Hello,
Here some thoughts about MP that I hope comes soon
How will it work?
1. Option:
Hotseat on one Computer (everything clear here)
2. Option:
Saved games passed around per eMail (similar to Hotseat).
Thats than something like 1 or 2 turns per day, depending on how much time the ppl have.
So when u start for example building the Great Library in one town which will be finished in 30 turns. U will know in 2 to 4 weeks if u where fast enough... Game is probably ending in about a year or so...
3. Option:
All play at the same time on some server - here it gets tricky hehe
a) Everyone does his turn one after the other like in hotseat. Imagine this with 16 ppl playing the game ... u would have only 1/16 playing time 15/16 waiting... hm doesnt sound too interesting (also not with only 6 ppl...)
b) All do their turn at the same time: Means turn 1 start all do their stuff till everyone is finished than turn 1 ends (when everyone hit some button that he is ready) and turn 2 starts etc.
That one would be only slightly higher time amount needed than in SP (there is always someone who needs for this turn longer than the rest).
Problems could be with a war - the one that moves his troops faster can maybe get some advantage but I think its minor (maybe
)
Bigger problem would be that the ones that arent at any war have to wait till the agressive ones did their stuff...
c) Turns are split up in unit movement and the other stuff like diplomacy managing your cities setting research goals and so on.
Unit movment one after the other and the rest all together (while someone has his unit movment turn at the same time).
Would take longer than b) but would be a bit more fair in war times and expansion phase.
Problems with these MP-Options:
1.
b and c have the problem with the automatic view of enemy troop movments - when u are in the city screen or some diplomatic negotiation u dont want to get suddenly out of what u doing to see some troops movment...
Solution: No automatic center of movment in your sight. Instead implement a movment status box in which the news of the movments and battles are displayed. For example like this:
- Babylonien Spearmean spotted near Rome.
- Spearman in Tunis surived Greek Archer attack with 1hp left promoted too elite
- Greek Archer killed our Spearman in Tunis
and so on. U schould be able to click on each message to get centered where the action was. U can scroll thru that box when u got time during your turn. with the next turn the box is resetted.
2.
Most games cant be finished within one evening, so there is the need to save the game and go on somewhen else. The more players the bigger the problem to find some time when all have time to go on with the game.
Solutions:
a) U announce in some MP forum or something similar that a game will be started at a particular time from x till y. Saved games will than be played on x2 till y2. next on is than....
So everyone who wants to take part in that game know in advance when the game is going on. And should only sign in when he got time at that dates.
This one could be a bit difficult, cose ppl dont know always what they gonna do in 3 days and if they got time by than. And there will be the problems of ppl being late or not coming at all.
b) Games are started and everyone can hop in out like he want. (So u dont play always from the start u play games someone else has started and u go on for his civ). For the time when someone quit playing till someone else hop in., an AI takes that civ under control. U could leave some info about what happend and what your long time strategy is for the next player if u want.
b2) This could be combined with a) so the games dont go 24/7. But in a particular time and than again the next day or something. Players who want to play from start till the end except for some smaller time frames they dont have time could choose the option that noone else plays there game but the AI (so he hasnt a problem when he comes back and someone else is playing his civ
) Of course the AI mess his game up hehe. Some interface with which u could tell the AI what to do would come in handy (like the governor just global with options like: max science or max gold or equal, Dont go to war with anyone unless unavoidable, build civil improvments, build military, mostly defense, mostly offence, both, ...... And so on this way things maybe arent that bad when u come back
I like option b with solution b2 best (how unexpected
hehe)
So what do u think or which Ideas do u have?
Some Questions also:
1. Anyone have a clue when MP will be released (I know its done when its done, but do we speak here about 2 or 3 month, or 6 month, a year)?
2. I read somewhere that some firaxis guy said that they had some great Ideas for MP. Anyone know what this great ideas are?
3. Will there be Gameservers from firaxis to play on (like for d2) or would someone have to host the game (like in avp2)?
ok this was a long post, looking forward for your replies
Tom
