Ok, bought it and my impressions

[Warspite3]

First, I am a bit lost but in a good way. This is NOT another "been there done that" type of game. It is very original and thats a great thing! I am finding bits of many types of games wrapped into one here. I have seen tiny parts of galciv2, ai wars, sins, lost empire, se5, armada 2526 and even civilization all in this game at one point or another. The developers had to have been a team of guys who have played these games since the early days of 4x space games through to now. I have not grasped it yet, not a huge learning curve just a different one. Also, I am not sure what it is but I have found it to be extremely addicting even though I am not sure what all I am doing quite yet. I can't say it stands above armada 2526 yet but it appears to stand on its own in a different sort of way so it is actually hard to compare to be honest. In fact what does one compare it to? There is nothing like it because it has all the tiny pieces into one game. It seems it has to be compared to several games. Its not a GalCiv2 or a MOO2 nor is it a SotS or Sins, I don't know what the heck it is [:D] Believe it or not, it even reminded me of something like X3 or space force rouge universe at times with all the ships travelling back and forth. I can tell you, i played, its very late I have work tomorrow and will not get much sleep from playing. In the end, this has to say one thing... its a winner [;)]

[Gertjan]

ts very late I have work tomorrow and will not get much sleep from playing

I'm having similar problems [:D]

Why do you like Armada so much?

[pndrev]

Yep, it's different. I've also played pretty much any 4X space game since the original MoO - or at least all turn based ones and a select few realtime games. I was quite sceptical about the realtime aspect of this game, but I find the automation (and the fine granularity with which you can deactivate it) fascinating. Having the civilian sector completely independent was a great idea IMO.

My only gripe is that it should be turn based.

[JudgeDredd]

I do think, even with the slowest setting, things are going at quite a pace. Turn based I could handle better I think

[Igard]

I'm just now learning ways to improve my efficiency.

I don't like having too many advisors suggestions. When I'm performing an important task, I don't like getting distracted. So I don't use suggestions for ship building. Instead, I open the construction yards screen. This pauses the game giving me the time I need without distractions.

It's all about getting used to the tools at your disposal. I guess on a grand epic scale, as this game is, that turn-based is probably the most efficient means to rule your empire, but there are ways to manage your time better with this game.[:)]

[ASHBERY76]

ORIGINAL: JudgeDredd

I do think, even with the slowest setting, things are going at quite a pace. Turn based I could handle better I think

I do not understand the moaning about the real time gameplay where you can pause give orders and change the speed of the game,just like in Europa Universalis.Most turn based game have loads of “pass” turns with little to do.

[Veloxi]

I'm loving the game. I've been playing 4X games since the 80's, and my favorite one, honestly, is Imperium Galactica II, which is a real time game. This one is actually giving IG2 a run for its money, IMO. It seems to combine a lot of disparate elements from games I love, such as exploration from Starflight, conquest from the MoO and IG games and adds their own littlw twist to it. Really very enjoyable.

[Gertjan]

Do you still play IG2?

[Veloxi]

ORIGINAL: Gertjan

Do you still play IG2?

Last time I played it was maybe a year ago. I revisit it every so often, so yeah, still do.

[lordxorn]

ORIGINAL: Gertjan

ts very late I have work tomorrow and will not get much sleep from playing

I'm having similar problems [:D]

Why do you like Armada so much?

I second this question, because I have completely stopped playing Armada.

[Tanaka]

ORIGINAL: Warspite3

First, I am a bit lost but in a good way. This is NOT another "been there done that" type of game. It is very original and thats a great thing! I am finding bits of many types of games wrapped into one here. I have seen tiny parts of galciv2, ai wars, sins, lost empire, se5, armada 2526 and even civilization all in this game at one point or another. The developers had to have been a team of guys who have played these games since the early days of 4x space games through to now. I have not grasped it yet, not a huge learning curve just a different one. Also, I am not sure what it is but I have found it to be extremely addicting even though I am not sure what all I am doing quite yet. I can't say it stands above armada 2526 yet but it appears to stand on its own in a different sort of way so it is actually hard to compare to be honest. In fact what does one compare it to? There is nothing like it because it has all the tiny pieces into one game. It seems it has to be compared to several games. Its not a GalCiv2 or a MOO2 nor is it a SotS or Sins, I don't know what the heck it is [:D] Believe it or not, it even reminded me of something like X3 or space force rouge universe at times with all the ships travelling back and forth. I can tell you, i played, its very late I have work tomorrow and will not get much sleep from playing. In the end, this has to say one thing... its a winner [;)]

I concur having a blast here kinda reminds me of WITP AE in space EUIII style! Very cool! I am at times lost but learning and enjoying the whole process along the way! Now if only we had carriers and fighters!

[HsojVvad]

To the OP, this game can be compared to something. It can be compared to Europa Universallis and Hearts or Iron series. These games came out a while ago with the real time and pause whenever you want. Also these games were very buggy, but Paradox works really hard to fix them. At least DW isn't as buggy as these games were when they first came out, but CF works really hard to fiex what ever bugs do come out.

One thing I hope about CF is that they support the game like Paradox and Stardock do for thier games. Even after GCII came out, they kept on adding features when they didn't even have to do it. Hell they even have a 2.0 version wich makes the game play different than the vanillia flavour.

[Mark Weston]

I reckon the closest comparison is Sins of a Solar Empire. Both games are interesting and different because they break out of the rut the genre has landed in by being hybrids of the RTS and 4X style games. Sins is much closer to the RTS end of the scale, with a very simple colonisation and economics game and an emphasis on battle tactics and pretty explosions. DW is much more about the economics, diplomacy and long-term strategy. But I reckon if you like one you'll probably like the other.

[Tanaka]

ORIGINAL: Mark Weston

I reckon the closest comparison is Sins of a Solar Empire. Both games are interesting and different because they break out of the rut the genre has landed in by being hybrids of the RTS and 4X style games. Sins is much closer to the RTS end of the scale, with a very simple colonisation and economics game and an emphasis on battle tactics and pretty explosions. DW is much more about the economics, diplomacy and long-term strategy. But I reckon if you like one you'll probably like the other.

Funny I tried Sins and did not like it but I have fallen in love with DW. I was also bored with GC1 and GC2. The DW living world has grabbed me and I love the storylines and roleplaying. For some reason the Stardock space games always bored me and they did not have that engrossing rich soul. This game grabs me and has that soul Ive been looking for! Loving it!

[Veloxi]

I just recently got Sins as well (on a space-game kick, if it has spaceships, I'll play it, and Sins was one of the very few I hadn't played yet) and while I like it a lot, DW feels much more...alive...complete...

[alarikf]

Hi all,

I'm a Space Empires 4 refugee (you know the story, SE4 rocked, SE5 un-rocked, and disillusionment set in rapidly). And today I stumbled upon DW. My question is this: for someone like me, is DW the answer to my quest for the "next SE4"? Just to give you some context, I also greatly enjoy Europa Universalis, Dominions 3, and EVE-Online...

Any and all illumination would be appreciated! It certainly sounds like DW is what I'm looking for...

Another question I have is: is DW as moddable as SE4 was? Can we expect a robust modding community and lots of fun mods likely to come?

Thanks in advance for any advice...

AMF

Ps: Hey, are there any other refugees from the old SE4 shrapnel forums that I might recognize here?

[Veloxi]

I loooooooooooved SE4. Looooooved it. DW is a different animal since it's real-time and seems to have a larger scope (I could be wrong there) and also allows to automate much of what was manual in SE4. I'd have to say though if you liked SE4, give DW a try.

[PDiFolco]

ORIGINAL: alarikf

Hi all,

I'm a Space Empires 4 refugee (you know the story, SE4 rocked, SE5 un-rocked, and disillusionment set in rapidly). And today I stumbled upon DW. My question is this: for someone like me, is DW the answer to my quest for the "next SE4"? Just to give you some context, I also greatly enjoy Europa Universalis, Dominions 3, and EVE-Online...

Any and all illumination would be appreciated! It certainly sounds like DW is what I'm looking for...

Another question I have is: is DW as moddable as SE4 was? Can we expect a robust modding community and lots of fun mods likely to come?

Thanks in advance for any advice...

AMF

Ps: Hey, are there any other refugees from the old SE4 shrapnel forums that I might recognize here?

Well, me, I haunted mostly Dominions forums ! [;)]
About your q, yes and no ... I mean DW plays totally differently of SE, Stars, or even Dominions, all being quite mm-intensive !
DW is different, you're not a godlike being telling everyone what to do, you just try to manage "strategic" things and let the rest roll.. very funny, but sometimes frustrating !
So far I like it quite much, even if it crashes still too often (even in 1.02), and the lack of autosave is then a real killer, as play is too engrossing to remember to quicksave regularly...[:o]

[Veloxi]

I posted some intial impressions on my blog if you'd like to read 'em.

[HsojVvad]

Well if you like 4X space games, and like Europa Universallis, then you should like this game. DW plays like EU and Hearts of Iron. The big difference, is when you click on your unit in HoI or EU you don't get the big arrow of where it's going, but you can pause any time you want, and issue orders.

I liked EU and HoI2 but didn't play them much because there was too much troops that didn't feel like they were mine and I didn't know what to really do with the. While the game does the same, You can choose how advanced you are. Even if you pick the ealries level of advancement, you still have a few mining bases and 2 star systems that you know about. Sometimes your mining bases will be in other star systems.

But I say get it. This is like EU and HoI in space. What more can I say?