The Chrono cam allows for creating a "split timeline" so to speak, where after the game the player is able to start a new game from a point in that game. What I am curious about is that a former Warcraft 3 modder, (where you basically create a new game using the RTS as a basis model), will I be able to abuse this feature to maybe give players the ability to rewind time actively during a game? I can see a lot of mod possibilities unfolding if this were possible. EDIT: People don't seem to understand what I mean. As in actively manipulating this during a multiplayer modded game such that all players may have the ability to rewind time for a set amount, for all players, and continue the game from the rewound point, or even having a slowmotion capability for the players in a key moment. I'm not looking at slightly adjusting Planetary Annihilation, I am looking at rewriting a different genre of game.
the most obvious mod I see for Chrono Cam or more specifically, is being able to have a default startup base with a few structures already built. 3 metal extractors 3 solar collectors 1 Bot factory 1 Radar 2 engineers Save that game, and reuse it to start your next game, save you the effort of building it every time on that planet. Now, if you can create your own sea games - hand craft them - you can get 2 - 8 players with a common start up base. For every planet, maybe even somehow on randomly generated planets. Eliminates that tedious bit at the start of the game. Of course, there might be a checkbox in the game that says, give each player a default base. Slim
Also, as a mod / tool, for the save files, something that generates a movie of the battles, to make them look epic. All the data is there, it just needs to render really good bits from the stream of data. Perhaps base building phase, as a split screen showing each player get going, then as skirmishes break out, it creates artistic shots of the battle. I imagine what the player will see to be a lot less interesting, strategic zoom, for all the good it does for a player, makes the battles less exciting - to other observers. Players sometimes have other priorities, you might for example send a bunch of bots to distract the other player, and start doing a bit of factory micro, to optimize production, while ignoring the bots completely. But, a video going on YouTube should have all the excitement from down and close to the battles, with all the sound and explosions. I used to do a lot of video editing in past jobs, this sort of aspect appeals to me Slim
Even more interesting would be a mod that lets you work with, not just the current timeline, but the timeline tree that results from you going back in time and restarting from a fork.
I think the idea is cool. If you give everyone like a 5 minute "time account" and the ability to rewind for a minute at a time or so, that might make for interesting strategic decisions. The metagame would include the goal of launching surprise attacks or sneaky moves nasty enough to cause another player to rewind time, only to pull something entirely different on them you prepared as well so they will have wasted their rewind (only for you to use BOTH moves on them at once when they rewind a second time). Or using your own rewind time to coordinate massive attacks (rewind back to just where you launched your first army on planet 1, and launch a simultaneous attack on another world). You can also use the rewind to launch an offensive that arrived a bit too late earlier, etc. I see many opportunities there to force your opponents into an interesting meta game. Maybe even make extra rewind time a harvestable resource or a reward for combat. That said, I also think rewinds might get very aggravating if players can use them at will or can rewind just a few seconds at a time many times over.
If you're interested in this kind of stuff, have you checked out Achron? You'll get loads of inspiration from that one, I'm pretty sure.
