Commander SUCKS!!!!!!!!!!!

[spcsisco]

This game had huge potential and probably still does. I just cant believe I paid 60 bucks for this game that is so simple and easy that my 7yr old daughter can beat it. I'd rather play HOI a hundred more times then this game. I can wait for the 500meg patch so that it might be somewhat interesting to play. Yet another example of a game company putting a game out before it done. I know one thing....I'll buy Matrix and Slitherine games used before I'll buy a new one from one of there sites. Huge rip-off and highly disappointed...............................

[Fred98]

ORIGINAL: spcsisco
......that is so simple and easy that my 7yr old daughter can beat it.

I gather your rant is about the AI. Is your rant about anything else?

[IainMcNeil]

Thanks for the feedback. Can I suggest you play on a harder setting as the normal one is only intended for the tutorial to get you started.

[Major Victory]

ORIGINAL: spcsisco

This game had huge potential and probably still does. I just cant believe I paid 60 bucks for this game that is so simple and easy that my 7yr old daughter can beat it. I'd rather play HOI a hundred more times then this game. I can wait for the 500meg patch so that it might be somewhat interesting to play. Yet another example of a game company putting a game out before it done. I know one thing....I'll buy Matrix and Slitherine games used before I'll buy a new one from one of there sites. Huge rip-off and highly disappointed...............................

Perhaps for your skill level, you should play your 7 year old!

[targul]

ORIGINAL: spcsisco

This game had huge potential and probably still does. I just cant believe I paid 60 bucks for this game that is so simple and easy that my 7yr old daughter can beat it. I'd rather play HOI a hundred more times then this game. I can wait for the 500meg patch so that it might be somewhat interesting to play. Yet another example of a game company putting a game out before it done. I know one thing....I'll buy Matrix and Slitherine games used before I'll buy a new one from one of there sites. Huge rip-off and highly disappointed...............................

Game has problems we all know that but this kinda rant will accomplish nothing. What do you find most offensive? You really need to list them. Let the designers know by that list and maybe they can be fixed.

HOI sucked on release also but now it is HOI2 and much more involved. I know I bought it when it was released as I did this one.

Really though this is a fun game. AI is still absmal give them a chance but while waiting try play people. I can assure you many good and competent players exist in this game and many will have you holding on by your nail regardless of your favorite side.

Okay my rant is now done

[IrishGuards]

How Rude .... [8|]
IDG

[Phatguy]

ORIGINAL: spcsisco

This game had huge potential and probably still does. I just cant believe I paid 60 bucks for this game that is so simple and easy that my 7yr old daughter can beat it. I'd rather play HOI a hundred more times then this game. I can wait for the 500meg patch so that it might be somewhat interesting to play. Yet another example of a game company putting a game out before it done. I know one thing....I'll buy Matrix and Slitherine games used before I'll buy a new one from one of there sites. Huge rip-off and highly disappointed...............................

You know, I wasn't going to get involved in this discussion but on reflection will add my own thoughts....

This was the most expensive computer game I ever bought at close to 70 bucks. I was a bit peeved at the generic nature of this game. Actually something stronger than peeved would be a better description. But I am willing to jump in and see if I can help in anyway I can. No help will come from a rant. They will not refund you your money. It's not like the old days when you could pop back into EB and exchange it for another wargame on the shelf. You can either hide and sulk or try to chime in with constructive critisism. Try a harder level. I did and the game is more enjoyable. Yes, I do have issues with what the programmers did in regards to certain things but I figure I can chime in and give my view and eventually they will hopefully gather the best ideas from everyone here and either give us a "500 mb" patch or incorporate them in a future edition.

Ok.. my 270 pound frame is cracking my soapbox..Time to get off....

[LitFuel]

Actually I think you pout like my daughter did when she was seven...

[Phatguy]

ORIGINAL: LitFuel

Actually I think you pout like my daughter did when she was seven...

Actually I haven't pouted since they ran out of barbeque wings and vodka at the Anchor bar

[IainMcNeil]

We're happy to listen to all feedback - good and bad

[JudgeDredd]

Well...with regards to the AI...I played one notch to the Allied AI and as Germany it's mid 44 and I'm in full retreat across Europe.

My units are delpleted to the point of being useless. All of my production points go to putting useless reinforcements into my units to try and stem the flow from France and Russia.

Yes the AI sat on it's arse for the best part of the game...only Russia went active and I didn't DoW on Russia...it did it to me! Yes Africa is still mine with no sign of allied troops...but what use is it to me...

I'm not a great wargamer...I just like the fun of the challenge. I am not a great strategist.

However, if your 7 year old daughter is that good, I'd be interested in a PBEM with her....just to see [:D]

So whilst I think the AI could do with cranking up, I'm having a good time playing this AND a challenge.

[HansBolter]

ORIGINAL: Iain McNeil

Thanks for the feedback. Can I suggest you play on a harder setting as the normal one is only intended for the tutorial to get you started.

What part of "normal" being intended to constitute "normal" persists in escaping the grasp here?

If you wanted a special dumbed down, AI handicapped mode for the tutorials I suggest that a mode called "introductory" would have been preffered by your customers who expect "normal" to be exactly that.

[IainMcNeil]

There are very different expectations from difficulty settings from you guys and from the more casual gamer.

If you add an easy setting, nobody uses it - they play on normal. Nobody wants to feel dumb and play on the easy setting. They are rarely if ever used. It's just the way it is.

We have to make the normal setting easy so that new players will not be beaten by the game. If people lose most of them stop playing. They should try again at an easier setting, but most don't - they give up and say the game is crap. It's just the way it is.

As you guys are all hardened wargamers its obvious you need more of a challenge than the average person. We either had to make it too easy for you on normal or too hard for the average guy. We always go with what the average guy would want. Maybe that was a mistake because this game has more of a niche market than our previous games, but we are trying to reach out to more casual gamers with the slick UI.

It's not something we overlooked, it's a design decision. If other people were prepared to play on easy settings or be beaten it wouldn't be an issue - but they're not. We thought you guys would be willing to up the difficulty, but looks like we were wrong!

[HansBolter]

ORIGINAL: Iain McNeil

There are very different expectations from difficulty settings from you guys and from the more casual gamer.

If you add an easy setting, nobody uses it - they play on normal. Nobody wants to feel dumb and play on the easy setting. They are rarely if ever used. It's just the way it is.

We have to make the normal setting easy so that new players will not be beaten by the game. If people lose most of them stop playing. They should try again at an easier setting, but most don't - they give up and say the game is crap. It's just the way it is.

As you guys are all hardened wargamers its obvious you need more of a challenge than the average person. We either had to make it too easy for you on normal or too hard for the average guy. We always go with what the average guy would want. Maybe that was a mistake because this game has more of a niche market than our previous games, but we are trying to reach out to more casual gamers with the slick UI.

It's not something we overlooked, it's a design decision. If other people were prepared to play on easy settings or be beaten it wouldn't be an issue - but they're not. We thought you guys would be willing to up the difficulty, but looks like we were wrong!

Is it possible the error of your reasoning lies in having tried to facilitate the "casual gamer" in the first place?

War games appeal only to a niche market the majority of which is made up of us "hard core" wargamers, shouldn't they be designed for that market.

If you dumb them down to appeal to the masses you run the very real risk of losing the very market one assumes you were targeting in the first place.

Just an observation. [:)]

[IainMcNeil]

It's not dumbed down, it is just the way the difficulty settings are labelled. We're not talking about casual gamers - we're talking about average gamers who used to buy these type of games like Panzer General.

[LitFuel]

ORIGINAL: apathetic lurker

ORIGINAL: LitFuel

Actually I think you pout like my daughter did when she was seven...

Actually I haven't pouted since they ran out of barbeque wings and vodka at the Anchor bar

I didn't mean you, I ment the first post...running out of wings and vodka is a good enough reason for me to pout...

[DBeves]

ORIGINAL: spcsisco

This game had huge potential and probably still does. I just cant believe I paid 60 bucks for this game that is so simple and easy that my 7yr old daughter can beat it. I'd rather play HOI a hundred more times then this game. I can wait for the 500meg patch so that it might be somewhat interesting to play. Yet another example of a game company putting a game out before it done. I know one thing....I'll buy Matrix and Slitherine games used before I'll buy a new one from one of there sites. Huge rip-off and highly disappointed...............................

Whilst I dont really agree with the way he said I do think he has a point. I like so much about the game (large map - hexes graphics) but seriously - there does come a point when you make a game so simple that it ceases to have any validity as a wargame. There was indeed so much they could have done with this thing - without necessarily making it horrendesly complicated like WITP - that would have made it much more enjoyable for wargamers - but the whole thing is dumbed down - supposedly to attract some ephemeral "casual gamer" market that its not something I will now unfortunately spend much time with.

And I am not talking AI here just the basic simplicity of the engine. Why people still come to forums such as these and rant on about AI - when its something no - one - even with vast resources - can program to any kind of acceptable level baffles me. I really do wish that people would take current AI standards for what they are - which is nothing more than a useful learning tool ...

Really - not much point "dumbing" something down so much to attract one market that you lose another (more valuable one - and the core one at that). Sorry ... but this was an expensive game that provides little more than curiosty value for me as a wargamer who wants to be faced with some kind of decision making challenge and at least an attempt at portraying real world military problems.

[LitFuel]

ORIGINAL: HansBolter

ORIGINAL: Iain McNeil

Thanks for the feedback. Can I suggest you play on a harder setting as the normal one is only intended for the tutorial to get you started.

What part of "normal" being intended to constitute "normal" persists in escaping the grasp here?

If you wanted a special dumbed down, AI handicapped mode for the tutorials I suggest that a mode called "introductory" would have been preffered by your customers who expect "normal" to be exactly that.

heaven forbid you lift your little finger and click on the higher setting...gheesh!...I love wargames, and the history and all that but not all of us are "Hardcore", some actually still know how to have fun with a game, and not analyze it so much that it sucks the fun out of it. Thank goodness most developers do think about the whole crowd and not just the "hardcore"group because if they did all we would have are dry replaying history games where every game was the same and boring as hell.

[firepowerjohan]

No one would call Chess to be dumbed down despite very small board and very simple rules. Despite no economy, diplomacy, building, research chess is a classic game that no one really masters despite a small 8x8=64 square board. [:)]

[JudgeDredd]

ORIGINAL: Iain McNeil

There are very different expectations from difficulty settings from you guys and from the more casual gamer.

If you add an easy setting, nobody uses it - they play on normal. Nobody wants to feel dumb and play on the easy setting. They are rarely if ever used. It's just the way it is.

We have to make the normal setting easy so that new players will not be beaten by the game. If people lose most of them stop playing. They should try again at an easier setting, but most don't - they give up and say the game is crap. It's just the way it is.

As you guys are all hardened wargamers its obvious you need more of a challenge than the average person. We either had to make it too easy for you on normal or too hard for the average guy. We always go with what the average guy would want. Maybe that was a mistake because this game has more of a niche market than our previous games, but we are trying to reach out to more casual gamers with the slick UI.

It's not something we overlooked, it's a design decision. If other people were prepared to play on easy settings or be beaten it wouldn't be an issue - but they're not. We thought you guys would be willing to up the difficulty, but looks like we were wrong!

I do exactly this....start on normal (never easy) then get bored when the game is too difficult...

However, it's not because I don't want to start on easy because of any embarrassment factor...more that I don't want to "discover" the game on easy mode then have no surprises for a challenge...

I still haven't learned my lesson after all these years