POLL : 3D or 2D

[TerranC]

3D movements and a better scaling of things wouldn't hurt, but it really doesn't matter.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

i want 3d. homeworld left me with a desire to commant a single ship in large 3d battles. but i still like the game.

[milo]

Originally posted by narf poit chez BOOM:
i want 3d. homeworld left me with a desire to commant a single ship in large 3d battles.

There are other games that can provide you with that experience. Starfury seems to be more about role-playing and adventuring and improving your ship stats. The "Diablo-in-space" analogy is an apt one.

[PvK]

Hmm. I don't completely agree with any of the statements in the poll here, because they all say (at least partially) something I would not agree with.

I think the fact that it is 2D is just fine. I can do without 3D, especially since the interface would be tricky to do well, and the current interface is tricky enough.

What I would much rather see would be far more realistic proportions of time and size. The enormous ships, miniscule planets, the warped time scale, and their effects on gameplay, time passage, collisions, combat, the resulting starfighter arcade feel, etc., are my biggest turn-offs.

PvK

[Mehrunes]

Originally posted by PvK:
What I would much rather see would be far more realistic proportions of time and size. The enormous ships, miniscule planets, the warped time scale, and their effects on gameplay, time passage, collisions, combat, the resulting starfighter arcade feel, etc., are my biggest turn-offs.

PvK

I've doubled the size of the map and the scale of space objects (besides ships) successfully, but increasing it any more caused slowdowns.

[Krsqk]

Originally posted by PvK:
What I would much rather see would be far more realistic proportions of time and size. The enormous ships, miniscule planets, the warped time scale, and their effects on gameplay, time passage, collisions, combat, the resulting starfighter arcade feel, etc., are my biggest turn-offs.

My assumption is that all these design decisions were done to make navigation easier. I agree, I would like to see more realistic sizes/distances/travel times (and correspondingly, more increments for speed--up to 16x or 32x). Are they game-breakers for me? No--I can suspend disbelief enough to handle a starbase larger than many planets.

Is any of this moddable? Because, while I think Aaron would do well to change these (and other) things, the modding community will respond much more quickly. In some ways, this seems almost like a game engine, with a basic outline of what's possible included in the campaigns. I've no doubt that mods will quickly fill the void; and quite possibly, Aaron will work out a more extensive campaign in a future patch. In spite of the shortcomings, though, this is a game I definitely will buy when the $$$ becomes available. Why? Because I believe the gaming experience I will have with this product will far exceed that from any other product out there. The #1 reason--MM's commitment to patching/supporting its products. The #2 reason--the community, especially the great modding gods (and goddesses?) which deign to visit us mortals here at the Shrapnel Boards, bringing their boons to the undeserving.

So, to get back on topic, 2D is fine. 3D would be more than icing; I'd rather see the "realism"/believability changes outlined above and mentioned elsewhere before a true 3D navigable environment.

[PvK]

Yeah, I think the comment about comparing SF to SEI or II is a good one. SEIV Gold is so good because it's got many many years of player suggestions incorporated into it. Malfador has really responded to suggestions for years, and that's what made SEIV Gold so satisfying. So I expect that if SF gets plenty of enthusiastic fans making suggestions, it'll become more and more appealing to more and more players. I think it will take more than just modding the original release to completely address some things I mentioned, but I'm sure we'll see many nice improvements in patches, as well as some great mods and new adventures.

PvK