Any One Still Playing This Game?

[Fyron]

The second complaint is easily modded out in the Data\Settings.txt file. Set these lines to TRUE (skip the ship and unit ones, naturally), and sight will be just like it is in SE4:

Can See Star At Any Distance := TRUE
Can See Planet At Any Distance := FALSE
...
Can See Asteroids At Any Distance := FALSE
Can See Storm At Any Distance := FALSE
Can See Warp Point At Any Distance := FALSE

The next 5 reference objects that do not actually exist in the game code, so can be ignored.

=0=

Note that SE5 is about more than just a graphical upgrade; there is a lot of candy for modders too. The game still needs work to be more fun to play, though.

[Xrati]

The game still needs work to be more fun to play, though.

Fyron, I guess that's the point. When you already have a game that's fun to play. Why would you leave it for another that needs work? People expected a lot from SE5 and many were disappointed!
I expected it to surpass SE4 and really kick some arse. Maybe my expectations were too high? But with the level of play that was achieved with SE4, there was no reason not to expect that.

[Fyron]

Given that the core mechanics are identical or refined (outside of combat, which is arguably vastly better than the shoddy initiative-less system of SE4), the exact same level of play exists in SE5. All that is SE4 is in there. Its mostly just the interface that could have been designed better...

[Urendi Maleldil]

True, but you have a hard time getting to the core mechanics because you're bogged down by the user interface. SE4 is much more accessible.

[Artaud]

Urendi Maleldil said:
True, but you have a hard time getting to the core mechanics because you're bogged down by the user interface ...

That, to me, is a game-killer. I just don't want to spend time wading through a difficult interface just because there might be a good game underneath.

[Suicide Junkie]

Initiative mattering is only a problem when weapons outstrip defenses by too much.

And we don't have a fair and accurate real-time alternative yet.

[capnq]

Suicide Junkie said: Initiative mattering is only a problem when weapons outstrip defenses by too much.

I beg to differ. I lost two major fleet engagements in my last SEIV PBW game because of the turn sequencing. Both battles were textbook examples of what's wrong with the way SEIV resolves combat.

[Suicide Junkie]

Which mod was that?

Stock-like Attackefense ratios fit my view of "too much"

[Fyron]

It doesn't matter what your Attackefense ratios are; initiative-less combat is a terrible, terrible thing in any case. You can partially ameliorate the other absurdities with very high defense compared to attack, but it doesn't change the inherent flaws in the type of combat engine SE4 uses. Having all of the objects owned by one side arbitrarily move and act before all of the objects owned by the other side, every turn, is just bad game design.

[capnq]

It was stock v1.95. The larger battle was 21 BCs with Seeking Parasite Vs and Combat Move 6, vs. 18 DNs with Phased-Polaron Beam IVs and Combat Move 4. The BCs could flood the DNs' Point Defense and stay out of range of the PPBs, except when the formations started the battle overlapping, or the BCs got hung up in a corner of the combat map.