QA from CA for the Org-ites

My primary question is a bit more general, if not simple. Question 3 is probably most viable for the Q and A:

1) Why did you fix things that weren't broken? I'm asking in regarding to the Interface.

I like many others are EXPERT at the Shogun and Medieval Interface. I will take no pleasure in learning to master Rome's Interface. Yes, you've been so kind as to provide something approximating the Shogun/Medieval interface, but unfortunately, it falls a bit short in comparison.

I just don't get it, as it wasn't broken.

2) Will it be possible to *marry* Rome's Campaign Map to the Shogun/Medieval Battle Engine?

Specifically, I like to see both the Shogun and Medieval maps modded with Rome's Campaign Map features (diplomacy, etc.).

In other words, I didn't enjoy the Demo, but look forward to Rome's Campaign Map advances, and would prefer to use it along with the *old* Medieval and/or Shogun Battle Engine.

3) Considering the feedback CA has received regarding the Demo, what changes have been made to the Final Release?

1. Is there any provision for the Roman habit of building a fort everytime they camped for the night? Ie. If a Roman army is attacked in the campaign map - will it have fortifications to fight from?

2. Will it be possible to upgrade units to different classes? Say if a legionnary happens to show an aptitude for command - and end up leading an army - would he stay in his legionnary unit, or would he be transferred to a general unit? Taking Sertorius as an example. If so, how will it work?

3. How far can an army move in one turn on the campaign map?

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Originally Posted by ToranagaSama

3) Considering the feedback CA has received regarding the Demo, what changes have been made to the Final Release?

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This to me is a very important question and one that covers all the issues that were raised from the demo.

I think it is a waste to ask factual questions that will be easily answered when we get the game.

The only question I am interested in hearing answered is CA's response to the almost universal concern here that combat in the demo is resolved too quickly - both in terms of movement speed and killing speed. It is true that this concern might prove to be ill founded when we get the final game, but I am by nature a pessimist, so I do not count on it. I have not heard anyone from CA react to this concern and this Q&A is our best chance to get a reaction.

Another issue related to the demo and the new game is...

Will we be able to hide the interface in much the same way as we did in MTW with the F keys? or be able to revert back to the classic Total War one?

Well I don't think it's really worth sorting through these questions IMO.... by the time we pick the 'magic' 5 questions we will already have the game. CA could quite easily answer the most burning issue regarding speed but somehow they seem to be very silent about the subject.

.......Orda

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Originally Posted by Orda Khan

CA could quite easily answer the most burning issue regarding speed but somehow they seem to be very silent about the subject.

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That's what makes me nervous. If there was a "good" answer to that issue that would reassure folk here, it would probably be simple and so would have been made - e.g. "don't worry, the final game can be played slower" or "don't worry, we made Trebia a cakewalk for the Carthaginians, the real battles last longer".

If however, the answer is not a pleasing one - e.g. "sorry, we are targeting the RTS crowd" or "whoops, we didn't spot that. It's too hard to fix. Maybe someday..." - you can understand why they are silent.

You are right we may find out if we could have had a good answer very soon, but if it is not a pleasing answer it would be good to start a dialogue now (with a view to patching or modding).

Given CAs silence, I think it is important the QA includes a question specifically on speed (rather than just general chances since the demo, which is a good question in its own right) so it cannot be evaded.

Anyway fingers crossed, the game looks nice and the campaign aspect sounds much improved - I just hope the battles are at the MTW/STW pace.

I don't think it does any good to speculate. If we're honest we're going to buy this game no matter what.

After we get it we'll start begging for a patch to the otherwise unplayable game, scream that we're going back to MTW never to touch RTW again, moan about the lack of historical accuracy etc.

I can say this since that's how I react myself...

The coregamers (us) are secure customers. We're not the focus for this new game since we'll get it no matter what. It's time to bring new blood in, and that means flashy graphics, easy interface and flaming pigs.

I'll answer the killing-speed one out of the kindness of my heart... and not in any way because it's getting so I can't look at a thread on this forum without seeing the usual suspects grumbling about it :-)

In the demo, the units are high-valour and small-sized and are deployed close to one another, and they make mincemeat of one another as a result. The choice of unit size was made to help the demo frame rate on low-spec machines. If you have larger units then the melees will last longer - aside from the numbers themselves, the unit frontage will be different. I think I've seen people posting to that effect after experiments with modding the demo.

Note: as for why you haven't had an answer to this question until now, several possibilities are on offer:
- everyone here was *extremely* busy
- everyone here knew there was no problem because of the above reasons
- a few people grumbling at the .org every time we do something new is considered par for the course ;-)

Most of the questions I have, have already been asked in this thread, so I'll just copy-paste them (with original poster), so that it's clear that I am supporting those questions.

For me, these 5 I'd like answered:

1. (Kraellin) is there a multplayer campaign included in the release? (Nigel)
Are there any considerations at CA to ever try a MP campaign, or have they given up on that concept completely?

2. (Saundersag) My question is if they can give some example of how moddable rtw will be. For example will they give you programs with the game to mod it. Will the files be in data files and will they not use obscure file extensions. So what have they done to make Rtw easy to mod.

3. (Colovion) Will you be able to take soldiers/generals/royalty prisoners and torture them to give you information you need about their faction's armies, ships, cities etc?

4. (D6veteran) How has multiplayer been changed from MTW/VI? (e.g. new options/features/game types)

5. (New, my own, Soulflame) Are there plans to release historical battles after the game hits the shelves? Like a monthly new map release akin to some RTS's, which release new maps to battle upon every few weeks or so?

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Originally Posted by GilJaysmith

I'll answer the killing-speed one out of the kindness of my heart... and not in any way because it's getting so I can't look at a thread on this forum without seeing the usual suspects grumbling about it :-)

In the demo, the units are high-valour and small-sized and are deployed close to one another, and they make mincemeat of one another as a result. The choice of unit size was made to help the demo frame rate on low-spec machines. If you have larger units then the melees will last longer - aside from the numbers themselves, the unit frontage will be different. I think I've seen people posting to that effect after experiments with modding the demo.

Note: as for why you haven't had an answer to this question until now, several possibilities are on offer:
- everyone here was *extremely* busy
- everyone here knew there was no problem because of the above reasons
- a few people grumbling at the .org every time we do something new is considered par for the course ;-)

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Hey Gil! Good to see you happen to come by now and then. :yes: And thanks for the answer.

So in effect the killrate isn't that high, and it has not really been altered for the demo? I mean they are high valour but that increases the defensive value as well, or not? ~:confused:
But I want to support Gil a little bit here, my tests with bigger units have indeed been much slower, only marginally faster than MTW. But it is not too great that people with lowend computers have to be Pause-whores to play the game properly. So I hope dearly that my worries are unfounded (they are less critical than before though).

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Originally Posted by ToranagaSama

1) Why did you fix things that weren't broken? I'm asking in regarding to the Interface.

I like many others are EXPERT at the Shogun and Medieval Interface. I will take no pleasure in learning to master Rome's Interface. Yes, you've been so kind as to provide something approximating the Shogun/Medieval interface, but unfortunately, it falls a bit short in comparison.

I just don't get it, as it wasn't broken.

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It wasn't broken that is true, but while we feel more confident with the old system I have noticed a couple of times in previews that CA has been padded on the back for their changes to the interface. So something that isn't broken might still be better in terms of allround playability for more people...

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Originally Posted by Magraev

I don't think it does any good to speculate.

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Originally Posted by GilJaysmith

I'll answer the killing-speed one...

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Magraev, I am glad that you were wrong!~;) The idea of speculating was to try to tease out an answer.

GilJaysmith thanks for answering - I realise it is a bit of a thankless task, as it may only lead to a further line of grumbling... But from my point of view, it's a reassuring answer.

~:cheers:

I never thought about the unit size issue. I tried playing with huge numbers in MTW, but found it hard to position well on the map (hills too small etc) and easier to get flanked (you could afford fewer units in early battles), so I gave up. However, I'll bear it in mind with RTW.

Edit: Kraxis, how do you change unit size in the demo? If elephants are overpowered - as they appear to me from the demo - raising the normal unit sizes but not the elephants would be a (history wise) nice way of re-balancing. (I know that would require a mod).

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Originally Posted by Simon Appleton

Edit: Kraxis, how do you change unit size in the demo? If elephants are overpowered - as they appear to me from the demo - raising the normal unit sizes but not the elephants would be a (history wise) nice way of re-balancing. (I know that would require a mod).

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I have use two options, a hexeditor and the Rodeo mod-generator. The latter is significantly easier. Get it at twcenter.net. There you can select units to be at their max (but you can also individually adjust any unit), so you can actually get a few really big battles.

Thanks, GilJaysmith!

I kept the demo on my hard drive for about a week, and then uninstalled it...it is what it is: A short DEMOnstration of some of the features of the game, a teaser to build interest and momentum for the full release. I have the utmost confidence that you and CAs hard work will be worth the wait, and as in the past you will support and "fix" any issues that do come up.

My only question right now would be:

What is planned for the inevitable expansion? I know you guys must already have a few good ideas for it! ~D

The kindness of my heart runneth over, and here are a couple more one-liners:

- men running into rivers... not known to be a problem. Presumed to be down to modding the demo. Men can fall into the river and drown, but not in the sense that a unit ordered to cross the river will just walk in a straight line into the depths.

- routing units... their flags now pulse between white and the original faction flag, if I'm understanding rightly.

- do we respond to forum feedback in general... the thread which organised the demo feedback into a single place and gave reasoned details about problems was very helpful and led to some changes, so in that sense yes. Threads which turn into rants and declarations of "I won't buy this game unless X"... less useful. If we think a feature will help sell the game to a lot of people, one person threatening not to buy it is not a convincing counter-argument.

Many thanks Gil! :bow:

One question I have based on the demo and linked in from previous TW titles...

Do we have an (Alt-click in MTW) function where we can order the whole army to move in formation without having to make a group of the whole army? (I mean the command to make all units move together in formation at the same speed)

It was a very useful command in MTW and I do hope it is in the full game.

Wonderful to hear. Many thanks indeed Gil! ~:)

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Originally Posted by GilJaysmith

Threads which turn into rants and declarations of "I won't buy this game unless X"... less useful. If we think a feature will help sell the game to a lot of people, one person threatening not to buy it is not a convincing counter-argument.

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Ha - I hear you. It must be a drag to poor your heart and soul into a project only to get rants about "issues" which are not even part of the release code. :balloon2:

OK - a** kissing mode off. ~:joker:

Good news about the Unit Formations/killing speed and the Routing Flags. I for one am very excited about the release, as I delved into the "text files" from the demo and really like what I see.

Barkhorn.

GilJaysmith, thank you very much for your replies!

GAH! So much to quote, so little knowledge of doing it... :dizzy2:

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Originally Posted by GilJaysmith

-Men running into rivers... not known to be a problem. Presumed to be down to modding the demo. Men can fall into the river and drown, but not in the sense that a unit ordered to cross the river will just walk in a straight line into the depths.

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I'm beginning to believe that now. In the original tutorial the troops had no problems in getting to the bridge. But I'm still a bit fearful that this migth be carried over into later mods. Could be disasterous to the diversity of battles.

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Originally Posted by GilJaysmith

- routing units... their flags now pulse between white and the original faction flag, if I'm understanding rightly.

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And there was much rejoice... weeehh weeehhh.
Good to know something has been done. It is perhaps not the best we could have hoped for but in my opinion almost anything is better than the blank banners (no they are not white).

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Originally Posted by The_Emperor

Do we have an (Alt-click in MTW) function where we can order the whole army to move in formation without having to make a group of the whole army? (I mean the command to make all units move together in formation at the same speed)

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Seconded! And added: Turning individual units like the good old Alt-click (no more dragging).

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Assorted GilJaysmith being kind

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Thank you; it's like a weight has been lifted from my tiny amphibian mind. On the basis of that I will move to the 'buying on day of UK release' crowd; some of my concerns have been eased, the rest I will leave to faith in CA. Speed was a major issue to me as I couldn't keep up even with pause.

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Originally Posted by ToranagaSama

3) Considering the feedback CA has received regarding the Demo, what changes have been made to the Final Release?

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Originally Posted by Jambo

This to me is a very important question and one that covers all the issues that were raised from the demo.

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Not to say I'm not interested in the answer, but this question probably covers a bit too much ground to be effectively answered, if the expectation is that the answer will cover ALL the issues raised.

Wow! Thanks for the feedback Gil! I'm more excited about the full release since I first saw the game engine in Time Commanders!

It's great to see the CA team posting on the Org more these days, keep up the good work.

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Originally Posted by GilJaysmith

The kindness of my heart runneth over, and here are a couple more one-liners:

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LOL, thank you, Gil.

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Originally Posted by GilJaySmith

- do we respond to forum feedback in general... the thread which organised the demo feedback into a single place and gave reasoned details about problems was very helpful and led to some changes, so in that sense yes. Threads which turn into rants and declarations of "I won't buy this game unless X"... less useful. If we think a feature will help sell the game to a lot of people, one person threatening not to buy it is not a convincing counter-argument.

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I'm sure that most people would be real glad to see some of the devs making a post every now and then... it gives a lot more confidence in the final product (since it's obvious that the developers are not totally ignoring their fans), it significantly raises the spirits (in a good way ;) ), and generally makes people real happy.
Of course you don't have time to post every day, maybe not even once a week, but an occasional drop-by with a couple of posts every couple of weeks or so, especially at hot times like this is would be highly appreciated by most people, I am sure.

At any rate, thank you for your feedback ~:thumb:

Not to be a whiner now, but speaking of the thread that apparently was useful to some extent (which I'm really glad to hear), one of you guys could have dropped a line telling us 'yeah, we'll look into it if/when we have time'. Nothing more than that, it would have been enough. Reckon it would have made a bigger difference than you may guess.

Anyway, thank you guys for the feedback and for taking time to talk to us every now and then ~:cheers:

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Originally Posted by Tamur

Not to say I'm not interested in the answer, but this question probably covers a bit too much ground to be effectively answered, if the expectation is that the answer will cover ALL the issues raised.

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Yeah, agreed. Plus, Gil's actually just answered on a couple of the most talked about topics regarding the Demo. ~:cheers:

You know I can answer some of these question via my reading of everything CA members have said and my studying any screens that come along.

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3. will one still be able to go thousands of miles across a sea to invade in one turn?

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4. if not, how will it work now?

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Moving armies by sea is more dicey now as you have to load the army into ships and send them on their way. Taking how ever long it takes the ship to get from point A to point B. If your ships are lost the troops on them are lost too. Strategic agents are moved this way now too with the same risks.

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1: Land Based Trade - does it produce? In MTW the trading was almost entirely sea based and if you wanted to build a trade empire without ships it was an oxymoron. I seem to remember the Silk Road bringing in many goods throughout this timeframe and bringing the trade from the East certainly brought a greater economic benefit to the European based factions which were able to exploit this trade. Will Land Based Trade be improved at all or is trade in general being revamped in any way?

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4. What does land based trade involve? Is it just as profitable as sea based trade?

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Land and sea basd trade have little indicators know on land there are little lines of camels going from city to city same with sea trade you can see little trade ships plugging along between ports.

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5: We've been told about the diplomacy system. Can you post a list of things which can be asked for of another faction as well as the list of things which can be given in return?

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I've seen a screen of the diplomatic negotiation screen it had the offer/demand settlement option up but there were others further down. that were a bit blurry, lots of them but blurry.

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1) There are two seasons. Are turns keyed to seasons, or will there be multiple turns per season?

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Some person from CA said that the turns are based on seasons again 2 per year summer and winter.

Now that I have insulted everybody with my hubris my questions.
1.To load a full stack army into ships will you need a full stack navy?
2.Can you only build forts in specific places or can you plunk one down anywhere that strikes your fancy?
3.Has the mercenary system been changed at all?
4.How many surgeons, spies, priests can you have in a generals retinue?
5.How far can an army go in one turn?

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Originally Posted by The_Emperor

Many thanks Gil! :bow:

One question I have based on the demo and linked in from previous TW titles...

Do we have an (Alt-click in MTW) function where we can order the whole army to move in formation without having to make a group of the whole army? (I mean the command to make all units move together in formation at the same speed)

It was a very useful command in MTW and I do hope it is in the full game.

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Excellent question!


Oh and many thanks Gil.

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Land and sea basd trade have little indicators know on land there are little lines of camels going from city to city same with sea trade you can see little trade ships plugging along between ports.

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Good to know - but my question was more on if Land Based Trade produces anything close to a sustainable economy - as in MTW you only traded with your immediate neighbors and in reality it was far from that kind of Land Trading and whole Empires have risen or fallen depending on the Trade from the East or just having trade going - and not only sea based. In MTW the total trade income was divided at roughly 90% Sea Based trade income to the 10% Land base trade income (if you were lucky).

Oh, about those killing, it's still really fast, even with me modding them with low valour and high armour, and no weapons upgrade. And the speed is still insane, even though my armies are far apart.

"- a few people grumbling at the .org every time we do something new is considered par for the course ;-)"

i love that line. even though it treats us like red headed step children, it's too true, too true. but that is what grognards do, they 'grumble.' but lets be honest, most of these grumblers are the backbones of the org. they're the ones spending countless hours making mods and guides and all the other add-ons to the game that the rest of us get to enjoy for free. on the other hand its kinda sad how even after 2 excellent games some of them are quick to have a pessimistic, negative view towards it all, not just the demo, but reviews, developers' chat, etc. the good thing is, the developers and the grumblers help to keep each other in check so that the silent majority of us can enjoy quality games [courtesy of the developers] with added improvements [courtesy of the grumblers]