In UI, less is more.
The 'main screen' of SE V should be the galaxy map. The commands can be on a movable button-bar just like you see in MS word. Want it on top? Grab & push it to the top. Want it on the bottom? Push it there. Want it to float? That's fine too. No stupid 'frames' to draw, no mucking around necessary to adjust for the screen size. Everything you need to do is accessed by clicking on a system or clicking on a button on the bar that is placed where you want it.
Systems should be hexagon-based rather than squares. This is easy enough to do once you give up on forcing the system window into a defined square in a rigidly divided UI screen. Click on a system and pop-up a hexagonal system map. Do whatever you want to do in that system. Click a 'close' button to make it go away and return to the galaxy map. The 'radius' should be
much larger than the current system size. At least twice. This quite is doable when the system map can fill the screen.
Then 'vision' in a system should be range based instead of absolute as it is now and you can finally have exploration and a real need for 'patrols' instead of each system being a little room that you can guard from one sentry-post.
The Research and Intel systems need to be drastically revised. Something like the SE III system would be better, with the ability to adjust how much of your research or intel resources to devote to each field or enemy.
The AI
must have multi-dimensional decision making! This 'anger level' thing is so crude it's laughable. We need an AI smart enough to try to get a treaty even if it hates you when it realizes it can't defeat you. It would just choose a different sort of treaty, a 'non-aggression pact' instead of a trade treaty or alliance. And we need it to be smart enough to honor its treaties and aid its allies when asked, as well as ask for and deliver diplomatic favors. The treaty system should be broken down into individual options, not the current 'hierarchy'. Why wouldn't there be situations where I'd want to share intelligence with some ally but not give them access to my resupply depots?
Population AI needs to be smarter, too. Populations need 'loyalty' as well as a general 'morale' level. A 'culture' rating similar to the Civ 3 concept wouldn't hurt, although drawing borders would be tough in a space game. Just giving each colonized planet a 'sphere of influence' would probably good enough. Planets need to have much more complex environments defined by gravity, temperature ranges, and radiation levels along with atmosphere, and populations need to migrate more-or-less like they do in MOO 3 (the one really interesting and well done feature on that disaster) so you don't have to move them manually. Culture level could be an additional draw besides environment factors, and have an effect on assimilation (loyalty level) of non-native populations.
I could write volumes about what technologies it ought to include and what racial characteristics, etc... these are 'bells and whistles' that can be altered once the game is mostly done. I like most of the current technologies and racial traits. I'd just add a few. Like
area effect weapons (which would be really cool in 3D!
), some way to give 'special powers' to ship hulls without having to add a component (a 'mount' for hulls is the way to say it, I guess) and options to use any of 'warp points' (natural), 'warp gates' (artificial), or 'hyperspace' interstellar travel instead of only the one model at present.
[ January 09, 2004, 01:03: Message edited by: Baron Munchausen ]