Hi all I just have the demo right now but...

Arkcon · #1 October 6th, 2003, 09:10 PM

Hey Starhawk. Welcome to the forum. Just a heads up, there is no hotseat play over multiple computers - PBW, PBEM, or TCP/IP are all strategic combat.

Starhawk · #2 October 6th, 2003, 09:14 PM

Yeah I knew that...but I was kinda figuring the play by mail game would work in a similar fashion. I wouldn't want to play a game where i can't even see if I'm gonna win till the next turn :-).

Play by mail sounds as if it takes away some of the enjoyability of the game.

Puke · #3 October 6th, 2003, 10:12 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Starhawk:
[QB]Hmm sounds like it would take away from the experience of playing SEIV.[QB]

no, the answer was not clear. in a simultanious play by email or play by web game, you PLAY YOUR TURN. each player plays his/her own game turn, on their own computer, in their own copy of SE4. then when they are done with the turn, their computer saves it as a ".PLR" file and you send it to the hosts, whom compiles it all and sends out a ".TRN" file for the next game turn. the difference between simultanious and sequential (you can play a simultanious game in hotseat mode, to see what im talking about) is that in a simultanious game the ships dont move when you order them to - they record a list of orders and everyones ships move together when the turn is processed.

simultanious is a much better way of playing, IMO (although slower for single player games) since it forces you to use more tactics and you cant be as reactionary.

As to ETA on se5, i would guess next xmas at the soonest. maybe 2005. I got an email from AH once that said he was shooting for xmas this year, but i doubt its going to happen. we all would have heard something by now.

EDIT: Oh, maybe you did understand. but the combat simulator can give you a general idea if you are going to win a combat or not, and almost all but the most important battles are won by overwhelming force. thats largely the difference between strategic and tactical games. in strategy games like SE4 and CIV, the goal is to make sure the fight is as unfair as possible.

[ October 06, 2003, 21:15: Message edited by: Puke ]

deccan · #4 October 7th, 2003, 12:27 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Puke:
... then when they are done with the turn, their computer saves it as a ".PLR" file and you send it to the hosts, whom compiles it all and sends out a ".TRN" file for the next game turn.

Nitpicking but isn't it a .gam file that they send out?

Ed Kolis · #5 October 7th, 2003, 12:42 AM

Yeah, he's been playing too much Stars!

(silly .x and .y files that game used too...

still that was a great game, wish they'd finished the sequel

)

Cyrien · #6 October 7th, 2003, 12:45 AM

Yah. I remember when SE4 was first coming out... I was hoping to grab it and the next Stars! all within the same year... ahh how my heart would have soared... now it looks like the Stars! franchise is dead.

DavidG · #7 October 7th, 2003, 01:15 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by deccan:

quote:
Originally posted by Puke:
... then when they are done with the turn, their computer saves it as a ".PLR" file and you send it to the hosts, whom compiles it all and sends out a ".TRN" file for the next game turn.

Nitpicking but isn't it a .gam file that they send out?

Well if we want to get all technichal it is a .GAM a .TRN and a .CMB file. The TRN file alows you to see what happened during the previous turn