Re: State of the Community
Posted: Sat Aug 18, 2018 6:39 pm
I don't think having a manpower limit is all bad. I know the super hardcore players from the original game don't like it but I don't think a complete lack of a manpower limit will make the game better overall. There won't be much of a player base if a very tiny minority of the players who play ALL day long(and have played since the original game) are in control of everything simply due to the the sheer amount of gameplay hours. There are relatively few people who can, or are willing to spend more than a few hours a day on a single game. I know that sounds really anti-competitive because people who put time into the game should be rewarded for doing so but the game needs space for casual to semi-hardcore players if you want a lasting population of more than a handful of nations. Manpower limits can help reduce the gap within a reasonable degree and can be adjusted as needed. Player skill should at least give someone an edge because they're more efficient with how they spend their manpower.
More active players might help curb the dominance of older players but it'll take a long time for them to catch up with those who already know the game inside and out. This is also assuming older players give new ones a chance to rise in power and not smash them before they get the chance to. If there isn't a wipe at the Steam release, or at least a second server with a new map, a lot of players may be turned off shortly after playing. The game has already been mapped and taken over by alpha and beta players who have main and alt nations everywhere and know where the best stuff is. Even if alt nations aren't actively holding resources or orbs I see people using them for easy exp for their main nations, especially after a rebirth. The high score lists will also be impossible to topple because people have been able to sit on orbs for so long in alpha/beta. There's a lot of orbs that you can view the high score list on and literally no one but someone's alt nation has been sitting on it the entire month.
More ways to improve manpower regeneration might be nice. The manpower rate resources seem useless. They give tiny amounts compared to the hundreds you get from a single technology. I don't really see many people bothering to spend geo to capture fresh water or soil. It might be different in the high level zones though. I've only seen Freshwater And Soil, which is just a worse Fresh Water. Having the decision to capture manpower rate resources instead of always just raw tech/bio/psi and some of the better energy rate resources might be good. Problem is that the resources aren't good enough plus the fact that you burn like 2-3x manpower for failed attacks making combat stats more appealing to reduce failed attempts. They also help defensively where manpower rate does not.
A potential problem the current manpower system has is discouraging nation teams because your pool is the same regardless of members. I mean, you'd still have the advantage of completing an objective twice as fast with a second member which is still significant. You could still overpower another nation with less members because you'd be taking squares quicker. The more squares you have to retake because of a drawn out fight trading squares the more manpower you waste in the long run. In that sense having more members actually saves manpower though it wouldn't do much for equal member count fights.
if people feel that isn't enough then maybe stricter account restrictions could make room for more mechanics. Less accounts per device, nation member limits, multi-nation limits. Maybe something like reduced manpower costs per online active member would help. Active as in they are doing things on the map not just logged in and staring at it. Or how about special sov/co sov tools. Like a bonus that gives each online member a second pool of manpower that lasts for X amount of hours with a cooldown. Or even just a permanent technology that gives each member of your nation a second manpower pool equal to some % of your nation's maximum.
More encouragement to join up with others in a nation and make alliances would go a long way to preserving the game. Not only would it build a sense of community, players would be less likely to be left out in the cold solo and quit because they are too weak to survive on their own. More nations that are powerful would also reduce the amount any single nation can control and the number of enemy nations one can fight at the same time, especially because manpower is limited.
More active players might help curb the dominance of older players but it'll take a long time for them to catch up with those who already know the game inside and out. This is also assuming older players give new ones a chance to rise in power and not smash them before they get the chance to. If there isn't a wipe at the Steam release, or at least a second server with a new map, a lot of players may be turned off shortly after playing. The game has already been mapped and taken over by alpha and beta players who have main and alt nations everywhere and know where the best stuff is. Even if alt nations aren't actively holding resources or orbs I see people using them for easy exp for their main nations, especially after a rebirth. The high score lists will also be impossible to topple because people have been able to sit on orbs for so long in alpha/beta. There's a lot of orbs that you can view the high score list on and literally no one but someone's alt nation has been sitting on it the entire month.
More ways to improve manpower regeneration might be nice. The manpower rate resources seem useless. They give tiny amounts compared to the hundreds you get from a single technology. I don't really see many people bothering to spend geo to capture fresh water or soil. It might be different in the high level zones though. I've only seen Freshwater And Soil, which is just a worse Fresh Water. Having the decision to capture manpower rate resources instead of always just raw tech/bio/psi and some of the better energy rate resources might be good. Problem is that the resources aren't good enough plus the fact that you burn like 2-3x manpower for failed attacks making combat stats more appealing to reduce failed attempts. They also help defensively where manpower rate does not.
A potential problem the current manpower system has is discouraging nation teams because your pool is the same regardless of members. I mean, you'd still have the advantage of completing an objective twice as fast with a second member which is still significant. You could still overpower another nation with less members because you'd be taking squares quicker. The more squares you have to retake because of a drawn out fight trading squares the more manpower you waste in the long run. In that sense having more members actually saves manpower though it wouldn't do much for equal member count fights.
if people feel that isn't enough then maybe stricter account restrictions could make room for more mechanics. Less accounts per device, nation member limits, multi-nation limits. Maybe something like reduced manpower costs per online active member would help. Active as in they are doing things on the map not just logged in and staring at it. Or how about special sov/co sov tools. Like a bonus that gives each online member a second pool of manpower that lasts for X amount of hours with a cooldown. Or even just a permanent technology that gives each member of your nation a second manpower pool equal to some % of your nation's maximum.
More encouragement to join up with others in a nation and make alliances would go a long way to preserving the game. Not only would it build a sense of community, players would be less likely to be left out in the cold solo and quit because they are too weak to survive on their own. More nations that are powerful would also reduce the amount any single nation can control and the number of enemy nations one can fight at the same time, especially because manpower is limited.