A Review of Titans

Discussion in 'PA: TITANS: General Discussion' started by lokiCML, June 1, 2016.

  1. lokiCML

    lokiCML Post Master General

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    edit: new stuff like gameplay, Legion, etc. and general corrections.

    supposed to be posted on steam but: You need to have used this product for at least 5 minutes before posting a review for it (0 minutes on record).:p

    For full disclosure I may KS Backer and I use the Uber Launcher not Steam. So the hours I've played are not visible.

    The game is highly moddable but lacks audio modding capabilities for undisclosed reasons barring this it is very moddable. There is an mod called Legion and it adds complete new faction to the game. Thank you to all the hard working mod developers. The newest patch has a built in mod manager. Active modding community and I find them helpful. So if you like modding feel free to jump in.

    Gameplay it plays like a faster paced version of Total Annihilation. It doesn't allow you to turtle which removes some of the depth in the game. Unlike Total Annihilation you can't use small amount of units it is either large or nothing. And some aspects of Supreme Commander mainly experimental. It has a unique orbital gameplay mainly delegated to the defense layer. The maps around causing you to defend all sides of your base and allowing for greater attack surface.

    PA:C and PA:T our cheat/hack resistant for example map hacks is simply impossible due to client server architecture of the game. The server never give the information required to do hack to the client. That is one example of how cheats or hacks are prevented.

    With every Titans includes PA classic; you can play Titans and Classic games in the lobby and even play on classic ladder. you can do this by switching the game product in settings to Classic or Titans. Titan games are labeled in the multiplayer lobby. Or you can play skirmish gives the AI and Galactic war.

    Titans includes new experimental units called Titans. They are massive and cost a lot of metal to build. There considered Game Ender units. Wreckage is now in PA making it more like Total Annihilation allowing for defensive use of wreckage. There is a new game mode called bounty where the last person to destroy the enemy commander gets a income bonus to their economy. It was designed for Free For All to stop turtling and hiding from people. there are new units and structures as well as improvements across the board.

    Personally dislike the fact that it is a standalone expansion not a regular one and everybody wasn't required to buy it. But I respect Uber for this decision on it and I can see where they're coming from. this expansion definitely needed a new separate faction but never got to see one which makes me sad. it lacks a fully scripted campaign mode which is a pity if you like that kind of stuff like I do. The complete lack of 4K support is a shame but there is a workaround and it's playable but not future proof. Commanders are boring and would add an element of depth if they had special abilities.

    Pros
    • Cheat and hack resistant
    • Highly moddable
    • In-game mod manager
    • PA classic included
    • Titans (experimental)
    • Unit wreckage
    • A new game mode
    • New units
    • More improvements

    Cons

    Overview of the Community Update build# 94684

    1. In-game mod manager
    2. Custom Server support
    3. Server improvements
    4. New modding capabilities
    5. Numerous UI enhancements
    6. Tons of bug fixes

    Special thanks to all who worked on this build especially pinbender, mikeyh, wondible. For full patch notes go here:
    http://steamcommunity.com/app/386070/discussions/0/357287304440976398/
    Last edited: June 2, 2016
    radongog likes this.
  2. radongog

    radongog Well-Known Member

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    The complete lack of 4K support is a shame but there is a workaround and it's playable but not future proof.
    Correct, espacially regarding future-proof: RealTimeRenderedGames should always be made with at least the easyly predicatable future hardware in mind. And nothing in that category is as is easy to predict then rising display resolutions...
  3. Ksgrip

    Ksgrip Active Member

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    To be fair is pretty normal that 4k is not supported as it was and still is a pretty new and expensive technology.
    Nicb1 and Heizmeister like this.
  4. n00n

    n00n Active Member

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    Why? It's the best option for everyone involved.
  5. g0hstreaper

    g0hstreaper Well-Known Member

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    • >All the tryhards would then only use one commander and everyone would loose their spaghetti over com balance instead OF THE FACT YOU CAN SMASH F***IN PLANETS

    • Writes a review but doesn't even know about Legion

    • Sorry us poor people can't afford 4K monitors.



    I know there is a work around thread somewhere honestly. While your first and fourth Con are actually good criticism the rest seem kinda trivial.
  6. Clopse

    Clopse Post Master General

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    He is reviewing the game, sure he could have mentioned about Legion when he mentioned modding and the factions but doesn't have to as he is reviewing vanilla pa. I'm not saying it's a good review but saying he isn't wrong in what he said.
    lokiCML and stuart98 like this.
  7. perfectdark

    perfectdark Active Member

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    Poor review. Doesn't even mention gameplay LOL.
  8. g0hstreaper

    g0hstreaper Well-Known Member

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    I'm reviewing a review, in the review it is never specified that he was focusing solely on vanilla, also he mentions he is a ks backer and at least implies has many hours in PA.
    Which implies at least being part of the community so unless you only check the forums rarely only then could Legion be seen as "brand new info" but since it's be in PTE for at least a month now and it being patched into stable it should be considered vanilla.

    But you are right it's a generally good review I just think certain bits are inaccurate.
  9. lokiCML

    lokiCML Post Master General

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    I strongly disagree a mod is never a part of vanilla because Uber would have to support the mod. I'm only reviewing the base game.;)

    Edit: A mod should always be thought of as third-party content not vanilla.:)
    Last edited: June 2, 2016
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  10. lokiCML

    lokiCML Post Master General

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    because I preferred the classic expansion new faction, etc. costing around 25 bucks.
    Last edited: June 3, 2016
  11. lokiCML

    lokiCML Post Master General

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    Because of this choice is removed from the game. I truly believe it could have been implemented in a balanced way. For example if a commander is overpowered it could be nerf or agreed to use competitions. But ultimately I believe it would've been balanced as stated by Neutrino.
    https://forums.uberent.com/threads/commanders-and-what-we-know-so-far.43415/#post-664006

    I know about Legion but my review is not about it. Yes it could be mentioned but I didn't until now.
    I don't have a 4K monitor but in the future I could and here is the article:
    https://wiki.palobby.com/wiki/Crashing_while_playing_full_screen_on_4K_monitor
    and people who have problems with 4K come up we too often.
    http://steamcommunity.com/app/386070/discussions/1/357286663695739995/
    Depends on who's reading the review a lot people like story driven campaigns for example.
  12. lokiCML

    lokiCML Post Master General

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    I meant to talk about gameplay but forgot. durp. updated OP.;)
  13. radongog

    radongog Well-Known Member

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    Well, you might call it pretty normal, but it´s a shame for every game. Why? Because it shows off that the game isn´t compatible with every resolution you could feed it with---which should simply be the standard for every application one designs.
  14. Gorbles

    Gorbles Post Master General

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    I would hazard a guess at saying it's not as simple as just being able to handle the maths of the resolution.
  15. lokiCML

    lokiCML Post Master General

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    it seems like the engine only supports up to 2048x2048 textures for some reason.;) Only Uber can do something about.:(

    edit: SDL2 supports up to 4096x4096 it seems.
    edit2: SDL2 seems to have a problem with high DPI screens.
    Last edited: June 8, 2016
  16. radongog

    radongog Well-Known Member

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    Well, there´s not a lot in proramming that is as simple as it sounds, but having (nearly) unlimited render- and output-resolutions clearly is. This is nothing like ShadowRes, TextureRes, AO-Samples or so. It´s not like it doesn´t require cleverness to make it possible to choose a render res that isn´t equal to the output res---but that´s something Uber already achieved. They now only need unlimited output res... (well, it will get limited by OS or graphics adapter or whatever, but from their side!)
  17. Gorbles

    Gorbles Post Master General

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    Again, there is most likely both probably more than that given the specifity of PA's rendering engine, as well as any hardcoded legacy systems that don't scale up to that level. Games engine design isn't some kind of perfect thing whereby everything works in practise as it does in theory. Sometimes concessions are made, and these concessions end up with trade-offs later down the line.

    Certainly, if it was easy as some of you are making out? It would've been done already :p

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