Matrix let down

[pws1225]

I think it may be time to draw this thread to a close. Styer27 clearly does not see the same value in WITP/AE that we see. He seems to find the detail and preplanning needed to execute an operation as an unnecessary preamble that gets in the way of the flow of the game. We, on the other hand, find that these things are reasonable abstractions that reflect the realism of actually conducting the Pacific War. We are different in this way and that is fine. To each his own.

On the paying up front vs. the availability of a demo version thing, I can see styer27's point and I can see ours. Demos are good. I wouldn't buy a new car without a test drive. But demos cost money to produce, and for the life of me I can't see how a demo version of WITP/AE could work. There's just too much stuff in the game for the 'test drive' analogy to hold up. And his point that the list price of the game is high compared to other games is well taken. But we are a relatively small gaming community so a higher price to cover the cost of development is not unexpected. And we all seem to be okay with it.

And to styer27, I do truly think if you read the website on AE and saw the detail the game gets into, you should have had a pretty good idea of what the game is about. You should have expected that you would not get a 'Midway' with just a few hours practice. What you see as a liability, we see as an attribute. The detail is what made me lay down my $80 sight unseen, and hasn't disappointed me yet. It's all a matter of taste.

So I propose this: let's quit pounding on styer27. He knows where we stand and enough is enough. And styer27, enough of the prodding. There are games out there more suited to your tastes, so go enjoy them. There are better uses for this forum than these discussions.

There! That's the view from Tate's Hell.

Paul

[jomni]

Wow. This thread is still alive.
 
I also bash the game for some design decisions that make gameplay tedious.  I think that these details were made for the sake of those fanatical fans who want details and total control.  This alienates those like me who want ease of play.  But I can't do anything about it, I'm in the minority. Actually those who want a simpler game don't even touch the WITP so their opinion doesn't count.  If you count their opinion, then most people would want a simpler game.  But hardcore fans will say a simpler game won't make WITP as great as a legend that it is.  It's totally a non-winnable battle for me.
 
So I ended up having to live with it and just play the game and appreicate whatver experience I get from it.

[bigred]

tm.asp?m=2590353&mpage=3&key=

Mike,

I concur with your thoughts on WITP-AE being a work in progress. Thank God that it is; we should all consider ourselves very fortunate.

After having spent a considerable amount of time developing military simulations (that are used within the military, not commercial ones), I regularly have to pinch myself and remind myself that this "game" is actually available. I am not sure if it has occured to many players, but if this product had been available, say, 25 years ago the Defense Department would have seized it on the basis of national security, slapped a Top Secret classification on the whole thing, and we would never see it again. The potential applications for WITP-AE to modern day planning would have been too great to allow this to float around to potential adversaries. Warts and all, WITP-AE is a great acheivement;

Regards,
Feltan

Note the comment about US defense department killing the game taken for the above link. Another massive tribute to AE.

[styer27]

pws1225, wise words and well said.

I apologise to anyone i may have offended here as that was not my intention, i guess i was a bit blunt in my initial post, and was stupid to blame designers when they have made a great game just for being human, nothing is perfect, how selfish of me to "expect" a perfect game and critizise for not being so.

[findmeifyoucan]

I thought I had said something about this guy obviously not knowing a good game if it smacked him in the face. But I guess I figured it wasn't worth my time. We are all quite capable I am sure of stealing games. It is just some games are worth paying for so that the developers can have the funds to give continued support for I have to say the best game I have ever seen on the Pacific War since WIP. lol

Bravo for these guys for giving us continued support for this game!!!

[Kull]

ORIGINAL: styer27

pws1225, wise words and well said.

I apologise to anyone i may have offended here as that was not my intention, i guess i was a bit blunt in my initial post, and was stupid to blame designers when they have made a great game just for being human, nothing is perfect, how selfish of me to "expect" a perfect game and critizise for not being so.

Let me put this in the proper context. Matrix recently had a sale in which a Space-based game was offered along with WitP-AE. It's not my favorite genre, but seemed interesting, so here's what I did. I waited until AFTER the sale was over, and then purchased it for full price. And do you know why? Because this is one company that absolutely stands by their products, and they DESERVE to be paid for what they offer.

It's not a lot of bucks either way, but it was a small thing I'd do for no other company.

[LoBaron]

Bit off topic Kull, but how does Distant worlds "feel"?
I loved the MOO series and then never found anything that compared. And now I am too old and lack the time besides winning WWII. [:(]

[Mac Linehan]

ORIGINAL: LoBaron

Bit off topic Kull, but how does Distant worlds "feel"?
I loved the MOO series and then never found anything that compared. And now I am too old and lack the time besides winning WWII. [:(]

LoBaron -

I too loved the MOO series - and still play them all. Distant Worlds is truly spectacular and visually stunning - a worthy successor to MOO. Distant Worlds ran just fine on my AMD 2.01GHz under XP; my wife recently made a gift of a second computer, an Intel core i7 cpu with eight 2.68GHz processors and six megs of ram. The Video card is a INVIDIA GeForce 9800 GT. The visual effects are really amazing and remarkable, - the Galaxy is indeed vast (1400 planets IIRC). The game, needless to say, flows smoothly and seamlessly. DW is well designed, and has a lot going on under the hood. I do not think that you would be disappointed.

Now. Having said all that; the last time I played DW seriously was in the month of July; since then DW has been shelved (with only very brief tests on the new computer). I made a commitment to focus on AE and to stick with it until I gained more experience and understanding of this outstanding game and thus reach the point where I could just play. This week I am on fall break - no school and thus no bus drivers - and have immersed myself in AE. But a few moments ago, the game "Fallout New Vegas"arrived by priority mail. I am excited to have it (and have the others in the series), and most certainly will play it - for a while, but there is no question that AE owns my heart and mind. My wife has been very patient and supportive (she is indeed a First Class Gal), the only time she had an "issue" was when, for a period of time, I slept at night with the AE CD under my pillow.....

So. There you have it. I have come out of the closet. Oh well....

AE Loyalist Mac

[Bullwinkle58]

I too am a Fallout Fan, and have been eagerly anticipating the title. I don't have it yet, but I have been in and out of the forums all morning. Sadly, it appears to be highly bugged in all three versions. The PC in particular has major Save issues associated somehow with the Steam Cloud aspect, and many players are reporting huge stuttering and visual artifact problems, even with virtual Cray boxes. Since my girl is 6+ years old, single core, etc. I think I'll wait for the first DC patch. I could run FO3 OK on lowish settings, and NV is supposed to be roughly similar on the same engine, so we'll see where it shakes out. The idea of the game is very interesting.

In the meantime, I played three days of AE, and re-loaded the iPod. Off to the gym!

[Mac Linehan]

ORIGINAL: Bullwinkle58

I too am a Fallout Fan, and have been eagerly anticipating the title. I don't have it yet, but I have been in and out of the forums all morning.

> Moose! et Tu? All that time under water, subjected to increased atmospheric pressure has bubbled your brain (did I just call you a bubble head? - I insincerely apologize!)

Sadly, it appears to be highly bugged in all three versions. The PC in particular has major Save issues associated somehow with the Steam Cloud aspect, and many players are reporting huge stuttering and visual artifact problems, even with virtual Cray boxes. Since my girl is 6+ years old, single core, etc. I think I'll wait for the first DC patch. I could run FO3 OK on lowish settings, and NV is supposed to be roughly similar on the same engine, so we'll see where it shakes out. The idea of the game is very interesting.

> Yes there were numerous bugs, but all came out well in the end. Fallout New Vegas is the second official game for my new computer, I can hardly wait to run it (as soon as I am done entering Japanese engine production into Major Mike's (of the Solli School of Advanaced AE Economics) awesome spreadsheet..)!

In the meantime, I played three days of AE, and re-loaded the iPod. Off to the gym!

> You, Sir, are what we Marines would call a "Stud Muffin"!

Surface Skimmer Mac

[Bullwinkle58]

ORIGINAL: Mac Linehan

> You, Sir, are what we Marines would call a "Stud Muffin"!

You got it half right.[:)]

[USSAmerica]

Muffin!  [:D]

[Bullwinkle58]

ORIGINAL: USS America

Muffin!  [:D]

That really hurts, man. Wow.[:'(]

[Mynok]

Moose are manly muffin makers. [:'(]

[Bullwinkle58]

ORIGINAL: Mynok


Moose are manly muffin makers. [:'(]

I DO make a tasty loaf of honey-oatmeal bread on a weekly basis . . .

[jomni]

ORIGINAL: Mac Linehan

my wife recently made a gift of a second computer, an Intel core i7 cpu with eight 2.68GHz processors and six megs of ram.

Will you still be able to play anything with 6MB these days?

[Aurelian]

ORIGINAL: VMF 214


... that would be like me breaking into your house and stealing your stuff then calling you up and saying "hey I stole your stuff and it's a bunch of crap" [8|]

Stupid is as stupid does!!

A friend of mine left her Garmin in the car and had it stolen. Two days later their was a note on the windshield. "When will you get another one? This one isn't working."

[LoBaron]

Thanks Mac! Probably a similar situation here. I don´t own DW but its definitely on the 'keep an eye on this' list. Chances that I will wake up owning
this game, not exactly knowing how this happened except for blurred memories of aliens, empty beer bottles, and a headache, are higher than 50%
in the next few months, whether I got the time to play it next to AE or not...

[Kull]

ORIGINAL: LoBaron

Bit off topic Kull, but how does Distant worlds "feel"?
I loved the MOO series and then never found anything that compared. And now I am too old and lack the time besides winning WWII. [:(]

Well, I installed it and started in on the manual, but AE is hard to walk away from. Might take DW for a spin this weekend. Maybe. [:)]

[n01487477]

ORIGINAL: Kull

ORIGINAL: LoBaron

Bit off topic Kull, but how does Distant worlds "feel"?
I loved the MOO series and then never found anything that compared. And now I am too old and lack the time besides winning WWII. [:(]

Well, I installed it and started in on the manual, but AE is hard to walk away from. Might take DW for a spin this weekend. Maybe. [:)]

I bought it upon release and play it from time to time when I want to kill a few hours. I tend to just play the expansion phase and the early elimination of my enemies. After that it seems to get bogged down (for me anyway) ... I haven't loaded it up in a while though but it is an interesting aside from AE or RL .