New Game Idea

[Atrocities]

With all of these RPG MUDD games like Eve and SW Galaxies wouldn't it be nice to have one based on Space Empires?

Think about it, EVE is not a real game, yet it has done so very well for itself for what it is. Now Space Empires has a much richer back ground and a whole lot more potential than most "just thought up" games.

Starfury could have become a very additictive on-ling MP game but it was not designed that way. Oh well, perhaps Starfury 2 will be.

Look at what we do over at PBW. Games that go on for a year or more are very common and you have to admit that you do get into the RPG role very easily with games like that. Now image a system where you could have 100's of people running empires on a galaxy map of over 20,000 or more systems. Wow that would be impressive.

[Intimidator]

I would like something like that very much, but how to do it !!??!!?? dunno

[TerranC]

There was that talk of a Space Empires mod in Dungeon Odyssey...

Edit: Ah ha! Found it: http://www.adrift.org.uk/ - it's a site for an Interactive fiction (Ie. books that tell you to flip to page 2 if you chose a and 3 if you chose b) generator and player; the applications (Adventure Generator and Adventure Runner) are free of charge. Maybe you could make a se4 interactive fiction based on a fan fiction (say, O&C or Rise of the Remoraz Society) with this.

[Gandalf Parker]

TerranC said:
There was that talk of a Space Empires mod in Dungeon Odyssey...

Edit: Ah ha! Found it: http://www.adrift.org.uk/ - it's a site for an Interactive fiction (Ie. books that tell you to flip to page 2 if you chose a and 3 if you chose b) generator and player; the applications (Adventure Generator and Adventure Runner) are free of charge. Maybe you could make a se4 interactive fiction based on a fan fiction (say, O&C or Rise of the Remoraz Society) with this.

Ive been big on mentioning the game writeups as possible literrary works. Ive had a number of formulations...

(A) Print-on-demand are sites that you can send a PDF file to with text and pictures. They create a link you can put on your website which will handle orders of the book. If anyone clicks it then the PoD site will take the order (whatever price you set), handle the credit card or paypal stuff, print a copy of your book looking very professional, and ship it.

(B) Or someone could do an Online comic book. Ive seen some great ones and most peoples complaints about doing one is that they are not artists. But with screen capture and minor editing (as seen in some of the threads here) a very enjoyable Version could be done.

(C) Lastly I would LOVE to see a split-screen or flip-flop Version where you can go back and forth between seeing the game commands/responses, and reading it as a story.

Any of these I think would not only be highly enjoyable, possibly even marketable, but I think they would serve to generate interest in the game. Especially the Last one which could serve a dual purpose as a storybook and a tutorial/strategy guide. If there had been one a couple of years ago I think I would have been here sooner.

[Randallw]

When I contacted Kwok about SE:Galaxies I said the same thing. It's a pity you spend a year getting fond of your empire and organising every facet so you reach the top when you have to leave it forever for the inconsequential reason that the game ends. If only you could run your empire for as long as it keeps your interest. The problem though with having a continuous galaxy with hundreds of empires is that once the experts build their superpowers its no fun being one of the little empires. When theres the US, China and Russia, what fun is it being Andora. I guess thats just why our games come to an end.

[Gandalf Parker]

I agree that an Online Version of StarFury would be interesting.

Possibly it could be done as a text-MUD or ansi-color one. Plenty of open source C code to build off of. Im sure it would prove as addictive as any MUD (muds never die, I know I have one on my server that Ive been waiting to die for years). If it proved itself there maybe someone would step it up to a java graphical Version. It wouldnt quite be real-time. It would be slice-time (1 round a second).

[Gandalf Parker]

Randallw said:
When I contacted Kwok about SE:Galaxies I said the same thing. It's a pity you spend a year getting fond of your empire and organising every facet so you reach the top when you have to leave it forever for the inconsequential reason that the game ends. If only you could run your empire for as long as it keeps your interest. The problem though with having a continuous galaxy with hundreds of empires is that once the experts build their superpowers its no fun being one of the little empires. When theres the US, China and Russia, what fun is it being Andora. I guess thats just why our games come to an end.

Hmmm personally Im more a solo player than a multiplayer. It would appeal to me to see a more solo Version done. The "fair and resonable" settings of any great multiplayer game tends to get in the way fo creating a great solo game (SEIV and Dom2 are pretty good exceptions). Many things in both games seem to have been decided in favor of fair/reasonable MP settings (map size, random events, new things appearing such as monsters or races). I havent tried StarFury much yet.

Id be interested in seeing a really large ever-changing universe which might build the new neighbors you meet based on your empires level. Maybe even import an SEIV game. Or better yet be willing to create a new universe based on attaching together multiple SEIV games. 4 games with their maps forming 4 quadrants of a new larger map. MUHAHahahahaha

[brianeyci]

My two cents, for what they're worth.

Gandalf :
A game is not worth playing unless it has a multiplayer aspect. The only point to playing single player is to get better at the game so that you can kick other people's butts in multiplayer. The only exception are open-ended roleplaying games like Fallout and the occassional gem like Dues Ex. Maybe I'm from a different generation, but I play games to master them, and once I get good enough I throw it away and move on. Probably won't happen with Space Empires, given the level of skill and the mods. I'll get bored of it eventually =D

A strategy game can't be massively-multiplayer, without making some sort of hybrid game. The game would turn into more of an RPG game, with your empire being the persona you are trying to improve with "experience points" of some sort. Massively multiplayer with a consistent universe is a lot different than some sort of ranking system. There are balance issues mostly, and the game usually degenerates into WHO CAN PLAY THE GAME MORE.

Did I mention balance issues. There would be endless patches and fixes to balance everything. Exploits would have to be found, and undone.

A game that can't even have a persistent Online real-time server thingy like battle.net is a long way away from a massively multiplayer experience. Stick to what you know Malfador, turn-based strategy and not a persistent universe...

If we are simply talking about a persistent game... well gosh, we have that already. Start a PBW game, make some house rules like "if you take over a percentage of an empire, you have to do a subjugation treaty and let them live", and a few others, and viola, you have a persistent universe. Also slow the game down with something like Proportions, along with the "house rules", and the game could Last years lol.

Maybe in-house rules could be developed that let you purchase better traits/species specific enhancements given the ranking/experience points your empire manages to accumulate in the Last game. Something like that would let your empire carry on in a fashion, with the experience of the Last game to give it a minor boost. I'm surprised there isn't some kind of league like this already, an "experience points" based league where your empire gets more formidable the more games you play/win... heh heh.

Brian