Retro re-evo

It's been just over 20 years since I played a magnificent pbm galaxy strategy game. I'm looking forward to the re-evolution of the genre with GCIII. I've played a lot of Civ5 recently, and I like the migration of some of those concepts into this game. A few features that I would like to see in GCIII are 1) automated harvesting routes for harvesting mass (from asteroids) and energy (from gas stars) 2) automated patrol routes for sentry ships (looks like that may be planned), 3) ability to create tunnels between remote star systems, instead of just depending on existing wormholes, 4) auto-attack and defense systems for starbases.

Now if we could just have an awesome combat flight-sim minigame to substitute for instant combat if the player desired. You might have a minor defeat from automated rolls, but if you got in there and used your chaff and ECM and decoys you could pull out a victory with your flying skill. That would be stunning. Wing Commander and Privateer were like the first games I ever played that kept me up to dawn.

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trims2u

Join Date 08/2010

+26

1) what do you mean? There's an auto-setting for the miners to go find new resource sources and start developing them, and mines automatically ship resources to the nearest friendly planet. What exactly are you looking for here?

2) Yup. Coming Real Soon Now.

3) You're talking about Hypergates. Yeah, there's been some talk, but no commitment from StarDock so far. It's come up a number of times, but the level of enthusiasm seems muted. I'd like it, but we'll see.

4) You mean ranged attacks for starbases? That they auto-attack anything within X hexes? Maybe. I'm not convinced this is a good idea, especially automatic ones, because even if I want my starbase to have a "zone of control", I certainly don't want it attacking everything around. And I think auto-attacks are a good way for a starbase to die.

There's been a lively discussion about a Turn-Based Tactical setup to replace/supplement the current combat system. It almost certainly won't appear in the first release - because, frankly, while there's a bunch of people who want it, the majority seem to be of the opinion that it's not essential to the game, and it should come after all the other features are set. I'd expect to see StarDock gauge the wind after the first release, and consider then if it should be part of an Expansion pack (I can't see it as DLC, since it's far too complex for something like that).

There never will be a flight-sim or RTS combat game in GC3. This is a 4X game, and such a "feature" would ruin it for many people, not the least because it requires a whole lot of micromanaging, and a major time commitment increase for a game that already can run to 100+ hours.

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2) really? that's coming? god yes please.

3) they could make this a unique and super cool race flavor thing. The trade race could build 2-way warp gates(with faster travel time then regular but not instant), dregnin could use a one directional slingshot that let's em get close to enemies but no way back. A technological race could build a instant teleporter that takes a few turns to charge up the movement, etc.

Altho the movable shipyard alleviates some of the things this system would adress, it still seems pretty awesome to have if it can be done in a way that feels galcivy

4) I wouldn't mind if military star bases could attack like cities in civ5, i.e. 1 attack with 2 hex range each turn, or maybe sent out strike craft missions within its range. I always felt like the bonus a starbase gives to nearby fleets is really just the starbase shooting at the enemy anyways. I don't think planets should be given a ranged attack.

It strikes me as abit too powerful early game tho, so perhaps it could be a module you have to research to add to the starbase for +1 range midgame, and then another +1 range lategame. And then maybe strike craft hangers when you research carrier tech + large/huge hulls.

It always annoyed me that you can just ignore a massive military installation right next to the enemies home planet and just invade.

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