Vinraith

Reply to Ships locked at 5 PC/WK speed? in Galactic Civilizations II GalCiv2 Forums

Yup, sounds like the speed limit mega-event, one of my favorites. The galaxy just got a lot bigger, and a lot better armed.

Reply to Why impulse worse then DVD in Impulse Beta GalCiv2 Forums

[quote]To your question of "What happens if Stardock goes out of business?" I believe we've stated in the past that if that were to happen, we'd simply unlock the content so reinstalls wouldn't require activation etc. You could then archive your installs to a CD and that would be that.[/quote] I've always kind of assumed that, simply because SD is so well-run and has such excellent customer service, but it's nice to see it spelled out. :)

Reply to Make a list of your strategy (RTS, 4X, etc) experience here. in PC Gaming GalCiv2 Forums

This list is just games I've owned and played a significant amount, no demos. Grand Strategy (in no particular order): Master of Magic Civ 2 Civ 3 + expansions Civ 4 + expansions Ascendancy Europa Universalis Europa Universalis 2 (beats the tar out of Civ as a historical game, IMO) Crusader Kings Victoria & expansion Hearts of Iron 2 Doomsday Alpha Centauri Gal Civ 2, DA, and TA (the undisputed king of turn based strat IMO) Ag

Reply to Please eliminate the Off Topic Forums from Recent Posts in Galactic Civilizations II GalCiv2 Forums

[quote]I can say that because of the first ammendment, [/quote] No, you can say that because Stardock chooses to allow you to do so. The first amendment protects you from [i]Congress[/i] impinging on your right to free expression, no one else.

Reply to Another 'Thank You' Post in Galactic Civilizations II GalCiv2 Forums

I said it before and I'll say it again, no one that codes for a living should have to do customer service and public relations as well. :D And of course: thanks for all the hard work!

Reply to Please eliminate the Off Topic Forums from Recent Posts in Galactic Civilizations II GalCiv2 Forums

[quote]@GeneralEtrius - The right to free speech, or freedom of expression as you call it, is limited to government and publicly owned forums. Even on those forums, the right is limited. It simply doesn't apply here.It's still the U.S., dude. Rights cant be taken away even on private websites. They still ****ing exist in the real world, and in cyberspace![/quote] http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/print_friendly.html?page=bill_of_rights_transcript_content.html&title=The%20Bill%20

Reply to On Banning Video Games in Gaming GalCiv2 Forums

[quote]First, who is calling for the ban of video games?Hillary Clinton, thats who.If she wins, the game industry is screwed, as well as America.[/quote] Have you got a source on that? I haven't heard it. Mind you I'm not saying you're wrong, I'd just like to see a statement to that effect from the source. Thanks.

Reply to The existence of for-pay stuff doesn't hurt you in Personal Computing GalCiv2 Forums

[quote]I deal with the goddamn customers so the engineers don't have to! I have people skills! I am good at dealing with people! Can't you understand that!? WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE?![/quote] [i]Exactly[/i] what I was thinking of. :D

Reply to The existence of for-pay stuff doesn't hurt you in Personal Computing GalCiv2 Forums

This is why most companies have PR people. No human being can be expected to code [i]and[/i] be friendly to customers (leastwise at the same time), that's just not human. :D Now about that UP upgrade...

Reply to The existence of for-pay stuff doesn't hurt you in Personal Computing GalCiv2 Forums

[quote]No, I was referring to you. Asking for the "modicum of respect" is a pretty hefty form of appeasement - one might say you seem to feel yourself "entitled" to said respect.[/quote] He [i]is[/i] entitled to a modicum of respect, any poster who himself behaves respectfully is. I have to admit I'm a little baffled by Brad's unnecessary hostility in that response, I chalk it up to being overworked and generally being in a bad mood.

Reply to The existence of for-pay stuff doesn't hurt you in Personal Computing GalCiv2 Forums

[quote] I'd love to put up a module that just changes the United Planets in GalCiv II. Or a module that adds new types of planets or new super abilities or new random events or whatever. But I'm not doing that for free. We'd have to be paid for it. I'd probably ask for $9.95 or something per module. But would we get massively flamed? Probably.[/quote] Would you? Only by idiots, I'd think. I was [i]very[/i] vocal about Horse Armor (and several other Oblivion "premiu

Reply to Why Starcraft II will not live up to the greatest RTS of the past decade. in Everything Else GalCiv2 Forums

Greatest RTS of the past decade? You're right, I doubt that SC2 will be any competition for Rise of Nations. :) Still, it's worth at least playing the demo to see what they've done with it. Starcraft was fun enough for its era.

Reply to The existence of for-pay stuff doesn't hurt you in Personal Computing GalCiv2 Forums

The vast bulk of such things (and I'm obviously not talking about Stardock's products here) are overpriced and not at all worth it. Consequently they've gotten a rather spectacularly bad reputation (rightly so, in my experience) as a tool used by parasitic, low-grade developers to maximize profit while minimizing game quality. Any attempt to capitalize on such a model is going to have to be that much higher quality of an investment to overcome that perception.

Reply to Will the Mind Control Center be fixed to do what it's suppose to? in Beta Reports GalCiv2 Forums

Either its function or its description need to be changed, I don't even care that much which one.

Reply to Starcraft vs. Sins of a Solar Empire in PC Gaming GalCiv2 Forums

There are a couple of RTS's in this world with really strong AI, but I'll grant that they're rare. The only two that spring to mind are Rise of Nations and Dawn of War with the Dawn of Skirmish AI mod. Not coincidentally, those are the only two RTS games that have had any staying power on my hard drive. Sins lasted 2 weeks.

Reply to Starcraft vs. Sins of a Solar Empire in PC Gaming GalCiv2 Forums

Personally I find mini-map usage far more intuitive, and far less clunky, than the zoom system used in Sins. Fortunately Sins is so slow paced (and there's so little to do) that the interface can be arcane as it wants to be and its not a serious impediment to play. I haven't played SC, so I can't speak to that.

Reply to So close... in GalCiv Journals GalCiv2 Forums

[quote]What are those?[/quote] That's a Political Machine screenshot, obviously. They're probably on their way to attack Hillary in Bosnia.

Reply to Trackmania Nations Forever - awesome game in PC Gaming GalCiv2 Forums

I've been thinking this looked cool. I've always confined my racing game choices to consoles in the past, though, out of control concern. What are you guys using for controllers? The keyboard controls seem quite awkward to me.

Reply to Revisiting the Korx and the Thalan in GalCiv Journals GalCiv2 Forums

[quote]Figure it's waaay too late for this, but figured I'd throw it out there. I know the minor races have their own tech trees now, but has any thought been given to giving them a couple unique, desirable, high-tier, tradeable techs? I suspect the minors, even buffed, will be eyed as quick potential takeovers, and while that should definitely be an option, it could be interesting to have some motivation to keep them around as allies so that later on, they could provide you with techs that ot

Reply to BUG: Vicory Conditions in Beta Reports GalCiv2 Forums

[quote]Please forgive my ignorance, but I'm not sure I understand why this is a "game-killer." [/quote] The AI not building a military because it thinks conquest victories are not active [i]is[/i] pretty game killing.

Reply to Revisiting the Korx and the Thalan in GalCiv Journals GalCiv2 Forums

[quote]Vinraith, how do you succeed beyond tough difficulty. [/quote] I'm the last person you want advice from, Wyndstar's already pointed you in the right direction. In answer to your question, I [i]don't[/i] succeed beyond "tough." I play DA at tough and it provides an excellent challenge, sometimes I win, sometimes I lose. I haven't played much of the TA beta, but based on what Brad's talked about with the AI I suspect I'm going to have to drop several levels of difficulty to stand

Reply to Revisiting the Korx and the Thalan in GalCiv Journals GalCiv2 Forums

This all sounds really great, and the fix to AI planet improving should have a monumental impact on the quality of AI play. I wouldn't be surprised to find myself getting kicked all over the map on "tough" after this. :D

Reply to Canvassing Browser Recommendations in Off-Topic GalCiv2 Forums

I like and use Firefox, primarily. The add-ons are very nice and I like the feel and interface options. Opera's very good too, and if I needed a second browser for something that's what I'd use.

Reply to Why PC Gaming is Dying in PC Gaming GalCiv2 Forums

[quote]The problem is the gaming magazines and developers mostly use the newer, gaming computers. And they want to be rock stars.[/quote] The gaming press is a problem, generally. They're a very specific kind of gamer: hardcore, with a large base of friends to play MP (and virtually no schedule problems), a large amount of time to play games, high end hardware, and they've played virtually everything (so what may seem new to me may be old hat to them). All these factors distort their re

Reply to Why PC Gaming is Dying in PC Gaming GalCiv2 Forums

Not so much dying as shifting from a "commercial behemoth" model to an "indie gaming" model, which frankly results in better games anyway. And yes, system requirements for the big commercial releases have become so ridiculous I've long since started only buying them several years after their release.