

Giving feedback and suggestions has been a mission of Apolyton for a long time. This is an encouragement.

The Templar · October 24, 2001, 04:43

Firaxis is looking primarily to sell games. And lets face it, the shelf life of a game increases greatly when it can be modded. This means we'll probably see at least a rudimentary scripting language or events handler sold separately at a later date. Moreover, if sales are lackluster, Civ3 will be abandoned to the community. Nope, I'm not Firaxis bashing - such is the nature of the business.

As for Apolyton being the clearinghouse for modding, I disagree. As much as I like apolyton (c'mon, I come here daily

), I think more can be done when there are diverse communities all working in the same field but exploring different directions (my doctoral dissertation in philosophy has to do with this very subject actually

and so I'll impart my expert wisdom to my favorite online community).

Deathwalker · October 24, 2001, 04:45

This is great news, especially given that when TOT came out they would not supports MODs and even removed the required tools. That probably explains the game not so great sales as real fans stayed with the UUC.

Aragorn · October 24, 2001, 04:49

A rudimentary scripting language!!!!

Have a look a the developers update, they a creating nice tools. THis is the entire text:

One of the enduring strengths of the Civilization franchise has been its ability to be customized by the fans. It's really a matter of 'resolution'. Whereas the developers of the core game take upon themselves the challenge of surveying the entirety of human history, the fans can render specific periods of time in as much detail as they can muster. This versatility is a real marquee feature, transforming a title about mankind's civilizations into a gaming construction kit for any setting imaginable.

When we approached the editing tools for Civilization III, we were determined to offer a contemporary customization environment. In previous incarnations of this franchise, users were capable of making radical changes to the game systems, but often needed to locate and edit text files to do so. In Civilization III these changes are still possible, but can now be made within an application that follows the interface rules of standard Windows programs. This editor not only allows you to alter game elements such as advances, civilizations, units and wonders (to name a few), but also includes a robust map editor. Using the editor, users are empowered to create scenarios that we never dreamt of during development.

The editors in Civilization III are only the beginning. Based on feedback from the mod and scenario community we will make additional improvements and incorporate new features. The editors are just tools, ones that the fan community needs to make meaningful by creating new scenarios with. As those in the 'trenches' of creating new content run into limitations, we'll work on eradicating those barriers. Firaxis is very interested in Civilization III having an active mod community, but need to know where our efforts are best spent. Together we can make Civilization III a potent platform for not only exploring factual history, but also your creativity and interests.

The Templar · October 24, 2001, 05:01

Quote:

Originally posted by Aragorn
The editors in Civilization III are only the beginning. Based on feedback from the mod and scenario community we will make additional improvements and incorporate new features. The editors are just tools, ones that the fan community needs to make meaningful by creating new scenarios with. As those in the 'trenches' of creating new content run into limitations, we'll work on eradicating those barriers. Firaxis is very interested in Civilization III having an active mod community, but need to know where our efforts are best spent. Together we can make Civilization III a potent platform for not only exploring factual history, but also your creativity and interests.

Yep, if Civ3 sells enough they will sell an add-on with scripting. This isn't so bad though, think of it this way -

CTP2: great scritping language and development platform shipped without game - $50

Civ3: Game shipped without scripting language, some development tools - $50

Civ3 Fantastic Worlds - scripting language and unit sprite library (please! please! please!) - $30 (estimate based on SMAX expansion)

Now if only Activision would sell an add-on game to go with CTP2 for $30.

Aragorn · October 24, 2001, 07:10

I found some info on unit customizations

you will absolutely be able to create your own units! With regards to unit customization, we're committed to the scenario/mod community, and we realize that the ability to create diverse, interesting scenarios is one of the major reasons for Civilization II's enduring popularity. To that end, we'll be developing extensive tools for scenario and mod creators to use which will allow them to create whatever they can think of. Flexibility is the order of the day.

There has also been some concern that because we are showing animated units on the website, scenario creators will be forced to learn 3D animation programs in order to create units; we can safely say that's not the case. Scenario authors who want to create and use animated units will certainly be able to, but those who wish to use Civ II style single-frame units will be able to do so.

Aragorn · October 24, 2001, 07:13

And there is a map editor too

Yes, Civ III will ship with an editor that will allow you to greatly customize your Civ experience. This editor not only allows you to alter game elements such as advances, civilizations, units and wonders (to name a few), but also includes a robust map editor.

Grumbold · October 24, 2001, 07:30

What we really really really need is an AI editor. That is the toughest one to produce.

Aragorn · October 24, 2001, 07:35

And a commitment that they will allow us to code SLIC in combination with Civ III.

As soon that that is aknowledged, I will start planning scenarios

dainbramaged13 · October 24, 2001, 08:25

THis all looks very good for locutus!