Will planets have clouds?

Discussion in 'Planetary Annihilation General Discussion' started by galaxy366, August 31, 2012.

  1. galaxy366

    galaxy366 Member

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    I noticed this from the concept trailer. There where no fluffy clouds with faces :cry:

    If there are, will there also be some thunder clouds? Like in Spore.
  2. Frostiken

    Frostiken Member

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    So you can't see your units? :)
  3. thapear

    thapear Member

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    Exactly, clouds are only a nuisance. Their only purpose is "Oooh, pretty".

    If you're talking about thunderstorms, these would only add randomness. (Unless triggered by some kind of unit/building, in which case it's fine.)
  4. ooshr32

    ooshr32 Active Member

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    So very translucent clouds would be a nice touch.
  5. galaxy366

    galaxy366 Member

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    Spore fixed this issue already :geek:

    The area that you overlook will have no clouds. The fade in and out. You move to another place on the planet? The clouds fade out, you move away from there then the clouds fade in.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    It doesn't have to be a lot of clouds, just a couple should also work and still look good :). Check image 2 for that.
  6. Frostiken

    Frostiken Member

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    Well, I understand the opposition to 'randomness', but I don't think it should be ruled entirely out. Yes, the Rougepelt asteroids that would annihilate your base were dumb, but with a planet comes the possibility of some extra tactical options. For example, you could have basic weather systems (based on the planet in question). Visible, roving thunderstorms that cross the planet, or a rainy, muddy world that bogs down your legged units but is perfect for hovers. High-intensity storms could ground aircraft. A wind-blasted world could affect long-range projectiles, and a dusty planet could have limited sightlines. Another world could be affected by high-intensity magnetic storms that cause sensor blackouts in the area.

    It wouldn't be 'random' in the sense that you'd know they were there, and it could serve to differentiate planets from each other... *shrug*.
  7. rab777

    rab777 New Member

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    I'm against it. Not inherently. But I think of it as unnecessary icing that could get in the way of the mushroom clouds my missiles will be making.....
  8. wizzything

    wizzything New Member

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    If I remember correctly, there was quite a lot of code in SC and FA aimed for weather simulation, actually, clouds/weather effects in SupCom would have look absolutely fantastic due to the scale and the fact that you can see it all.
  9. coldboot

    coldboot Active Member

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    That Spore picture is actually very pretty. I'm sure they could include clouds and make it work, let's just not make it high priority.
  10. thapear

    thapear Member

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    I must agree those clouds look pretty. If they implement it they must at least make sure they have no gameplay impact, e.g. blocking your view or shooting randomized lightning bolts.
  11. galaxy366

    galaxy366 Member

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    Thats my point :), Planets need clouds, it's something they have and it makes the planets look more beautiful then just a ball with a blue glow.

    Makes the planet seem like airless with just the blue glow.
  12. chrishaldor

    chrishaldor Member

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    It does look nice, but I think it's a bit cartoon-y for the PA look

    And I actually kinda prefer the planets without clouds, I think it gives them a more striking look, but I suppose it's just personal preference =P

    Toggelable option for if one of the devs runs out of things to do one day? ;)
  13. archer6110

    archer6110 Member

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    To cartoony for the PA look? sorry that made me laugh :lol: Clouds are cool, but definately not important enough to put before any of the cooler features... like splody things.
  14. Frostiken

    Frostiken Member

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    I'm perfectly okay with weather effects as long as they don't damage things. Slowing down certain units, affecting long-range artillery, all this is fine because it forces you to play in a different fashion. Damaging units is just lame, especially if it happens over your base which you can't exactly move.
  15. zachb

    zachb Member

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    Hmmmmmm should random weather effect gameplay? Well maybe if it wasn't completely random. If the weather patterns were predictable, clouds flowing on jet streams, forming in the oceans, and crashing into the mountains. If the weather was part of the terrain and moved slow enough to plan around then it could be another game-play element to work off of.

    On an earth like planet they would probably only block line of sight to spy satellites but still let radar through. or passing clouds could make solar collectors produce slightly less energy.

    On a very hot planet you could have metallic gasses that screw with radar.

    Lightning storms in heavy ion atmospheres could damage aircraft.

    And incredibly caustic (like Jupiter levels of harshness) acid rain could damage ground structures and units.

    And even if they are just scenery, having them fade away as you zoom in works well and looks nice. And if you need to know where the clouds are while looking at the ground we could just have shadows to indicate their position.

    OK that's a good point
  16. linecircle

    linecircle Member

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    I like clouds, but I say leave them and similar pretty effects to be done via mods.
  17. nobrains

    nobrains Member

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    PA is hardcore RTS. I would hate to waste dev time, CPU and GPU on something as pointless as clouds.
  18. Frostiken

    Frostiken Member

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    While you may have a point in this case, that worldview you're espousing is extremely narrow and ignorant.

    Maybe we shouldn't have explosive effects, because this is a "hardcore" RTS and it'll just get in the way, and waste "CPU and GPU". Let's not even texture anything, just have red and blue boxes to represent enemies because it'll waste "CPU and GPU" to have detailed units.

    I don't even want to venture as to your implication when you called it a "hardcore RTS"...
  19. icefire909

    icefire909 Member

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    It's a glorious RTS, not a hardcore one (well...anything can get a 'hardcore' following of dedication)

    Though it would be neat seeing clouds blasted away from nuke impacts..

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