V1.05 has came out, are you going to play multyplayer again because of this?

Well, I'm going to wait a little while, see what the regulars say about the balance, wait for the complaints and then decide But not wait too long either. Until then I'm sticking to SP.

Nope, I don't see any changes that helps speed up multi player games. One game just takes entirely too long for one sitting. Which is my problem with Sins.

The game takes a REALLY long time to finish. For me, the standard 2v2 (vs. AI of course) takes between 4 and 5 hours. Maybe I move too slow, but I can't imagine a game running under an hour. Thats a really long time to be playing online, and if somebody has to leave midway through, it sorta ruins it

Wow, yes, then you're either really slow or me really fast. It doesn't take that long even when we play a 50-planet, 3-VS-comp.
And a standard 2 vs 2 match (still 2 vs comp, medium sized map) usually takes about an hour.

there should be like a "turbo" mode, where everything exept research and income happens at 6x normal speed, this should help with gamelength issues, (income and ship construction should be at 4x normal rate for micro/macromanagment issues)(combat at 4x also) because alot of the frustrating slowness of the game comes from waiting for ships to move, jump, and arive. if less time is spent on waiting for ships to reach their destinations, the the game will be alot more engaging, and multiplayer will involve alot more skill(skill that can be learnt in singleplayer, making the transition to online easier) and be ALOT MORE FUN

Having Fun => Time Flies => 3 hours feels like 30 minutes.

Bored => Time Slows => 3 hours feels like never-ending torture.

Seriously , I dont know why people are complaining about the game length. time always flies when I play sins , and I make sure to play the game before bed so that it only eats into my sleep time if anything.

Well, I'm actually for extra speed options, but in my case I want slower speeds for certain things like tech in sp games. I hate maxing my stuff out on a large map before I've even conquered half of it.. I'd like to play a game where I could set it where it's highly unlikely I'd get 3/4 of all of it done, so that the choices mean more.

Sure put in a faster setting for the ADD guys (not saying I don't get the time issue.. but there are smaller maps for that along with the settings) but I think you are all forgetting that since this is real time, the more you speed the game up the more likely you'll have sync/update/performance issues from a programmers perspective. That's a fair bit of data being pushed through the pipes in larger games y'know.

You don't understand why some people complain about the game length? I will give you a hint, in your post you used multiple "I"s. Everyone isn't you, nor enjoy what you may enjoy or have the time you may have.

Almost immediately after I started playing it in online multiplayer I realized that I would no longer enjoy playing it in single player. For me the choice is to either play Sins in online multiplayer or play something else (probably in online multiplayer).

Are you playing on fastest speed settings on a reasonably small map?  Unless there is major turtling this should only take 1.5 hrs or so if everyone knows the game sufficiently.

It doesn't take an hour to play a 50 planet map even for an expert like me

Nope...and not that I played multiplayer against random people online anyway (I did play select matches with friends though). The problem I have is that my interest in Sins has completely died off. Yeah, I'm still checking this place out hoping that something new comes along that catches my attention. Balance patches just aren't going to do that. It's got to be new things that add to the game.

Seems like the folks who wrote this slow as a pig forum software wrote Sins

Seriously, their should be some type of maps (that Stardock creates) specifically designed for fast games.

i.e. (obvously converted to whatever race you choose)

Start with like 15k credits, a chunk of metal and crystal, maybe 8 total planets, all with 4 asteroids for the map.
You start with a fully upgraded home world, 2 military and 2 Civic Research Units. 1 Repair bay, 1 Gauss

2 Free Cap ship purchases, fully crewed, Maybe start at level 3

2 Free Kodiaks

1 Colonizer

4 Missles, 2 scouts and 4 Lights

Perhaps add a feature on this map only where planet bombardment, is 2x normal IF all of a players assets in the gravwell are gone.

This would be terrible. Even at 2x there is not enough control for the game to be effectively played. You forget things, you neglect things, it's hard to enjoy the game when you are trying to remember what you were going to do next.

Game length is not an issue at all. Unless you play purposely turtlish, even the closest of match-ups should not last longer than 2 hours! Many players simply don't know how to be effective with few units.

Rather than try to speed up the game, wouldn't it be better to cut out part of the game? I already find it very busy to manage a medium size map, speeding it up would just make it impossible to manage. Have everyone start out with a fully developed terran, an ice and fire, a desert, and two asteroids that are partially developed. Then give everyone a modest fleet like 16 skirmishers, 10 LRMs, 6 gardas, 2 siege frigates, and two free capital ships. Give everyone some basic research up to say the basic techs of up to four labs, a few in logistics, and let everyone go out. You've probably effectively cut out say 40+ minutes of the game and people will still be able to manage the game.

Also, I concur. This board is as slow as molasses.

Going uphill.

In January.

With crutches.

Agreed. Already a player is saturated with stuff to do. Increasing the speed will make the game almost entirely unplayable , almost to the extent that to be a good player will have nothing to do with decisions or strategy , but on ones ability not to forget to do stuff.

So basically what you are saying is a few things: That the reason games go slow is because a individual doesn't know how to play, a individual doesn't know how to be effective with units and everything will be solved if the player learns how to play like you. That way the game will no longer last more than 2 hours. This is absurd, but its great for you to believe that everyone should suddenly morph in to little Astax's to remedy the problem.

One thing that you must first come to realize is not everyone is going to put in the amount of dedication you have to learn the game mechanics inside and out. There are many different levels of gamers and what this thread is about is trying to show IC how they are cutting off a mass majority of players because of how the game is in its current state. I don't even see why people who are against the idea make posts about it, in fact it makes no sense to make a post about it at all. Since the idea in itself doesn't effect your gameplay. Everyone wants it as a option, so the way you play remains but it opens the door for other people to enjoy the game as well.

Ever read any reviews about this game? The amount it takes to complete a game is almost always mentioned as a con. That's no surprise. But I can see how you say a game COULD last no less than 2 hours. But for the individual who doesn't have the time to play like you do, this will never be the case. Keep making posts telling casual players how wrong they are and how the only way to fix the problem is learning how to play like a expert. I'm sure that helps in increasing the online population.

Interesting. This describes the GrindStone custom map 4 vs 4.

Yet in Grindstone , ive looked at the average stats playing that game. I had a game on grindstone yesterday - 1 hour 40 minutes. Essentially I didnt find much difference in time-length spent playing that ,compared to playing a similar Large random single star map , both with 8 players 4 vs 4.


Just one thing about game speed and game length. 2x game speed doenst means 1/2 game length. This is because theres one thing that doesnt increase equally with game speed and thats the Player himself. He will always lag behind at such a rate that if a game quadrupled in speed , he might only beable to end the game in double the time . This is because of the limitations of his mouse click speed and his decision making. So if your looking at bringing a game from 2 hours down to 1 hour..then your looking at 4x speed lol. Watch a replay of 4x to see if you can cope with the management of your empire . Im a fast clicker , and Id reckon it still be quite overwhelming.

Bah no edit ...it doesnt totally describe grindstone ...but its getting there. Yea I see what u mean. a bit crazy tho

That's nto "basically" what I'm saying. You must not be able to read properly. If you can attack with 20 units but wait till you have 200, then of course the game will take a lot longer to play. It is not the game's fault, but rather your own. If you chose to play that way, then do not complain it takes so long.

I think the reason why everyone finishes the game at differant time is because some people like me enjoy colonizing every planet, researching everything, having a huge fleet and gaining an ally or two, then we go on the attack. The only other time I attack is if I want a planet that they 'stole' from me, . I spend 5-10 hours over 4 or 5 sittings to finish one game but I enjoy it. Other people like to rush and colonize maybe 10% of the map then send their fleets at the enemies without to much research and kick everyones asses which is like what I do in AOE3. I play at fastest settings and they are to slow so I wish ironclad and stardock would at a turbo/extreme setting in 1.06/1.1 to increase the speed of games and that way people like me can still get the most out of the game we payed for. It will also help other people who play aggressively and quickly to go even faster and play more games.

Yes, already have played 10x more games than before Online. Mainly because of the syncfix.




as designed - this was no secret before/after release move along nothing to see here




Press the + and - keys in SP mode to increase game speed



I find people that play this type of game in other RTS's to be mindless ardtards that can't tie there own shoes without a PrimaGuide and a compass. No, this is exacly the reason Sins's is better than all other RTS's it actualy has the S in RTS!

you are right!
but since RA is pure pwnage and every no/low skilled vasari uses it the online games take just way too long ..
especially when you are winning against a vasari they just have their RA running and fortify to the max every planet... so u have to clear every planet and move to the next.. where a fully new fleet and full defenses await you..

time flies if you are having fun yes but even in a winning game against a RA vasari its just taking too long..
but u can't leave .. u can't give such a lame player get the satisfaction of winning by attrition

I personally like the "slow burn" feel of this game. Ironclad inluding the saving option in multiplayer makes this entirely possible and enjoyable! This is NOT Dawn of War or CnC, games generally will not be over in 45mins - for that kind of quick pace, you should check out a 'truer' RTS.

Treat this game as Civilization with Real-Time combat, something to really get your head into! Make a game take weeks by creating a huge star system and just have a 1 on 1 multiplayer with a good friend. Set a time every few days to meet online for an hour at a time, its relaxing and enjoyable. You normally don't even see the enemy for the first few days, but by the time you do, your in for some of the most epic, ridiculous RTS space combat you'll ever see! I love all the politics, diplomacy, gathering and colonizing planets, its all there!

Having to remember everything thats going on is all part of the "game" for me. I love the challenge and the scale. People whining that it all takes too long should simply not play this game, play something else that you do like! You wouldn't sit eating raw garlic if you don't like it - so simply stop - eat something else!

This game is not for everyone!