Scalable map through time

[Loppan Torkel]

There've been many suggestions for civ4 and since this is a pretty obscure idea I'm not sure if it's been posted before, but...

What about an option that lets you put more focus more in the early eras or just have an really epic game throughout the history?

If it's doable it could be fun if you could start a game in huge where the time goes much slower than ordinary at the start, which also means no more thousands-of-years-expeditions, against all opponents. But in this first period you'll only get to meet a couple of them.
When you've reached somekind of goal, like a percentage of the map explored or a scientific goal, the map zooms out a level, the explored map shrinks, and you will have to face more civs. And this keeps happening a few times until you have the whole world in view.

I know there's many technical problems if you try to implement this idea, but I don't think it's impossible and you would be able to have games of gigantic proportions.

What do you think of it? get it? is the idea old/new?

 

[searcheagle]

I would like to see the full world from the begining.

But I oppose your idea for bigger reasons:
1. It adds nothing to the game
2. It would be complex to program for no real gain
3. Some users would find it difficult to follow.

 

[ybbor]

wow. this is one of the stupidest ideas i've ever seen

 

[Loppan Torkel]

wow. this is one of the stupidest ideas i've ever seen

Well, thank you for your constructive input

The thing is that I found this idea http://forums.civfanatics.com/showthread.php?t=85574 in your sticky after I posted this, so I raised it and hoped that this one would die as soon as possible.

So please if anyone feel that he or she has anything constructive to write about this idea, do it in jalapeno dude's thread, and let this one die.

 

[ybbor]

The thing is that I found this idea http://forums.civfanatics.com/showthread.php?t=85574 in your sticky after I posted this, so I raised it and hoped that this one would die as soon as possible.

your idea is way different. if i understand it right you would be limited to a certain map area. under JD's plan, no gameplay would change, ujust the way the minimap is percieved

 

[Baleog]

I'd say reducing corruption as you became more technologically advanced would be a better way of implementing the same thing. In the early ancient age trading with anyone but your immediate neighbours would be pointless due to the overwhelming corruption. Certain advances such as the wheel, steam power and radio would decrease corruption and make trading with more distance neighbours more worthwhile.

 

[Loppan Torkel]

your idea is way different. if i understand it right you would be limited to a certain map area. under JD's plan, no gameplay would change, ujust the way the minimap is percieved

No, my idea's the same, it's just formulated a bit different as I see it. I think you've got his idea wrong if you think it only involves the minimap.
I never said that you would be limited to a certain map area, what I said was that time should pass slower at the earlier stages, this would allow swordsmen and horsemen to explore a huge map, but when you've explored the map it's not the entire world you've explored but just a part and you've only met a few other civs. And before you've explored the first map it would have expanded into a new level, like the first contained France and before you start to reach the boundaries of the map it zooms out to a view that could contain Europe.

I know there would be many problems with this idea and it's probably not even worth the effort, but why not present the idea...?

 

[Neomega]

There've been many suggestions for civ4 and since this is a pretty obscure idea I'm not sure if it's been posted before, but...

What about an option that lets you put more focus more in the early eras or just have an really epic game throughout the history?

If it's doable it could be fun if you could start a game in huge where the time goes much slower than ordinary at the start, which also means no more thousands-of-years-expeditions, against all opponents. But in this first period you'll only get to meet a couple of them.
When you've reached somekind of goal, like a percentage of the map explored or a scientific goal, the map zooms out a level, the explored map shrinks, and you will have to face more civs. And this keeps happening a few times until you have the whole world in view.

I know there's many technical problems if you try to implement this idea, but I don't think it's impossible and you would be able to have games of gigantic proportions.

What do you think of it? get it? is the idea old/new?

The idea is somewhat old, as I proposed something similar for a Massive multiplayer option in Civ IV. Basically, you would start out in micro worlds, and slowly build up to the larger civ world.

This would probably be one of the best ways to implement MMOciv. 1000's of peopel could be playing at once, but at tribe levels until time advances.

 

[sealman]

The only map that should be scalable is the mini-map. At the start of the game is should be small with your civ centralized. As you explore more, the mini map grows.

 

[Loppan Torkel]

The only map that should be scalable is the mini-map. At the start of the game is should be small with your civ centralized. As you explore more, the mini map grows.

Yea, I agree that the minimap should be scalable, it shouldn't be that hard to implement it either.
This idea however revolves around the main map, just to clarify..

 

[Loppan Torkel]

The idea is somewhat old, as I proposed something similar for a Massive multiplayer option in Civ IV. Basically, you would start out in micro worlds, and slowly build up to the larger civ world.

This would probably be one of the best ways to implement MMOciv. 1000's of peopel could be playing at once, but at tribe levels until time advances.

It could add a lot to singleplayer too if it is implementable(?), modders could add as much techs and stuff that is needed to increase the gameplay through the early, now much slower, eras.
A civgame that stretches maybe a thousand turns, with a huge amount of detailed units and techs.

 

[Neomega]

It could add a lot to singleplayer too if it is implementable(?), modders could add as much techs and stuff that is needed to increase the gameplay through the early, now much slower, eras.
A civgame that stretches maybe a thousand turns, with a huge amount of detailed units and techs.

right.

Civilization is an epic game, many times taking 40+ hours.
The only other genre reaching that magnitude was RPG's.

RPG's were transformed, with a little ingenuity, to MMORPG's
RTS's have been made into MMORTS's

I think civilization has the right ingredients, as it is quite epic, it just needs a new form of implementation.

 

[ybbor]

No, my idea's the same, it's just formulated a bit different as I see it. I think you've got his idea wrong if you think it only involves the minimap.
I never said that you would be limited to a certain map area, what I said was that time should pass slower at the earlier stages, this would allow swordsmen and horsemen to explore a huge map, but when you've explored the map it's not the entire world you've explored but just a part and you've only met a few other civs. And before you've explored the first map it would have expanded into a new level, like the first contained France and before you start to reach the boundaries of the map it zooms out to a view that could contain Europe.

I know there would be many problems with this idea and it's probably not even worth the effort, but why not present the idea...?

okay, then i was wrong and misunderdtood your idea. i thought that you would have players be limited to x amount of map squares until y year. i support this idea now that i understand it althought it is a repeat of JD's