SEIII Comparison
 

Greetings Everyone,

I'm new to SE4, but was quite a hand at SE3. So what's really different? If all the old stuff works the same it minimizes the learning curve. I've noticed multiple space yards on a base or ship no longer give you parrallel build capability. That's the kind of info I need. If this has been answered before please direct me to the thread. I did a search for Space empires III but found nothing. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon9.gif

Re: SEIII Comparison
 

Hello, welcome to the forums. I only played the SE3 demo for a while, but the main difference I noticed when I started playing SE4 were the planets. You can colonize any atmosphere, but those with your native atmosphere ('breathables') are best. The others will have a white 'domed colony' icon when colonized, which restricts population size and number of facilities. There is a facility that changes a planet's atmosphere, but it takes time.

You've probably noticed that colony tech is now for planet types, not atmospheres.

I'll let someone who played SE3 more than I did fill you in on the rest.

Re: SEIII Comparison
 

one of the differences from III to IV is the fact that in III you could "Move" your build between different Space Yards you can no longer do this,
combat there is NO "Retreat" in IV but you can run! you no longer have a "Targeting screen for weapons now just click and shoot http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif give it time you will find more there also http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif

Re: SEIII Comparison
 

With SE3, you could win a game in as little as 7 moves. A one on one might Last thirty turns. With SE4, it takes a lot longer. SE4 is a new game, there is not a lot that you can bring across from SE3.

Re: SEIII Comparison
 

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Exactly my friend. This is the main difference to me.

Also, think some things were better in SE3 (and some were posted here).
- The Shipyard Queques:
- a lot more flexible.
- the Base Space Yard are now near to useless! In the old times, was allowed to create Base Space Yards without limits in the number of Yard components.
- The way to spend your points to Research.
- The Right click menu!
- The option to start a game using some number of tech levels (this option helped a lot to do fast games).
- The Retreat option.
- Ships not finished to construct, still were able to fight.

Re: SEIII Comparison
 

In SE3, as you advanced in fighter tech, you got fighters with advanced components. Now you research components and design everything, even units.

A certain high level of troops, working in concert, could give a planet a beam weapon to fire back. Now, the weapons platform fills that function and that's the only way they work.

In SE3, like other 4X games, you can work your people to death and make them angry, or slack them off and make them happy. Now happiness is controlled by other things, and emergency build only works for one year at a time.

Re: SEIII Comparison
 

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">I want this back!!!! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon8.gif

Re: SEIII Comparison
 

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">I think Aaron was right in removing the right click menu. IMHO it was a bit too tedious.

Re: SEIII Comparison
 

it depends, TerranC, and expect to be flamed or something http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif i think he wanted to separate SEIV from SEIII.

Re: SEIII Comparison
 

I never really got into Space Empires III that much, but I did like the chance to choose starting tech levels for your race before the game - but that's about it.

Re: SEIII Comparison
 

Something I just remembered... you can't colonize asteroids in SEIV.

Re: SEIII Comparison
 

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Ah.. excuse my excursion into a thread in which I do not belong, but I have to disagree there.

Base Ship Yards are useful because there isn't a limit to how many you can have. A sweet planet may be able to build your Anti-Proton Beam Battlecruiser in four turns, while it takes the Base Ship Yard seven. But build ten Base Ship Yards over that sweet planet, put them on Emergency Build and you'll get twenty ships in ten turns, while the sweet planet can build three in those same ten turns.

Re: SEIII Comparison
 

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Ah.. excuse my excursion into a thread in which I do not belong, but I have to disagree there.

Base Ship Yards are useful because there isn't a limit to how many you can have. A sweet planet may be able to build your Anti-Proton Beam Battlecruiser in four turns, while it takes the Base Ship Yard seven. But build ten Base Ship Yards over that sweet planet, put them on Emergency Build and you'll get twenty ships in ten turns, while the sweet planet can build three in those same ten turns.</font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">And there in lies the problem. Space yards were mega managable in SE3. And an SE3 yard could be building warships in as little as........well lets just say it was quicker than it should have been.

Re: SEIII Comparison
 

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Oh yeah, that was a great benefit. The one game I seemed to be winning in SEIII was when I turned the AI completely on and just watched. It's big secret, colonizing an asteroid system deep in my space. Soon whole fleets were popping into existance from 10 shipyards and zooming off to the front.

I did replay the SEIII demo a few months ago. With the shipyard components fitting on a destroyer-class ship, putting a defence base on each warp point is easy. If you play SJ's P&N mod, you can do that in SE4 as well.

[ July 22, 2003, 15:56: Message edited by: Arkcon ]

Re: SEIII Comparison
 

But the role of those warp defense bases is supposed to be covered by defensive satellites in SE4.
Also IIRC in SE3 fighters couldn't move in the system map on their own.
And don't forget about drones!

Re: SEIII Comparison
 

SEIV and SEIII are totally different games IMHO. Kind of like Warcraft III and Warcraft II.

Both are great games in their own right, but they are radically different.

Re: SEIII Comparison
 

i wouldn't say radically. sure, the blizzard is no longer a super-destroys-everything spell, but that needed balance. i would say there different approaches. maybe 30 deg. difference.

Re: SEIII Comparison
 

But SE3 and SE4 are different enough that it would have been hard to prove plagiarism if they were made by different companies.

Re: SEIII Comparison
 

[quote]Originally posted by Thermodyne:

Quote:

And an SE3 yard could be building warships in as little as........well lets just say it was quicker than it should have been.

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">For what?? hehehe, in RL (in our days), the only way to build a big ship, should be using an "Space Yard"! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif (At least assemble the in the space! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif )

Re: SEIII Comparison
 

Yep, I miss those days. Games were more personal. PBEM let you get to know the people you played against.

But big PBEM games would sometimes make you want to pull your hair out.

Re: SEIII Comparison
 

heh. i think i would be thinking plagerism.