Ahh, Phoenix-D. For the casual and the new SE
ers the feel of SE:V is not as intuitive as SE:IV was.
I'm very glad that with custom layouts you can do wonderful things; but most casual and new gamers will have dropped this title before they have enough experience to do those wonderful things, the same goes for keyboard shortcuts and slider bars because if these helpers are not WELL documented, they don't exist to them.
These people are the new Fan base ( and the people who can make this game a money-maker for MM as well). Some of you core SE
ers may have hundreds or even thousands of posts on SE alone. And the Mods and customizing that you can do are beyond belief .. but if a game can't motivate a new group to become Fanatics like most of us here who participate in this Forum, It has failed.
I hope this game was designed for success for both groups. I was a lurker here for ages B4 I ever replied to a post and UI elegance is a key in keeping most of those people who want to DO what <INSERT TITLE> game says it can do; whether its a Space 4X, MMO's, wargame, Shooter, or even a dance-dance-music game.
Bugs are fixable (usually), but UI issues either take patience, strong familiarity with possible work-a-rounds or shortcuts, or Superb documentation. or the casual gamer moves to something else before he/she becomes a Core - player. One 'extra click' keeps SE:V from acheiving the elegance of design my fondest games usually have. Since 4X space games are my favorite, I'll BE patient, DEVELOP a strong familiarity with the UI, and READ, and re-read, and reread, and ... the manual.
I hope that some of the new and casual gamers who decide to buy this title also do so because we need to keep growing this base. And if someday there's to be a SE:XII (in true hologramic display) with all the bells and whistles all the SE:XI players have been asking for, we'll need SE:V to be (and be perceived to be) a true level up from SE:IV. I' like what it can do but is it where it needs to be, or is it still climbing those step to get there (the next Level in 4X gaming experience)