TSCavalier

Ow... My head hurts... Make it stop.

Different strokes for different folks. UC is unique in that part of playing the game is learning how to play the game. The depth comes from the complexity. A skilled player is one that knows how to play it (knows all the controls, displays, etc.) My guess is that most people prefer the "easy to learn" followed by the gradual revealing of depth (see chess). Of course, there's another class of game, which is "easy to learn, get better with practice". Racing games, fighting games, platformers. It's not that they are "deep", but they are often times hard to "master" because you have to have skilled reflexes (or muscle memory) and such to be good at them. I think most console games fall in this category. The mass market has a short attention span, and the wider you cast the net, the less collective I.Q. also. So, as games have gathered a broader appeal, they've had to "dumb down" to more immediate and viceral payback. That's not to say console gamers are dumb, it's just that console games are a casual entertainment outlet, not a "life" like PC games can become. Easy to learn, easy to play. Next game, please. Lather. Rinse. Repeat. By and large, most people don't have the time or inclination to learn a complex game like UC, or even the more complicated RPGs. Hopefully, there will always be an opportunity for "niche" games to be made, because there will always be a (small) market. But, the industry is all about the money, and the games that cast the widest net will bring in the most money and thus will be funded more heavily, etc. The death of the PC game is greed and sloth. People want to make and play easier games rather than harder games.

Yes, pushing the "button" means putting in the code and hitting Enter. The countdown didn't have any repercussions other than freaking out Locke, making klaxons blare, and putting the viewers on edge to see what might happen (a tease). The symbols are important though, they basically said "will cause to die" or somesuch in Egyptian hieroglyphs, which would indicate a doomsday device. Another interesting tidbit is that the prisoner guy said his name was Henry Gale. Henry Gale is Dorothy's uncle's name from the Wizard of Oz. And, how did he say it got to the island? A hot air balloon. But in Oz, it was all a dream sequence. The characters were in a dream, but the "people" were pulled from real life. i.e. Dorothy's Oz companions were all farmhands... real people... in real life. So, the speculation continues as to whether or not the island is all a dream sequence... Oz, so to speak... or in any case an otherworldy place that can be entered (and exited), but isn't really part of our world. Facinating show.

I think there will always be a market for games with a lot of complexity. The trick is finding a means to publish and market them. The trick is to make a game deep but at the same time easily accessible. Look at chess. It's a simple game to learn, but has nearly boundless depth. Look at Magic: The Gathering, it is easy to learn to play, but once again, has many layers of compexity and strategy. I think consoles are fine platforms for deep, complex games. A game doesn't need an alphabet soup of buttons that must be pushed, it needs deep strategy and a large, varied, enjoyable number of things that a player can "do" ... and it helps to be easy to play, but hard to master. Even a racing game, and certainly sports games, can have deep strategy with minimal things to have to push. But, I agree with you, it's often fun to have a keyboard in front of you.

They still don't know what the code is for except that Locke thinks it will keep something Bad from happening and Jack thinks it's a social experiment. You haven't missed anything.

In my opinion, the reason PC games are falling by the wayside is because consoles can finally match PC performance/graphics without spending $2000 on a PC gaming rig. And, innovation is all but gone in gaming in general. I don't think PC games are inherently more "deep" than console games. Regardless of complexity, a game has to be fun to play. And "fun to play" is subjective. What I do think is universal is that people like variety. Racing games. FPS games. RPG games. Platformers. The market is flooded with look-alike titles with very little gameplay innovation. I think people want new experiences not just new appearances.

I am probably the kind of gamer that publishers hate, then. In general, it's because I don't have much disposable income (or time), I use GameRankings to help me pick the next game I'm going to play. I don't know that I own a game that has an overall score less than 80%. So, my taste in games could be considered quite "mainstream". And, I generally don't give a game with less than 80% a second look. The only exception is Universal Combat (which has a 54.1% overall). UC pulled me in because I downloaded the demo and found I couldn't pull myself away from it. Also, I found UC for $19.99 at the time, which is my magic price-point. In general, my gaming purchases go something like this: - Check GameRankings - Scan down from highest to lowest rank in whatever genre I'm in the mood for. - The first one that's < ~$30 on Amazon and > ~75% is my next game. Cheesy, perhaps. Detrimental to the industry, perhaps. But it hasn't burned me yet.

Was this even a review? It sounds like he installed the demo and played two of the IA missions (a commander and a marine mission) for 5 minutes each. The fact that he mentions more than once that you can't control your assets directly is clear evidence of this. Heck, when I first downloaded the UC demo way back, I figured out more about the game than this guy after 30 minutes of play (first of which was to learn how to hop into a fighter). I distinctly remember "spacewalking" after a quick glance at the printable quick-reference sheet, and then learning how to walk "myself" off of the bridge and into a fighter soon after that. And to think... I wasn't even trying to become informed enough to publish an "official" review on a gaming site!

It sounds like the previewers aren't incredibly impressed. I fear that Oblivion will fall into the realm of games that look jaw-dropping in a screenshot, but somehow fail in terms of gameplay. I hope not.

quote:Originally posted by Supreme Cmdr: Whats wrong with these people or are we the BC/UC players, the last remaining signs of gamer intelligence left in the known [gaming] universe? Seriously.I think the review gave you the ultimate compliment: quote:To sum it up in one handy catch phrase: Universal Combat: A World Apart: A gamer's game.

quote:Originally posted by Cc: quote:I've noticed that sometimes when switching to Perscan when there are intruders or prisoners on board that I get a CTD with an unhandled exception error.I have experienced the same problem.But it is very intermittent. I've played for a few hours the last couple of days. It does seem to be somewhat related to viewing Perscan as intruders become prisoners and either you have resized/stretched the intruder/prisoner list, or are in the middle of doing so, or have the mouse on or around the area or something. I made a save game just as intruders came on board, then hung around on Perscan while the intruders were killed/captured. And reloaded and retried a few times. Because you never know if intruders will be killed or taken prisoner, and exactly what UI manipulations cause the crash, it's hard to reproduce, but it did crash on occasion. So, I've given up on figuring it out. Now I simply save the game right when intruders come on board, and if it crashes I haven't lost much. Also, I avoid manipulating the lists in Perscan (by dragging the lists larger/smaller). Hopefully this advice will help anyone that experiences this on their own machines (or help them avoid the problem). Since I have taken this more careful approach, the game hasn't crashed once...

I installed 2.00.15 over the top of 2.00.14 (2.00, then 2.00.14) and get the same as the above posts. You seem to be spacewalking right above Galcom HQ for about 1-2 seconds, and you drop right to the Killed screen.

quote:Originally posted by Supreme Cmdr: btw, the patch will invalidate some saved games. It was late when I wrapped up the patch yesterday, so I didn't have time to add this to the patch version of the VCF; though its in the online version. Alas, this has invalidated all of my current Roam saved games. Apparently something snuck in early and stuck around through all of my subsequent saves (I keep a cycle of saved games in the slots). I haven't played it with the current save game set long. Only about a day of game time. Start over!

I downloaded the demo from FileShack last night and played it for a while. Since the demo is the first three levels of the retail game, I figured this board was fair game for first impressions. The nifty-est thing to me so far is the seamless computer-screen interaction. You just walk up to them and start using it. Also, that the computer/TV monitors are high-rez active displays is very cool. The information/propaganda kiosks makes the first level very immerse. The sound environment is masterful. It seems that if you can see it (or perhaps not see it) it is making a noise, properly positioned and everything. At the same time, it makes sure that certain things (such as conversations) are loud enough that you can hear them clearly. Everything sounds like it should, and some things sound... unnatural... possessed... (like they should). The visuals are dark... dark... dark... And VERY dense. This game has more detailed interiors than any other in a 1st person shooter I've played (DeusEx:IW is somewhat close). HOWEVER, it is TOO detailed for my taste. There is so much going on visually that it's distracting. And, since most of that detail is partially or periodically concealed by darkness or shadow, it is a bit frustrating. The ambient lighting of the facility is well complete darkness. What lights there are play across every little detail of the very dense and complex geometry in the scene. To this add that every surface is a bump-mapped texture; and the entire environment becomes a study in 3D overload. I primarily play 1st person shooters, and this game started to make my eyes hurt. Im used to visual cues that tell me what objects are parts of the map and which ones arent. No such luck here. The map geometry is just as dense as the object geometry in fact it all blends together and is simply overwhelming. I haven't completed the demo, but my initial impression is "I didn't know my computer could do that!" Doom3 is a visual and audio masterpiece. It has an incredible amount of visual and audio detail; more than any other game Ive ever played. I can't decide whether or not it is FUN yet, though. Is claustrophobia married with a deep sense of dread and paranoia, all while hearing the tortured screams of demon possessed victims fun? To each his own, I suppose.

After watching the video a couple more times, it doesn't really show much of the game in action... just glimpses. But, the game makes for some GREAT screenshots. http://www.gamespot.com/pc/sim/parkanii/index.html Check out all the shots. Mix this game's eye candy with BC/UC's gameplay/features and you'd have one awesome game on your hands. "Your chocolate is in my peanut butter!" Perhaps we have exactly that to look forward to (and more) with UC:HtL. Edited: I take that back about Parkan. I just saw some screens and watched a movie of Nexus... woah... this looks like the new high standard for space-game visuals. http://media.pc.ign.com/media/016/016704/vids_1.html [ 09-17-2004, 12:47 PM: Message edited by: TSCavalier ]

quote:Originally posted by Supreme Cmdr: Again, its not the feature spec of Parkan II that has me thinking, its the whole cartoonish look I think, coupled with the fact that I remember the first game (I still have it actually and bought it on import from the UK). I watched the video. The space sequences looked very pretty, and the interior and ground sequences looked nice. There was something funny about the movement, though... perhaps too quick... especially the interiors... but no more peculiar than UC, really. I did like the visual impact. The HUD elements and vehicle designs looked nice and clean, and it was very colorful. The center 1st person on-ship HUD is the only thing that stood out as a bit weak. A game these days should be both aesthetically pleasing as well as have engaging game play. I don't mind a "cartoony" look in a game at all, as long as the whole game has a consistency in its style. Parkan II looks quite good visually. If they can deliver on the feature set it should be a good game, so long as the gameplay is solid and polished.

Compare 1791 to 2004... what were the weapons of warfare in 1791? ... muskets and similar firearms, powder cannons, swords, etc. What are the weapons of warfare in 2004? Tanks, fighter jets, assault helicopters, RPGs, assault rifles. Technically, we are already quite "gun controlled". If I'm not mistaken (and I very well might be), it's not "legal" to have a M1 Abrams tank parked in your front yard...

quote:Originally posted by Severniae: (i'm not sure what you meen by the cookie thing)I have a 2 year old. Isn't Sesame Street shown in the UK? "C is for cookie, that's good enough for me" Obscure reference, perhaps, but that's how I feel about the Solar Reactor. I can turn it off, and my available power goes up, and nothing seems to stop, break, or go wrong. That's good enough for me.

I think the Solar Reactor is whatever you would like it to be. To me, it's a useless lever in Logitix. Turn it on; it consumes power. Turn it off; it consumes no power. I keep it off. Good enough for me. (sorta like the letter "C", which is the first letter of the word "cookie")

I figured out how to fix it. I had to turn down the sound hardware acceleration down to "basic" to make UC work correctly. Again, no problem with any other game I own, but that's the unpredictability of drivers, I suppose. So something in the mix of WindowsXP SP2, DirectX 9c, and the latest drivers from the hardware vendors have created this problem. Since I have a SB Live!, and the latest drivers for it are from 2002, all fingers point in the SB driver's direction.

Has there been changes made to the sound or video code? Since upgrading to 2.00.13, the sound stutters rapidly, coinciding with the refresh/fps of the game, which also is stuttering. The whole game seems to have slowed down, with audio tripping over the video or vice versa. This only occurs when the view is showing "live" 3D content... that is, everything is fine while viewing the main menu, save game screens, Perscan, Tactical, Logitix, but not when on the bridge or using the Tacops computer. I have re-installed UC from scratch w/patches, and FULLY (via DriverCleaner and Registry Editor) cleaned my video and sound drivers and re-installed them. No other game or program I have seems to have any issues; all are running silky smooth. Unfortunatly, I can't back up to 2.00.12 to try it because I don't have that patch installer anymore (and it doesn't seem to be on the site; that I can find, anyway). Any suggestions? Thanks.

"In MY day we didn't have these fancy-pantsy gadgets called Com-Pu-Ters to make our movies for us... AND WE LIKED IT!" I think people should stop making Star Wars what it isn't. The latest Star Wars movies are tech demos for ILM. Star Wars IS a special effect, so blaming it for having too much, or looking fake is silly. Nothing in Star Wars is real... never was... it's all make-believe. I think movie-goers, especially sci-fi fans, are far to fickle these days. They conciously HUNT for CG effects in movies. How many effects DON'T you notice? Quite a few, I'm sure, and you don't realize it. Stop being cynical and just go with the flow and enjoy the show. I do agree that special effects should serve the story, not the other way around. LotR did a good job at this, other's don't. I think it's the "Bee Gees" syndrome. We all thought CGI was the bomb when it first came out... now it's been overplayed and everyone is sick of it...

What did you expect? A single shuttle can tow a string of mile-long battlecruisers through space with little effort. A mere starbase is small potatoes. It was just warming up

The Solar Reactor is just there as another power source... a power source whose output is based on the orientation of the ship. Keep it off unless you need it for an emergency since it uses up some of the power that it produces (based on power level?). I actually hoped that if you had it on, the ship would use solar power in preference to radine, but I haven't had the opportunity to time the slow ticking away of radine to see if more solar power slows the use of radine. As per the link that SC included above, the Solar Reactor operates in the absence of radine. Its backup power not enough to run the ship, but enough to bootstrap itself with enough power to keep the basics working so you can operate even when you arent paying attention and run out of radine. My guess (and I do not know the history of BC, so this is supposition) is that originally the ship simply ran on radine, but during play testing, it was found that you are royally screwed if you ran out. So, the solar reactor is there so you can at least limp back to the corner radine Quickie-Mart.

quote:Originally posted by Admiral Tigerclaw: I'll be Ten K from target vector when suddenly an all out firefight starts up and I have to turn around and intercept swarms of fighters, a cap ship or two... and all while muttering obsceneties about how annoying it is to have to TURN AROUND and never get out of a system.Do what I do... turn a blind eye towards those red blips and move on. A facet of "getting attached" to your ship/crew is the role-playing aspect of it. If you choose to fight every red blip you see... Admiral: "Commander!! Didn't you see that the USS-Cannonfodder was under attack?!? Why did you not assist?!?" Commander (me): "Er... someone must have been messing with the colors of the viewscreen, Admiral. I saw GREEN dots, not RED dots... Resnig!!!!"