My Feedback and First Impressions - constructive criticism

from GalCiv2 Forums
Firstly, hats of to the dev team for doing a fine job!
I've just had this game about 5 hours and am still eXploring it. But without wasting too much time and space, let me just get to the constructive criticism and first impressions:

- The tech tree is extensive - but also overwhelming for the neophyte. It would be MOST appreciated if in the "Info Field" area, where you get to see what a tech does, the information given therein were to be some form of hyperlink or otherwise tool-tip driven popup, so that one can see what it actually IS that the items or modules listed there DO.
- The "next" or "next ship" key (tab) doesnt seem to work all the time; that is, I frequently will not get bumped to the next ship (with movement points left)
- As you stated in 1.0X announcment, the tooltips need serious improvement

- I think the game could benefit greatly from these additions:
a. terraforming tech which changes the quality of planets and / or allows interesting types of buildings at, for instance, seas or whatever
b. Heroic figures or personages of some sort; as it is, the playfield and interface are fine, but somewhat impersonal or sterile at times; having figures with which the players can "identify", perhaps one which can move up in levels or gather items, could be a novel addition to this type of game
3,488 views 4 replies
Reply #1 from Stardock Forums Top
Just glorify research vessels and experienced ships.
Reply #2 from Stardock Forums Top
The tech tree is extensive - but also overwhelming for the neophyte. It would be MOST appreciated if in the "Info Field" area, where you get to see what a tech does, the information given therein were to be some form of hyperlink or otherwise tool-tip driven popup, so that one can see what it actually IS that the items or modules listed there DO.


I play with future techs hidden (although I knwo them pretty well already) and if i could hide the benefits of a tech I would.

I am looking for a real-world experiance and one never knows exaclty what a new tech will bring or what's next. I dig that in a game. The sense of wonder or "Oh Shit! Look what I can do now!!".

I'd take it to the next step and allow the AI to "hide" certain techs from me on the trade screen. Even better if I could hide from it. Imagine slowly researching beam weapons and trading them a few levels back . . . AI thinks I'm all about beams and builds shields. But I'm really researching the heck out of guns. And then I smash.

That there is what I call trade and diplomacy.

I don't know if the AI uses the information now . . .but it bugs me when they pop in and go . . . "We love your [project X], wanna trade?" That either means they are spying . . . or the AI knows more than it should. It's not cheating because I can do the same thing. But I think it breaks the illusion/
Ashes of the Singularity II
Reply #3 from Stardock Forums Top
That sounds ok zubaz, if it could be an option which one could adjust or toggle.
Personally, I would really like to know what all that tech DOES, especially since there is no mention of it in the manual.
Reply #4 from Stardock Forums Top
. terraforming tech which changes the quality of planets and / or allows interesting types of buildings at, for instance, seas or whatever

Actually, there's already three terraforming techs, just not ocean-floor radical. They allow more of the solid planet's surface to be inhabitable, allowing you to place more improvements and host a larger population on the planet.

b. Heroic figures or personages of some sort; as it is, the playfield and interface are fine, but somewhat impersonal or sterile at times; having figures with which the players can "identify", perhaps one which can move up in levels or gather items, could be a novel addition to this type of game


Interesting idea if done right. Personally, I didn't find it really added much to MoO2.

Personally, I tend to give ships generic names, then personalize names of ships that go the extra mile in battles. I once had a planet with three identical ships defending it. A big fleet hit that planet, taking out two of the three ships. Several other fleets then went after it, and the surviving ship just kept beating the odds. It finally fell, but if it hadn't, that ship would have meant more to me on an emotional level than any random "Heroic" figure.