Feedback: Freeform Formations Tool

Okay, we now got this freeform formations tool, which is great... that we have it at all that is.


In another thread I already explained what in my opinion is currently wrong with it. I will therefore just quote myself.

So, yes this tool is lots of potential. The control power it grants you atm is only a shadow of what is potentially possible with it, if it was developed further.



With this thread i just want to make sure the devs get the feedback necessary to refine it.


Here is a little illustration of what I am talking about. The green line represents the line you draw with the cursor:





I tried to get roughly the same number of tanks in both formations... just image it was the same number.

Okay, made some screesnhots and one more explaining picture. Apparently people are not convinced...

I agree with these proposed changes!

Yea I have to admit (although I know it is the first pass so I'm not worried) line drawing does not feel very intuitive. I agree with these changes for sure as well!

I really liked the simplicity of zero k's line commands but since we are dealing with such large quantities of units in PA I think Uber is off to a good start.

Has my vote as well.

Yes. Now my **** shaped armies will truly be **** shaped.

The free form formation tool is very experimental right now (the reason for it being switched off by default). My plan is to have a similar style to what you are proposing here as well as the ability to have custom formations hold between move commands. We started by looking at how zero k does line commands and quickly determined that that wouldn't work for the number of units we planned to have in formation at a time, the cutout box formation was the initial experiment to see if these custom formations with huge armies on lumpy spheroids were even possible, which we see now that they are. I'm glad you appreciate the feature, and can say that it will get better with time.

One thing that I would like to note is how line commands tend to be used in Zero-K. It's very common to use them to spread out units to form a picket line (such that any incoming enemy units get spotted before they cause mischief), to partially encircle a front before sending units in, or even to simply form a large concave to helm maximise firepower.

All this depends upon your units spreading along the entire length of the line, not just along a small segment in the middle. I would would be interested in seeing line commands where the units spaced themselves out equidistantly along the line, before starting to stack themselves up depth-wise.

This is also a part of the plan, if you have fewer units than the length of the line would allow, they will space out equidistantly across the line. if you have just enough to fill the line, they will fill the line, if you have more units than the line allows, they will space backwards as if the line was smudged backwards. These parts may come piecemeal over time and may change as better implementations, or negative performance implications are found though.

Thanks for the info! Sounds great.

So... what is with this thing now? Apparently it's gone... Will it ever come back? Would be a big downer if not.

Wait...what free form tool? Oh...necro. Thanks for confusing me

lol... I thought the same.

Hope this feature is worked on and switched back on! formations are important!

I am very sorry not having created a second thread about the same feature, just to ask where said feature is gone, and on top of that also explaining what the now no longer existent feature was, to a person that is very much irrelevant as a target of the question, as he posses no knowledge about the subject of that very question in the first place.

It used to be in the game, apparently not enough people used it ^^;

well, it didnt even work correctly then...

Apology accepted.

Sadly this feature has currently fallen off the back of the priority list. I'm still quite interested in fulfilling the planned features and fixes for it, but I can't promise it will be any time soon. Because it was an incomplete feature as is, and we wouldn't get the chance to make it useful before launch, we removed the UI to turn it off and on. We only removed the button though and the (still incomplete) feature can still be modded back in, I'm not sure of the exact engine call that needs to happen though, and interested parties can contact @masterdigital to get those details.

Thanks, I understand there are more pressing issues; but please, get back to it at a later point, it's just too good a tool.