Most people want shinny new units or balance changes, but i think something that would make the game way more accessible would be templates. Like the ones from SupComFA, You build a base design, save it and voila u can use it over and over again. I'm Not a game programmer, dunno how hard it would be to implement. But if it's not crazy hard it should be implemented, would make the game incredibly more manageable. What u guys think?
Imo this would take away half the fun of the game especially in a smaller 1v1 scenario. You can download hotbuild 2 and map your entire build order to one key if you want
I think it is not a good idea to make the entire base into a single pattern. But the building template is really needed. For example, we should create a pattern with both T1 and T2 metal extractor. Thus, the fabricators can build the T2 after the T1 is finished. In current situation, player must area build the T1 and area build the T2. But the best build order is T1 -> T2 -> next position. It reduce 50% the traveling time.
In fact, the building template is not a new feature. It is already in SC:FA. Player can build several buildings, and select them and save them as a template for later usage. Once the templates are stored, player can select one of the them and place it on the ground. And the fabricator build the every building in the template in the same order with the same relative location.
I use template in FA a lot. Such as a turret surrounded by walls. Metal extractor surrounded by metal storage. Metal generator surrounded by power generators. Since FA has the adjacency bonus, template is very important. It can increase the metal income or reduce the energy consumption. But I still think the SC:FA is over designed, PA is much better.
it's been asked thousands of times. the problem unfortunately for this one is less want than can. I think it was even @garat that made a video demonstrating that it was necessarily going to be buggy because of the wrapping around a sphere. we basically have to rely on mods if we're going to accept it's buggy functioning
While you're at it just ask @Quitch and @Sorian for Ai tips on how to get small micro decisions made for you and then you could name it something like Artificial Intelligence because YOU are still there to monitor it but the AI does the work.....oh wait
I knew about the adjacency bonuses, and have some really cool mods.. argh now I have to play a game or two this weekend
If the problem is really due to the sphere, I think the simple solution is just to limit the max size of every building template. Or just save the start and end position of the command, such as the a line of walls or other area commands. Then the server translates the command into real building list when the template is used on other sphere planet.
there really is no perfect looking fix. I'm judging given the fact hotbuild can more or less "wall" your pd that you could just do templates this way if you're willing to accept there will be very little lining up and that sometimes part of it just won't place down.
I wouldn't mind if its not perfect positioning. They could limit them to work only for small template sizes officially, and leave it open for modders to make it bigger. So it works to be called a feature, and if u want larger templates it can be done but will be buggier and your responsabiblity.
Yeah or you can remove all automation from the game, build queues, auto repeat, area commands, heck even using batch unit building. Cause in a strategy game all that should define who wins is who can mash buttons faster. Also Why make the learning curve less steep, who needs new players to like the game, who needs their money... Oh wait!
Well in a game centered more on economy and how you use it you are right it doesn't really matter who can mash faster but if you're gonna argue that having a copy paste layout for every game then all it will make you is: A) Predictable - oh he's using the copy build from Pam, snipe this faber and now he is stalling on eco and still trying to build 4 t2 air factories. B) Unable to react to anything - My faber got sniped and now my template is ruined what do I do now?!?! C) More concerned about your base design than the game - ohhhh shiny...oh wait I haven't built any units... D) Generally inert - forge has a different style than pacific and unless you have different map designs that I know your gonna flood PAM with you are still gonna have to learn to *Gasp* play the game. While we are at it your though about the newer players = money, you do realize there are people still here who have put a lot more than just money into this game? @mikeyh @Quitch @Gandaf @killerkiwijuice @Alpha2546 @nosebreaker @proeleert I could name you quiet a few people who if you looked at their hours put into this and gave them minimum wage pay it would be well over a few thousand dollars. Newer players look for a good community to be involved in not just a game to play why do you think LoL got so big. With your suggestions you might as well say "Here is the game, the AI to run it, and the maps that they run on! Since we want you to have the best possible experience with our game we even installed cat purring noises so you can fall asleep faster because nothing says we don't need you like a insta build mod, automatic unit control and reaction, and a small map pool with little to no variance so you can do the same thing 50 times and get bored."
This is a game that is supposed to be played in a large scale on multiple planet yet it seems your logic is focused on 1v1. Your argument is too much automation and the game runs itself. I get that, i just don't agree that templates would have that effect, they didn't in SC:FA. MOstly because too large templates would have the effect that you by yourself already predicted: lack of flexibility. Smaller templates would the best bet. U can already build lines of factories or cover a area with umbrelas, do those things make the game play itself? I'm tired of watching games and the start builds are prety much the SAME every game u can see players planing an entire base in the first 20 seconds of gameplay with their comms, by your standards that feature should be removed as it would be detrimental to gameplay, since the commander is playing the game by itself! A template is nothing more than a queue. Are you against queues? As to your points, copy paste an entire base layout is pretty much impossible, if some want to try, they can, but will be probably dead due to exactly the points you made. This is for when u wanna place 2 lines of vehicle factories with pgens in the middle. Or a turret that is protected by walls, maybe a combination of defenses quickly to help hold a metal field. maybe a small proxy base tops. It's stuff u would do anyways (most high level players have even memorized) but now you can do it faster, well maybe not you a more seasoned player, but us newbs can greatly improve with these additions. About the new players, a game should be easy to pick up and hard to master (cant't think of an game with long term success that doesn't have this formula). And if you read the reviews of PA you would see a common theme, the learning curve is too steep. The result: people just don't stick around to see how fun this game is. You don't have to take my word for it: http://steamcharts.com/app/386070#1m .
I think Uber won't implement the custom building template in near future. They are currently busy for fixing bugs. I hope the custom building template can be implemented as a mod. Even a small scale template is still quite useful, such as a turret with 5 walls. I don't expect the template to be as big as the planet, that is just no sense.
