Disable MOVE RADIUS in Prefences

[RightDeve]

I wasn't quite sure whether to post this or not, but then I decided my brain is not a hard drive and I could forget this anytime so it's better to write it down and maybe invite you guys to pour your opinion.

There are some benefits in disabling the MOVE RADIUS option in Preferences screen:

-The battlespace, or map, becomes more colorful and beatiful. There's no more of this dark shades and gloomy feeling. The map finally retains its full vibrant and original colors.

-Gameplay becomes more realistic because no one in real life ever bothered messing with physics formulas to know exactly where he's going to land in every direction in the next 3 or 5 minutes, and every 3 or 5 minutes, and taking into account the myriads of variables that may come into the calculation like rubbles, grass, congestion, slopes, fatigue, etc etc. The truth is, you are going in the direction that you are going.

-There's no more of this "itchy" feeling when you see those bright hexes as un-spent movement points, since there's no more bright hexes, because all hexes are now bright! Previously I would move my soldiers unnecessarily just to scratch the itch, and oftentimes resulted in their being exposed to enemy fire. With plain bright hexes, I know that I should place my soldiers where I NEED them to be placed, not where I WANT them to be placed.

-Especially in hot battlefield, you will become more aware to pick your soldiers route with care, hex by hex. You now decide the route, not the MOVE RADIUS's bright hexes.

My brain is tired so forgive me if I said something wrong.

Cheers

[Mobhack]

Does anyone with half an ounce of experience bother with the move radius thing, bar perhaps a few newbies?

It is something I turned off 2 or 3 days after I bought SP1 and have never used since. I have a basic idea of how far things can travel, and I like seeing the map properly - not with an irritating shadow overlay.

It probably does need to be on by default though as newbies are not used to the various options.

Andy

[jivemi]

Well, um, my bad . Don't know how many hundreds (thousands?) of hours I've spent playing Steel Panthers but am still using "the move radius thing." Same deal with the hex grid and full screen. Guess some people are simply lacking in imagination .

[DRG]

I use it routinely as well and hex grid. I don't really even see the shadow overlay any longer. That's normal for me and has been since I first sat down to play

"Preferences" are there for a reason. If you don't like something don't use it

Don

[RightDeve]

Ha! The truth is, I only recently discovered this "feature" yesterday night and am still experimenting with it, so yes, I am part of those bunch who played SP by the thousands of hours but not giving this button much thought until recently. But lo and behold, disabling it gives me the feeling of applying an SP patch without actually downloading a patch, something that bumps up the excitement when playing the game.

It's nice to see both sides of the fence.

[RightDeve]

The title of the thread is wrong for two reasons, first, the letter E & R is nowhere to be found and listed as AWOL from the word Preferences. Secondly, the word Disable is in now way an imperative or command: should've said "Disabling" instead, to suggest an information thread.

[PvtJoker]

I use move radius and hex grid as well. I have also tried playing without them, but move radius remains useful especially for wheeled vehicles, which can have very different move radius depending on whether they're move class Wheeled or AT-wheeled. The hex grid I keep visible because without it I get annoyed about the fact that you can't actually go anywhere you like. You don't play chess on a blank board, do you?

As for the vibrancy with move radius off: sure it looks a little better, but the fact is that the graphics of this game are pretty badly outdated. It usually does not bother me too much and I certainly do not miss any fancy 3D rendered unit icons or anything like that, but having a full 32-bit (16 million color) palette would be nice. I do NOT intend this as a feature request, rather than just a note about the graphics.

[RightDeve]

Originally Posted by PvtJoker

. . .
You don't play chess on a blank board, do you?

. . .

Well put! Except the different shades of colors and textures in the map makes it nowhere near a blank board, and, SP is not a chess game
No, seriously and putting the joke aside, the hex border is indispensable for many occasions when I need to move the soldiers carefully, esp on a hot battlefield. Sometimes I need it turned on to gauge accurate distance, or just for the fun of accurately placing the pieces.

Cheers

[Imp]

I find it handy as a rough guide for vehicles & you get the shadow overlay anyway for LOS. Do like the addition of the hot key to turn the hex grid on a& off though. My opinion this really changes the game making it look like table top miniatures. Persevere with it for a while & you become pretty good at judging ranges just like you gain the ability to know the time pretty well if you stop wearing a watch.
However the hex grid is invaluable in close quarters like woods otherwise I tend to make movement gaffs if I have dense groups.

[Mobhack]

The hex grid is always on in my case too, for the reasons stated above. Move radius off though.

Different strokes for different folks as the saying goes - that's why there is a preferences screen.

Cheers
Andy