Bad news: Next patch on hold

[dariusII]

The best solution is not to buy any more Civ games until they get better. And I would not blame just Atari.

After all the problems with vanilla and PTW, I reluctantly bought C3C but as of now have no intention of buying any more Civ games that have bugs. Problem is too many consumers don't really care and will buy the game anyway.

I feel the same way. I have no intention of buying into CIV4 whenever it comes out until perhaps it has been on the market for some time & the forums have weighed in. No more pre-orders for me, especially after PTW.

The fact is, I have barely scratched the surface with Conquests. I have only played the epic game, there are still some civs I have yet to play as, I have yet to try true pangea/archipelago maps & don't even mention the conquest scenarios! Needless to say, Conquests will keep me occupied for a few more years!

 

[Antrine]

That's good, for CIV4 will probably not darken the shelves for at least another year. Add a few months for the forums to shake it out, you could easily be looking at January 2006. So, here we are with Conquests and any modder who improves this game giving it more peezazz is honored.

Honored but not happy. Honored but not satifisfied. Honored, because of needless sloppy support for a game that deserves better!

In the next fifteen months, someone else (we pray) will come forward and compete with Conquests offering something much better. You know what irks me with all this, is that technology is treading water, where is perfection? Why go 3-D anyway? This is a board game amplified. Why not just stop here and demonstrate some competence. That is, bug free, processing efficient, editor enhanced game!!!!!

Am I dreaming here, if so, DO NOT wake me up. Many Thanx.

 

[HellboundHeathcliff]

I'm happy to see this thread pick back up. Maybe someone who has some pull will get the point.

 

[warpstorm]

Why go 3-D anyway?

That's an easy one. The publisher who owns all the rights to Civ has said that no AAA titles from them will be in 2D any more. Since Firaxis already had a working 3D engine lying around from Pirates! this was a no-brainer to comply with.

3D isn't a terribly hard mystery technology. It is stable and robust and if done right has very low CPU utilization on modern video cards.

 

[Antrine]

Now that's what I call, being in the know! Thanx warpstorm!!

I feel better already, (Antrine polishes up his corner of the graveyard).

Oh, gosh it just occurred to me, nothing to obvious or obnoxious, but how did Firaxis do with 'Pirates'? Does that 3-d engine handle well, you know efficiently, allow for piles of varibles, etc,. Now this is an honest inquiry, as I have ignored Pirates entirely.

 

[classical_hero]

Maybe after the release of Civ3 complete (why they are doing this, I don't know (except for more money)) and Pirates that they will be able to release a Patch of C3C before they release Civ IV. I am always hopeful. All this discussion shows how passionate we are about the Civ franchise and we want to see it do well and are willing to buy a good product. If I had not gone to this Site, I most probably would have been part of the majority and not have patched my game and bought the game blindly, but now I am bit more cautious of buying Civ IV. If they release a patch before the release of Civ IV, then some confidence will have been restore in the companies.

 

[kokoras]

I 'll agree with that classical hero,the problem isn't how many games they intend on releasing,this is a matter that Atari have to decide,the point is to show some respect to their costumers,and to the game.Our intension in here isn't for sure to boicotage the game,we are all fanatics of it so what we say has only to do with the fact that they can't ignore us in such an obvius way.

 

[jkp1187]

I don't suppose there's any hope that Civ 3 COMPLETE will actually fix anything?

(Since I'm resigned to buying Pirates II anyway, what's another $30?)

 

[warpstorm]

(why they are doing this, I don't know (except for more money))

You answered your own question.

 

[Longasc]

I once cried in a forum for the Total War series, if they do not fix Viking Invasion (some terrible new bugs were introduced with the expansion), I will not buy Rome: Total War.

Many people were upset and were really not satisfied. It was for sure not this forum alone, but enough customers complained and finally they released a half-hearted patch that solved at least two thirds of the major complaints.

I think Civ3 has still two severe flaws:

AI Armies
Sub-bug

plus some gameplay balancing issues that will probably never be addressed.

But I think, Civ3 Complete will feature a still buggy game... and they will never address at least the things I mentioned.


I decided to wait some weeks/month after the release of Civ 4. There was another game, "Sacred", that was sooo bugged, now, after a whole year, they patched it to a decent level.

I think I have learned my lesson: Buy later, buy cheaper... I never pre-ordered, but I always bought games right after release or soon after.

It does not pay off - if you wait, you probably get a better patched game for less money.


I think it is futile to start a campain "I will not buy Civ4 if Civ3 does not get fixed properly" here, but I decided at least not to throw them my money in the mouth before checking the fora for the first comments of paying beta-testers... pardon, customers who already bought the game.

 

[warpstorm]

Oh, gosh it just occurred to me, nothing to obvious or obnoxious, but how did Firaxis do with 'Pirates'? Does that 3-d engine handle well, you know efficiently, allow for piles of varibles, etc,. Now this is an honest inquiry, as I have ignored Pirates entirely.

Don't know yet. I turned down a slot for the Pirates! beta because I knew that I wouldn't have enough time to do it justice and someone who could devote the proper time to it would be a better use of the limited number of slots.

The 3D engine they use is the Gamebryo engine. This has been used for Morrowind, Freedom Force, Bridge Commander, Kohan 2, and quite a few more that are in production. It is a decent 3D engine suited more towards middle of the road type graphics than say the DOOM3 engine.

 

[HellboundHeathcliff]

Don't know yet. I turned down a slot for the Pirates! beta because I knew that I wouldn't have enough time to do it justice and someone who could devote the proper time to it would be a better use of the limited number of slots.

You should have told them you didn't want to work on that until C3C was fixed.

 

[warpstorm]

Good idea, but I doubt if it'd work considering...

 

[Jon Shafer]

You should have told them you didn't want to work on that until C3C was fixed.

Because they'll listen to one potential playtester in order to spend thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours on another patch?

 

[kettyo]

Moderator Action: Deleted.

Piracy is not tolerated here.

Warned.
Please read the forum rules: http://forums.civfanatics.com/showthread.php?t=422889

 

[warpstorm]

Because they'll listen to one potential playtester in order to spend thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours on another patch?

Of course, they will. You should know how much weight they give what I say by now, Trip.

 

[Civrules]

Now that's what I call, being in the know! Thanx warpstorm!!

I feel better already, (Antrine polishes up his corner of the graveyard).

Oh, gosh it just occurred to me, nothing to obvious or obnoxious, but how did Firaxis do with 'Pirates'? Does that 3-d engine handle well, you know efficiently, allow for piles of varibles, etc,. Now this is an honest inquiry, as I have ignored Pirates entirely.

I've seen the land battles of Pirates!, and it is clear that the engine is much more flexible. It is not as "static" as it is in the current CivIII game. You have a couple of variables, including height of terrain, etc, etc...

You will almost always have more advantages by switching to a more updated engine, so efficiency, handling, and more variables should not be a concern at all.

 

[HellboundHeathcliff]

I don't give a rats butt about pirates. I want a final patch for C3C.

 

[warpstorm]

Well, for good or ill, it's Pirates! and Civ4 that are paying the bills over at Firaxis.

 

[HellboundHeathcliff]

So take it to the pirates forum.