AI on the horizon

[RFalvo69]

ORIGINAL: 76mm

ORIGINAL: rkr1958
I'm confused? I paid $99, which was full price and included the 3 hardbound books...

It's been a long time, I might be confused myself but I'm pretty sure that the price was well over $100 when I bought it shortly after release. One of the major issues was shipping for the hardcover books (which I didn't want in the first place, but they were a mandatory purchase), which could add a huge amount to the total price, depending on where you had them shipped to.

Yes, I had the same experience: shipping was a killer but buying the three hard cover books was mandatory (IIRC you could even add to the order a paper copy of the humongous map). IIRC I, too, spent about 150 Euro.

Anyway I had no qualms in ordering the books: they looked fantastic and gave to the whole project an aura of real quality (the books, in all fairness, are fantastic: sometimes I still look at them and sigh). The game actually arrived in the mail while I was away in Paris for a culinary tour, and I couldn't wait to return home and play it! From Paris! [:D]

It could be said that, when this sad story will be finished and chronicled, the turning point was the day when buying the books was no more mandatory: all of sudden the PDFs were enough (notice how you could still order the books, so there was no shortage of them). Dropping the physical books was, IMHO, the moment when Matrix symbolically admitted that the whole project was in trouble.

[pzgndr]

ORIGINAL: 76mm
Yes, I've got EiA as well, and am actually playing a PBEM game and have installed probably, what, twenty of your patches? Thanks for your work!

Thanks, you and the other intrepid pbem players deserve credit for grunting through the past few months. I think the light at the end of the tunnel is sunshine now. But this is a good point for both games, both are being played and that's good. Certainly there are folks not playing for one reason or another, and I am also waiting patiently for the WiF ETO half-map scenario and AI, but the games are in a playable state.

ORIGINAL: 76mm
I had never played WiF or EiA as boardgames, so wasn't a veteran or even a fan of either, but am always looking for a good game and had heard very good things about both, so was willing to give both a try.

Same here. I was a AH Third Reich and War & Peace player, and never had time to delve into the WiF and EiA boardgames. The PC versions provide the opportunity to do so. I've also read through the WiF pdf manuals and poked at the starter scenarios, but the hardcopies are still in shrinkwrap awaiting the day I can play the ETO scenario with or without AI and get serious about it. Time will tell.

[shaddock]

I wonder how many bug reports Steve gets are really due to the game code or due to someone's computer getting new hardware or a software update?

Considering the hundreds or thousands of different hardware and software there are, the permutations must be in tens to hundreds of thousands.

[Shannon V. OKeets]

ORIGINAL: shaddock

I wonder how many bug reports Steve gets are really due to the game code or due to someone's computer getting new hardware or a software update?

Considering the hundreds or thousands of different hardware and software there are, the permutations must be in tens to hundreds of thousands.

Not many are due to a player changing his hardware/software.

New customers often run into difficulty learning how to set up their computer, but Matrix Customer Service has seen most of the problems before and know how to help the newbies get settled in.

The code for MWIF is as plain vanilla as I can get it. I loathe using newfangled software gimmicks, which means that MWIF runs on the basic software and hardware underpinnings of most computers.

The only changes in hardware that cause difficulties for experienced players are adding/changing monitors, where different screen resolutions can require tweaking the Screen Layouts (i.e., SLY files).

[scottj63]

I have been reading the forum for years.....All I can say is this....the DAY that AI is able to play a decent game, I will buy this game immediately.....I don't play multiplayer anything except with my brother (Civ6, COH2, AoW3, HOI4) so AI is very important to me. I still play War in the Pacific Admiral Ed. almost 11 yrs later.

So please get the AI working and take my money Sir.

Scott in the Philippines

[craigbear]

I am one of those purchasers who are content with the product as is. AI would be nice but the relatively bug-free version we have right now is great. Have not done any multi or net play, but I am looking forward to those experiences in the near future. (half map games would be nice eventually).

[CanInf]

great game.. My only problem now is I play head to head with someone with a computer from ages past. I usually bring my comp over, but with the virus, that is out of the question. Not seeing any game buster issues at all now.

[davidachamberlain]

Try using a screen sharing program like Teamviewer, Zoom, or even Skype to share your screen. You can give them control so that they can make the moves on your screen. Then, the requirement for their computer is just to show the screen.

Dave

[PaxMondo]

ORIGINAL: Ian R

ORIGINAL: Jagdtiger14

I am a veteran WiF player...going on 20 years now. Have been to several cons both in Michigan as well as Germany. I have played some of the best in the world (Andrew Rader). This game is completely playable. I can recommend it to any veteran WiF players, and I am satisfied that my $100 was well spent even with an unfinished product. That being said, I have absolutely NO interest in Netplay or AI. I could care less if AI is implemented. I understand AI is an interest of Steve's, but for me I don't care. What I do care about are seeing the all the options being programmed as well as the scenarios. Once those are completed, this game is a finished product as far as I am concerned.

I am happy to see the AI getting some renewed priority, I would like to see that more than netplay.

YMMV.

+1

[PaxMondo]

I'm waiting for the AI. I don't have the time for a 2 player game, RL interferes too much and too often. Having said that, I enjoy the manuals. I hope to play it one day.

Actually, I think once real coding starts on the AI it will move fairly quickly. Until that day, there is AE.