posted 07-17-99 09:52 PM ET        

ttrain hello all
s|mon Hey Tim
ttrain Good to see you all here on a Friday
SG_kshah ** we'll be starting the chat in 2 minutes **
SG_kshah how's the weather in Maryland?
ttrain Kinda muggy, as it will be this time of year.
SG_kshah the chat will be in two segments everyone, first the SG questions second an unmoderated Q & A period
SG_kshah okay... let's start -- Tim if you will please end your answers with done so we can easily proceed
SG_kshah Hello and welcome to the SidGames.Com chat with Tim Train of Firaxis. This evening's topic will be about the recent developments at Firaxis including
SG_kshah Sid Meier's Antietam and the expansion disk for Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri
SG_kshah are you ready to being Tim?
ttrain Ready!
SG_kshah ohh yes, everyone please send questions to our moderators and SG_Will they will sort through and ask them..
SG_kshah we'll be starting with SMACX Factions...
SG_kshah a hot topic on the forums :-) :
SG_kshah 1) Will Imran Siddiqui be the name of a faction leader?
ttrain Sadly, no,
ttrain although I have to say I do think it's a cool name...
SG_kshah hehehe
ttrain done
SG_kshah have you considered any other faction leaders to be named after people from the forums?
ttrain Actually, we didn't do too much of that...we'd like to leave that to the fans
ttrain done
SG_kshah 2) Have you considered building in a faction editor into SMACX?
SG_kshah [that was from Imran from our question posters]
ttrain Let me start by saying that ANYTHING I say about SMACX is not 'final' yet..
ttrain i.e., we plan to do quite a few things, but not all of them may make it in.
SG_kshah of course, everyone should know that nothing is final and is subject to change -- so don't get dissapointed :-)
ttrain But we do plan to do a faction editor for SMACX.
ttrain done
samr So I can't call you up after it comes out and yell and scream because it wasn't in there even though you hinted at it today?
samr
SG_kshah :-) next Q.
SG_kshah 3) Will it be possible to play with more than a bit of factions? perhaps 12, 16, or 32?
ttrain Unfortunately, the number of factions is hard-wired really deep in the code
ttrain We can't change that for this game...
ttrain but we'll certainly consider it for SMAC II, if ever there will be such a beast
ttrain done
SG_kshah is it being considered for Civ 3?
ttrain We haven
ttrain 't
ttrain whoops
ttrain We haven't gotten that far in Civ III just yet...
ttrain it's still in heavy prototype phase
ttrain done
SG_kshah 4) Are their going to be new ideology or government types for SMACX and are their factions based on real ideologies [Marxism perhaps]?
ttrain We're not going to mess around too much with the government system
ttrain That took a lot to balance, and again would be more like SMAC II
ttrain done
SG_kshah 5) Can you give any of the new factions names to us?
ttrain Well...
SG_kshah :-)
ttrain Oh, awright
ttrain The first faction to be announced will be a Cybernetic Faction
ttrain who
ttrain who's members are 'possessed by an algorithm'.
ttrain More on that when the new site goes live sometime later this month
ttrain done
SG_kshah Will the new site be at alphacentauri.com or another new domain?
ttrain alphacentauri.com
ttrain done
SG_kshah 6) Will there be new quotes with the new faction leaders reciting them
ttrain Yep--all new multimedia for the faction leader quotes for new techs, SPs, etc.
ttrain done
SG_kshah 7) How will the new factions impact on the old ones?
ttrain In what way?
SG_kshah can we "mix and match" factions?
ttrain Yep.
ttrain You can mix and match old,
ttrain play a random faction,
ttrain or completely randomize everything so you're not sure who you are playing
ttrain or who you're playing against.
SG_kshah so, by mixing and maxing we might ruin a bit of the game balancing -- have you put in steps to prevent this? perhaps lowering some factions abilities due to the
SG_kshah news ones?
ttrain Adds another level of 'discover' into the game ;-)
ttrain done
ttrain We are balancing all the new ones against the old ones so there shouldn't be a balance problem.
ttrain As always, we put a lot of stock in playbalancing.
ttrain done
SG_kshah moving along to our next set of SMACX questions - GamePlay
SG_kshah 1) What will be the differences in Gameplay that SMACX will add to SMAC?
SG_kshah [generally]
ttrain We're adding a ton of new stuff--all new techs, weapons, SPs, features, and of course the 7 new factions
ttrain done
SG_kshah 2) Will there be any diplomacy features for SMACX?
*** samr changes topic to 'To ask questions... send to sg_kshah'
ttrain Dealing with the aliens will be interesting that way...
ttrain We're planning to make it that you can atrocity the aliens without any penalty
ttrain Adding a knock-down, drag out fight feel to your interactions.
ttrain We may also add a few new council proposals, many culled from the boards and forums
ttrain done
SG_kshah the aliens -- can you tell us more about them?
ttrain Oh, right...
SG_kshah are they the "monolith aliens"? :-)
ttrain more things I'm probably supposed to wait to tell you...
ttrain Well...let's just say that they are old friends of Planet
ttrain done
SG_kshah excellent. So SMACX will be a "continuing of the storyline" ?
ttrain Yep
ttrain We really like the world of Planet, and the backstory,
SG_kshah can we expect new stories on the website?
ttrain so a major part of the effort will be to expand that story.
ttrain done
ttrain Yep. Mike Ely has agreed to lend his skills once again to the ongoing saga...,
ttrain For several more installments at least.
ttrain done
SG_kshah Is it possible that the story will be wrapped up and bundled into SMACX?
ttrain That's a long story...
ttrain maybe, pending some other issues I also can't talk about done
ttrain Sorry I'm being so evasive!
SG_kshah it's okay :-) we understand
SG_kshah 3) Will there be new [pre-made] units that will add to SMAC's Gameplay?
ttrain Let's just say we're planning on adding some to the alien ecology...
ttrain done
SG_kshah ** ButterBoy just asked me - is Firaxis planning any purely water based factions?
ttrain How'd ya guess?
SG_kshah :-)
ttrain Yes, plus expanding the options for other factions in the water as well...
ttrain to make the water bases a bit more viable.
ttrain done
SG_kshah could you give us a hint as to the idealogy of the water based faction[s]?
ttrain Well, let's just say they are kind of piratical in nature.
ttrain :-)
SG_kshah hehehe, I like it..
ttrain So they'll be able to take over ships, etc.
SG_kshah 4) Will space be more influential in SMACX?
ttrain We plan to add some to the space game, although extensive changes would again come in SMAC II, if any.
ttrain done
SG_kshah 5) What new terrain improvements and terrain areas will there be in SMACX?
ttrain We'll be putting in some new landmarks, as well as a new fungal feature, among other things done
SG_kshah 6) Will new forms of warfare, if any will be able to be used (ie Guerrilla, propaganda)?
ttrain No entirely new systems, as they are beyond the scope of this expansion.
ttrain But again, possibly for SMAC II done
SG_kshah 7) Will Planet play new roles in SMACX?
ttrain In various ways, Planet
ttrain 's hand will be felt throughout the new expansion
ttrain done
SG_kshah we're going to proceed to AI Enhancements now...
SG_kshah 1) What are, if any the improvements of the AI in warfare?
ttrain Our programmer for the expansion, Chris Pine,
ttrain is an avid AI guy,
ttrain so we're looking at a number of ways to improve the AI.
ttrain But I don't have any more details, as we're working on adding features right now.
ttrain The AI will be the next phase of the project done
SG_kshah possible grouped computer unit attacks?
ttrain They already do that to a large degree, but that could be one area for improvementdone
SG_kshah 2) Are there any enhancements in AI diplomatic responses?
ttrain We're thinking of adding more custom diplomatic responses
ttrain for each faction, which will be kinda fun.
ttrain Coming up with all that text is one of the most fun but most challenging parts
ttrain of the design done
SG_kshah I just got a plethora of user made questions which I'll be doing now
ttrain Go ahead! I'll last as long as my hands can...
ttrain done
SG_kshah from KFoshaug - will the multiplayer part of SMAC-X improve over SMAC?
ttrain We're planning on making alphaHQ.net work more seamlessly with the game
ttrain and of course you'll have all the new options to play with in the game done
SG_kshah I was going to ask more about alphaHQ.net later, it seems almost dead, is their a chance of "reviving" it?
ttrain We're working on it. One question I have for all y'all is whether we should put lots of
ttrain effort into it--do you play much multiplayer SMAC?
ttrain done
SG_kshah send responses to SG_kshah please
SG_kshah I'll tally :-)
SG_kshah personally I don't play it as much, since many of the people I play against hide the fact they are using AOL, when I find out I just leave the game
ttrain Any one else?
SG_kshah but I have found a small group of people I know, and we play once/week
SG_kshah okay -- the results so far 5 say yes, often one said "never played multiplayer" pretty good results :-)
ttrain Cool!
SG_kshah 6 | 1 make that....
ttrain One last question, then I gotta go
ttrain Any other questions that I can answer,
SG_kshah email?
ttrain have KShah e-mail them to me and I'll do what I can
SG_kshah okay I will, sorry to have to cut it short folks..
SG_kshah here's the last Q
SG_kshah 3) Will the AI improve terrain squares more intelligently in SMACX? Will it prioritize cities and squares?
SG_kshah ** I'll send post the final transcript on SidGames with the full Q and A's
ttrain Oh, gimme another... ;-) that one falls under the same answer as the above
ttrain AI has yet to be dealt with done
SG_kshah here's another one :-)
SG_kshah 5) Will the mystery of the who left the Monoliths, which were shown to be religious in the Universal Translator movie, be answered?
ttrain Yes!
SG_kshah !
ttrain Thanks all for your participation, and I'll see you later. Enjoy SMACX!
SG_kshah :-) okay, Tim I'll send the rest of the questions out to you over email
ttrain done
samr Thanks Tim!
s|mon Thanks Tim, we appreciate it
*** ttrain has quit IRC (Leaving)
ButterBoy The only problem we will have in my group is who gets to play the water faction... we have all been wanting one.
s|mon i would only play the water if i played on a high water level map

Part 2
6) Will the AI realize the value of certain cities [ones with Special Projects in them, trade cities, war cities] ?
We worked on this for patch 4, so hopefully you'll see an improvement.

7) Will more of a balance be struck between conquering nations and building nations (ie. Yang won't always win, and Morgan will have a chance)
We've beefed up the options for building nations, so hopefully the balance will improve there.

2) What new chassis/reactors/weapons will be available in SMACX?
I don't want to give away too many cats from the bag just yet...sorry!

1) Will their be any new techs in SMACX?
There will be several new techs, some alien in origin, some with special new facilities, weapons, and Secret Projects attached.

3) Will some old techs get new quotes from the new faction leaders that are being added?
The new techs, facilities, and SPs will have new quotes, but we're not going back and changing the originals. We might inadvertantly delete someone's favorite blurb!

1) Has Firaxis confirmed a price for SMACX? Can you give us a general pricing range if not?
Price is set by our publisher, Electronic Arts. We don't have a general pricing range, but I imagine it will be in the same range as other expansion disks.

2) How far is the team into the development of SMACX?
We're knee deep in the project. Much of the work of adding new faction powers, art, and other features is nearing completion. Soon we'll start the AI tweaking and playbalancing that's critical to the quality of the product.

posted 07-18-99 05:52 AM ET            

Sounds like they're broadly on the right track, although something in the combat graphics/sounds arena would be very much appreciated indeed. Unfortunately, though, it seems that SMACII would be a more likely place to find such a feature.