I'm fully aware of the history of this ill-fated project.
I assume you are choosing to bundle the two separate projects toghter as "this ill-fated project", although I'm not sure why - apart from that fact they are based on the same board game. But that feels a little like lumping the original C-64 Diplomacy with the new Paradox Diplomacy and calling it 'an ill-fated project that has been in development for over 15 years and still lacks a decent AI'.
The first CWiE was a hobby project by Greg, eventually sold to DG for marketing. He moved on to other things (both professionally and gamedesign wise) and choose to let support for CWiE drop.
The new CWE-II is a new development, with a totally new code base and different objectives. Perhaps try the Demo, and let me know what you think...
The plain fact is that the DOS thingie is a DOG,...
It's dated and graphically primitive for sure. It may also not be to you taste. It does however run essentially bug free, and is still played by an active (but small) user base. And having seen the code, it's a wonderful design! But I guess it's clearly a matter of 'eye of the beholder'
... it was picked up as a springboard from which to work, nothing has actually worked,...
Well, I disagree, the DOS version works well and is a fine PBEM vehicle for playing a classic boardgame. Just don't expect much from the graphics.
The new CWiE-II is a different beast, and seeks to improve in every area on CWiE-I.
... and what you have now is something that will not sell, and you don't know what to do about it.
You may be right. Time will tell. But we are committed to making a fresh attempt at this, and we believe it will have it's chance at some sort of success. Again, you can help by trying the Demo and letting us know what we need to do to raise the chances of success.
Thanks.
and Floating Paratroopers We grew up with Minor, Marginal and Decisive victories why rock the boat with Marginal, Decisive and Legendary?