Matrix Games Forums

What are the PBEM plans for WiF?

I have a friend who I've been working on convincing to buy this game with me for the last two years. Even would pass along updates from this forum, like... "NOVEMBER 7TH!"

But...I just realized that this won't work for him since it isn't PBEM. [:(]

That's a real bummer. In 1989, I wrote code in C for Version 7 Unix to create a fair dice server via email so that he and I could play a campaign game of VG's "Vietnam 1965-75" PBEM. I added features for digitally signing moves that each side would enter so that neither side couldn't change a move after rolling the die. Lots of heavy machinery for a single game between two friends! It might have even been the world's first dice server--only I didn't have the foresight to turn it into anything except a tool my friend and I could play one game from across the country--with him on the East Coast and me on the West. (For the record, I played NVA/VC and won [;)] ).

It would really be great if now, a quarter of a century later, all computer war-games could automatically come with a PBEM mode without anyone have to code anything special on the side, as the number of war gamers are pretty small, to further restrict the pool by having only the ones with flexible schedules be able to play against each other. Certainly the hurdles of PBEM now are nothing like they were in those days 24 years ago! [:D]

PBEM for MWiF would be a very arduous experience due to all the interaction between players during a turn. In the late game there could literally be hundreds of them.

Therefore PBEM is way down on the list for what will be done next. Behind all of bug-fixes, more than 2-player NetPlay, and an AI.

Two things have been discussed to be built into the PBEM design to try and alleviate the interaction issues. One is to have "Standing Orders" as part of your return move in order to eliminate the need to contact your opponent in mid-impulse. Another is to set the save file structure up so that games can go to NetPlay when the action is fast and furious and back to standalone when one side has nothing to do.

Just as an aside, Empire in Arms also by ADG, also had a lot of interaction during a turn. It had PBEM built into the game and was very seldom used. So given that experience, I think add PBEM as the last think on the list was a wise more by them. Especially since WiF has even more interaction than EiA does [:)]

I am playing a fiend of mine and I am on the West coast and he is on the East coast. We are able to play with no issues. Of course that may be different for you and your friend but if you really wanted to play togeather, there should be some way to do so.