[onomastikon]

Well I just ordered the game, but it took a while to make the decision because of the price, but mostly because of the price *for what you are getting*. I know nothing of its budget, but one can certainly tell that it is a "cheap" game (or appears to be so) in at least this sense: (it appears that) all design work went into game balance, none went into sound, graphics, interface, support or manual. The designers get credos for intelligence and creativity, but nothing for investment, or "dedication" (in a sense I will mention in a moment).
Balance can be done by smart gamers testing, the rest requires artists, programmers, voice editors, speakers, modelers, etc.

The graphics are abominable. Together with the sound (which I must turn off, especially if I ever "view battle" (I cannot stand the Commodore 64 squeak of serpents in battle)), this makes the excellent gameplay much less enjoyable. This also gives the impression that the team had little "dedication" to its target group. By dedication, consider games where (it appears that) a lot of "love" has gone into the game. Think of Deus Ex I (the attention to detail) or Warcraft III (the cute voices, excellent graphics, extreme customer support (battle.net).) The designers obviously love the concept, but it appears they did not want to invest in a finished product for a larger target group. And that is why the price seems so high.

So for the price, Dominions II *appears* to be either very low-budgeted or shoddy.

Don't get me wrong: it is a good game and well thought-out, but I would not have released it for this price. I purchased it because I am an idealist, but I bet most people arent.

[ January 09, 2004, 06:59: Message edited by: onomastikon ]