CIV 3: TECHNOLOGY--Your Ideas Here! To Be Mailed to Brian June 27rd...

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Author Topic:   CIV 3: TECHNOLOGY--Your Ideas Here! To Be Mailed to Brian June 27rd...

evil_conquerer posted 05-18-99 04:15 PM ET
This is an official yin26 sanctioned thread for graphics suggestions for Civ III. Remember: if you have a suggestion, Firaxis will listen. They earn their bread because of you so they have to listen. So if you have suggestions and don't post them, you have no right to complain about the game when it comes out. But if everybody makes suggestions, Civilization III will be crowned as true successor to Civilization II (instead of CtP, which is a mere pretender to the throne). So let's here your ideas!
evil_conquerer posted 05-18-99 04:26 PM ET
The most important part of the graphics, IMNSHO, is if it slows down the game. The high-resolution images in SMAC were great, but they were unacceptably slow, even on my PII 300 with 64MB of RAM. The low-resolution files, which looked just fine and ran super-fast, were buried on the CD. There should be a choice during installation of if you want high- or low-resolution graphics (if that option is available).
The graphics should not get in the way of gameplay. In games like Command & Conquer, poor gameplay could be overlooked if the game had awesome graphics. But people don't play Civilization III for the graphics. So make the graphics as good as you can without hindering the true reason for TBS games: gameplay.
A 3D format is a must. In modern games, 2D isometric units, such as those in CivII are simply not acceptable. The system in SMAC was great, but it will obviously need updating because it will be old technology by the time CivIII comes out. If a modular system is used for units (choosing the chassis, weapon, etc. to make custom units), the individual parts should be clearly visible. I found it just fine in SMAC, but some people were complaining about not being able to distinguish different weapon types on the main map.
If a proprietary 3D format is used, there should be an alternate format (such as .pcx) for user-made units. In SMAC, you cannot customize the unit graphics, making MOD packs less flexible. For example, I'm currently working on a historical MOD for SMAC, but it will look really wierd with the regular units. A user-editable graphics file would be really useful.
evil_conquerer posted 05-18-99 05:05 PM ET
Aaaahhh!!!! I accidentally wrote technology instead of graphics in the subject. Please disregard this message. A new graphics thread will be posted soon. I'm terribly sorry, Octopus. My brain was asleep while I was typing .
To close this thread, click here (moderator or admin only).


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Author	Topic: CIV 3: TECHNOLOGY--Your Ideas Here! To Be Mailed to Brian June 27rd...
evil_conquerer	posted 05-18-99 04:15 PM ET This is an official yin26 sanctioned thread for graphics suggestions for Civ III. Remember: if you have a suggestion, Firaxis will listen. They earn their bread because of you so they have to listen. So if you have suggestions and don't post them, you have no right to complain about the game when it comes out. But if everybody makes suggestions, Civilization III will be crowned as true successor to Civilization II (instead of CtP, which is a mere pretender to the throne). So let's here your ideas!
evil_conquerer	posted 05-18-99 04:26 PM ET The most important part of the graphics, IMNSHO, is if it slows down the game. The high-resolution images in SMAC were great, but they were unacceptably slow, even on my PII 300 with 64MB of RAM. The low-resolution files, which looked just fine and ran super-fast, were buried on the CD. There should be a choice during installation of if you want high- or low-resolution graphics (if that option is available). The graphics should not get in the way of gameplay. In games like Command & Conquer, poor gameplay could be overlooked if the game had awesome graphics. But people don't play Civilization III for the graphics. So make the graphics as good as you can without hindering the true reason for TBS games: gameplay. A 3D format is a must. In modern games, 2D isometric units, such as those in CivII are simply not acceptable. The system in SMAC was great, but it will obviously need updating because it will be old technology by the time CivIII comes out. If a modular system is used for units (choosing the chassis, weapon, etc. to make custom units), the individual parts should be clearly visible. I found it just fine in SMAC, but some people were complaining about not being able to distinguish different weapon types on the main map. If a proprietary 3D format is used, there should be an alternate format (such as .pcx) for user-made units. In SMAC, you cannot customize the unit graphics, making MOD packs less flexible. For example, I'm currently working on a historical MOD for SMAC, but it will look really wierd with the regular units. A user-editable graphics file would be really useful.
evil_conquerer	posted 05-18-99 05:05 PM ET Aaaahhh!!!! I accidentally wrote technology instead of graphics in the subject. Please disregard this message. A new graphics thread will be posted soon. I'm terribly sorry, Octopus. My brain was asleep while I was typing .