Planetary Annihilation Inc - The Future of PA and Titans

Tanks are op

Really good news! Can't wait to know what's next.

By the way, I'm a software engineer and know a little about PA's code, so if you need any extra help I'll be more than willing to help

I think this is a very valid point. PA is better played in teams imo- what I would like to see over anything else is some form of team matchmaking (doesn't have to be a ladder). We already have player tracking / stats working in the background- use that information so that you can form balanced teams in team lobbies.

At the moment when you play custom games, they are usually hosted by small groups of experienced friends who then proceed to play game after game crushing the random mix of opponents they get who usually don't know each other and are of wildly varying skill. A team balance feature works well in spring, despite having a very small player base- and whilst the balance is seldom perfect (new players on the system will always be an unknown for example) it really does give much closer games. I really think this would help PA because on the occasions where I have managed to get into a balanced team match the game really shines.

@wpmarshall I get where you are coming from with respect to stand out features- I agree some headline development targets would be a good move to help promote the game, I think there's room for work on both though.

@icycalm +1 for a public road map, ideally with updates as the project develops (changes to the road map can also help to generate buzz when new things get added).

also just linking my brainstorming thread

https://forums.uberent.com/threads/some-brainstorming-ideas-for-possible-future-pa.72988/

but MOST IMPORTANTLY!!!!! the bolo needs to come back !!!!

After playing a ton of Zero K lately, I'd have to say there's some UI/UX improvements that could really be nice to see in PA.

But also, I wonder if Sorian can make use of his VR knowledge with PA finally. VR is crying out for a better RTS, and whilst Brass Tactics is very lovely and polished and has been designed for VR very nicely, it fails to really do things with the medium that only VR with touch controls can achieve. PA however I feel has always struggled to fully reach its potential with a mouse and keyboard, given the full planet / multi-planet nature of the game. I can't help feel this is a problem VR could solve, but on the other hand, post-release VR patches tend to be quite horrible and it's easy to get it wrong as well. Airmech Command is an example that tried to adapt to VR but really just made things worse.

sorian is no longer with uber for years and i doubt he´ll come back

as for VR ... considering the challenge of awarness of multiple planets already this sounds even more of a nightmare to handle imo ...

Look up

HUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUHHHHHHHH ????!!!??!!?!

My lord, is that legal?

IT IS BUT AN OBLIGATION TO THE OMNIVERSE!!!!!!





sry for capslocking so much ...

if i were good enough i would challange you for it!!! also my game still tends to crash :/

Let's just assume your explosion happens, and it's even significant.

What happens then? Are all these players actually committed enough to stick with the game after not few of them are going to stumble over the incompatible software list, or likely have one of their first largr scale games stopped early by a crash or slowdown?

In 2014-2015 PA had an order of magnitude more players than now -- even extremely active on a daily basis competitive players -- despite an order of magnitude more crashes and bugs ("lobby simulator"), and much inferior performance. I understand that programmers are obsessed with that stuff, but actual players are not, I am sorry. They want cool **** like big wars and official teams with logos to join and support, and the programmers' obsession with numbers and total lack of grasp of how to promote the game has been running the game into the ground for years now.

It's time for a change, or no amount of improvements to the game will reverse the decline.

cdrkf, I started writing a reply to you, but I ended up writing an essay and posting in on my site instead. Take a look if you are interested.

Why Team Matchmaking is the Opposite of Team-making
http://cosmicwar.net/pages/features/why-team-matchmaking-is-the-opposite-of-team-making

Interesting read- I see your point and for the record, I have no issue with promoting clan and practiced teams. It's just a lot of games are played with random groups so to my mind wouldn't be a bad option to have... call it a 'practice mode' if you will. It would have to be optional- and doesn't need to split clan players up (the system in spring in it's standard mode defaults to keeping players with matching clan tags together).

I mean if your goal is to allow players to be inherently more organised in team games- maybe there is an argument for integrating a voice chat capability into the game?

Of course voice chat would be great. Surely there has to be some third-party solution the devs could buy and just plug in?

voice chat could be a thing of modding. but. the current modding support only have limited audio support, as i heard. That could be a core achivement. better audio modding.

Well, but first i would like to have flat maps, new units, and, and, and....

I want it all, I want it now

Great news! Looking forward to what is coming!

If you guys need any help with anything other than coding or anything to do with computer science I would be thrilled to help so just let me know (new player inclusion, balance, ideas, ect.)

you know how I like my planets