BETA EXCELLENT BUT VERY EASY

BETA EXCELLENT BUT VERY EASY

from Sins Forums
This game is excellent right out of the box but too easy. I can build 6 Capital ships on hard level with 12 players in teams of three, and just go from one teritory to the next and take everything, after I have built my properties to max.

Things I noticed from other RTS is they don't implement a very good defense or launch a formidable attack parties.

What I wish or thought of for this game would be a few things.
1. An AI party that goes out and hunts specifically for your Flagship capital ship with a party that is near its experience level and has enough ship to get it a fair chance.
The Human Flagship capital ship would have radar, something like you have setup now that would alert human players that the AI are within 2 zones of attacking you. This would give human players the chance to sum up their competitor and decide to stay and fight, bring more ships to help or retreat.

2. AI needs to build ships according to what the human player is building. 100 frigates are not going to take 6 level 10 capital ships especially if they come in a long line, one by one, like they do now.
I would like to see more AI level 5 and higher capital ships attacking me.
Right now on Beta and I’m sure you are working on this but they seem one dimensional. They look like they are going to attack a distant planet but will just stay in a marching line and not attack my ships with any convection. They need to stop and ALL start fighting instead of staying in that marching line to where ever they are going.

3. A formidable defense. Maybe have a research tree that enable special abilities for their home planet.
A. Maybe have the Flagship capital ship have the ability to instantly cast back to home planet to help defend?
B. Special weapon on home planet that can send enemy ships that are attacking back to the star unless this weapon is knock out before it is cast.
C. Much more Tactical Capacities on home planets

Other little things
We need to be able to click on the text (hyperlink) for that planet when its name is splashed on the screen. Right now it takes quite a while to search for our planets out of hundreds across several star systems.

We need to limit the amount of voice chatter. When I play 12 player games I hear certain voice alerts every two seconds is very annoying. Most of these are not important. If there was a better way to implement alerts. Maybe have them in levels and with levels you could turn off voice alerts for less severe actions. Level 1 your planet has been invaded, level 2 your fighters and bombers are fighting, Level 3 your planet’s structures are being attacked, and last, level 4 your structures are being destroyed.

Thank you for building this game. It has so many great ideas in one. I can’t wait for the finished product. The graphics are perfect to me. I could write 500 words plus on all the great ideas you guys have implemented already.









3,471 views 8 replies
Reply #1 from Sins Forums Top
We're very happy to hear you like the game already. With your ideas (and everyone else's here) we hope to have a really great finished product. I agree that the AI is way too easy now and you can expect him to better incrementably. I especially like your idea of how to filter voice chatter. The easiest way right now to find a planet is to hit the ALT key. It will bring up the names in the Empire Tree and on the main screen. ALT is also used for a lot of other useful screen information. Thx for helping us test Sins
Reply #2 from Sins Forums Top
Hi plasmaron,

What did you mean by this exactly?

We need to be able to click on the text (hyperlink) for that planet when its name is splashed on the screen. Right now it takes quite a while to search for our planets out of hundreds across several star systems.


When you get messages on the screen about a planet, usually it coincides with an event in the report window; those are clickable and will take you right to the planet. The less important ones don't show up in the report windows, but I think you can jump to the most recent report by pressing space. Is this sort of what you are talking about or something else?




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Reply #3 from Sins Forums Top
What did you mean by this exactly?


That he didn't know about the event windows (or space-bar)


A. Maybe have the Flagship capital ship have the ability to instantly cast back to home planet to help defend?


Someone has been playing too much War3!

B. Special weapon on home planet that can send enemy ships that are attacking back to the star unless this weapon is knock out before it is cast.


Um, wierd. That said, what planets (even home planets) need isn't so much more tactical slots, as better structures to put in them, primarily in the form of different function structures suck as flak cannons, "close in" cannons with heavier firepower, shorter fire times, and less range than gauss cannons, and some kind of "orbital shield generator" to protect other structures with (maybe make the planetary shield generator boost the shields of anything within the build radius?). As things stand, however, you can really hurt any enemy that doesn't bring proper anti-fighter defenses by placing two repair stations, lots of hangars, and a phase disrupter all in a nice tight clump, ringed by gauss cannons. Add in a shield-generator to deal with human players that go straight for the planet with siege frigates and you still have a nasty defense problem.

I need to remember to cross-post some of that in the planetary defense thread (there are a few floating around), where you too can give ideas on how to better set up defenses!
Reply #4 from Sins Forums Top
I didn't know about the "report window; those are clickable". That helps a lot. Thanks

As to home planets. My point regardless what you guys come up with is, EVERY RTS GAME, I've played and I've played them ALL. The AI NEVER has a good defense especially on its base. Even the latest games like Company of Heroes which is the best RTS I've ever played, does not have any defense for its base that isn't easily defeatable.

This game is a lot different and your home planet isn't nearly as relevant, but my point is that some RTS has to take defending its existence much better then the current games. As Ron Lugge above stated there are ideas floating around and someone will take this issue serious.
Reply #5 from Sins Forums Top
Plas, part of that is the fact that defenses aren't supposed to be the primary protection for your base. "The best deffense is a good offense" is only one of thousands of axioms, all based around the same basic concept: If you sit back and let the enemy control the situation, he will win.
Reply #6 from Sins Forums Top
If the AI in RTS is programmed to go out and capture points (which they all do in some way) they all leave their back door open. Once you break through (or sneak around) their offense you can just walk right in and easily destroy their captured properties. So far this game has not shown me any thought from this happening. The AI does not turn around and go back to defend its bases. I play 12 player games with AI all on one team and even if the AI's teammate is in trouble they will just march on by and not help. They barley will chase me down if I retreat.

A human player will normally fortify his key points on the map to stop and invasion or at least slow it down until help arrives. So what you say above is true the AI does not apply to this theory since this battleground is huge. If I build up a large force to go out and attack and I build a equal party to defend my "Key Points", I will never lose as things are now. How is the AI going to stop my 10, level 5-10 capital ships? I will just walk right up to their bases and destroy them with no real fight. The AI needs to keep a limited number of defense ships doing what I am doing IMO. The AI needs to act responsible when sending flagships in when playing "Last Flagship standing". I know they are working on this stuff and trying to balance it. Most RTS will just let the AI cheat giving them faster, more powerful fleets plus many other options. I just hope they keep the ships evenly balanced (AI versus human) like they are now but they may make the AI have an advantage or limit us on how many ships we can build if they can't make them smarter..


My only point in this discussion now is will they follow the norm in RTS with a " good offense is your best defense" or play more responsible and protect itself from invasions nears its capital?
Reply #7 from Sins Forums Top
I remember in beta 1 my enemies' planets were totally unguarded and free for the taking.

About 5 mins later a fleet of 100+ frigates and several capital ships jumped in and raped my worlds.

I would like to see more of that. XD
Reply #8 from Sins Forums Top
I was talking about AI's in general, not this AI... the devs have months left to develop this AI.

Edit: And I just had a really fun attack... the enemy's attack force landed in my system while I was busy, stuck wailing on his capital untill after I destroyed its inhibitor.