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Nappy was in excellent adventure (the one where they collect various characters from history to use in their history project. That one was also the one that had So-crates!) Bogus journey was the one where they get replaced by robots and play a bunch of board games with the Grim Reaper.
Sorry about jacking your thread!
Back to normality.
Well... If we go this way, they should fix the Slavic voice-overs too.Quote:
Originally Posted by alh_p
Examples:
1. Russian units, if selected answer "Da, SIR". English "Sir" is not used in Russian army nowadays and was definitely not used in the XVIII century. It's true "Sir" is translated as "Ser" in Russian, but it is used only for situations that are direct translations of English settings, for example Arthur C. Doyle novels translated into Russian.
2. Russian General's unit, if selected reports back as "Generalnii Shab"; Polish General's unit responds in a similar fashion. "Generalnii Shtab" means "headquarters" in Russian; I suspect it means the same thing in Polish.
New stuff:
-----------------------
June 9th:
Hi guys,
The latest free unit we'd like to reveal for the upcoming free unit pack is the Swedish 'Lifeguards of foot'
These are a highly trained replacement for the standard Swedish guard. They are often used as a force in a system that defends a monarchy and can be relied upon for utter loyalty and deadly accuracy in the field. Their professionalism is reflected in their fearsome battle reputation.
https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v...guardsfoot.jpg
More units will be detailed soon.
Thanks,
Mark O'Connell
(aka SenseiTW)
Although Jack corrected me on the above, you could add this to the thread I started (a while ago) on the same sort of theme -battlefield vocals.Quote:
Originally Posted by Slaists
https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?t=117240
That is a sexy swedish units.
Love the hat.
Those Swedes could make an interesting Royal Marine with some modding.
I like the new units. However, I would much rather like a Karoliner (Caroleans) unit.
Anyone noticed how TW models faces usually look surly? Maybe it's so you don't feel bad about putting them on the wrong end of cannister shot.
It'd be great if they changed Royal Navy officer uniforms to blue.Quote:
Originally Posted by Mailman653
I take this as more good news…Quote:
June 10th
Dear All,
Today's update concerns the Campaign AI. The next patch naturally contains fixes and upgrades to the AI but there will be further work to do. Naval invasions will be slightly more frequent for the new patch and we will continue to make them more likely. The AI campaign diplomacy is also being examined, in order to make it better 'fit' with the recent changes to the game's economical model and relative values.
The 'counter offer' system is also being relaxed, meaning it will be more likely the AI will return an offer with amended terms as opposed to simply refusing.
We're also moving some of the hard coded AI values for diplomacy into the data space to allow them to be modified by modders.
Kind regards,
Kieran
Now if they would just readjust the economy and upkeep to some where about half way in between then and now…wow!
I'm wondering when this next mythical patch will be available.
I feel CA will finalize ETW at just about the time when most of the fan base will be utterly bored with the game already so there will be just the select few left who will enjoy the fixes.Quote:
Originally Posted by Fisherking
I think that is a very astute comment Slaists.Quote:
Originally Posted by Slaists
They should be mindful of that.
bah! The amaaazing special units are what we're hanging around for right? Just the same as we [i anyway] got suckered into the special forces edition...
I'm still bitter.
But dude....they have cool hats.Quote:
Originally Posted by alh_p
The sour expressions probably result from having to wear those hats into combat.Quote:
Originally Posted by Marquis of Roland
More interested in the AI improvements, increased stability and AI turn optimizations, personally. Don't much care about the eye candy unless it gives real, playable variety to the unit roster.
"Naval invasions will be slightly more frequent for the new patch"
You've got to be joking!
Currently invasions are a mere smidgeon away from never happening. You get to see more invasions if you watch CNN instead of playing ETW! Slightly bumping it up is no good, certainly at this pace of patching!
Who is working on this patch, some former Apogee employees?!
I bought the special forces edition...what happened to the special forces?Quote:
Originally Posted by alh_p
I sincerely do not know.
Help?
I have the SF editions also. I see the units but you know they jacked up the upkeep and in some cases also the recruitment cost for them soooooooooo high that it is stupid to build them!
It sort of defeats the purpose of having them.
The ships are out of the question. The other units are so few and scattered that you don’t concentrate on them.
I built Roger’s Rangers early in my last GB Campaign and it even ended up in India where it did much better than in the other theaters.
But really the extra costs and tight money keep me from building them usually. It is rather spoiled now.
The new units may be okay but if they are as over priced as the SF units they won’t see much play from me.
I just want to see them sort out the AI issues and get things working smoothly. Then we can work on having them readjust pricing yet again…
So they are in the game FK?Quote:
Originally Posted by Fisherking
I didn't see the Victory in my first GB campaign. I was think I missed something.
Maybe because you entered the SF serial after you started your first campaign, just like meQuote:
Originally Posted by AussieGiant
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wausser
Ah, that could be it. Thanks.
Bingo.Quote:
Originally Posted by Lemur
Agreed. Candy is nice, but I want the meat & potatos first.Quote:
Originally Posted by Lemur
judging by the comments on here most of you must think me crazy possibly, but I have actually not been playing Empire Total War at all after I encountered the game breaking naval CTD click, instead I spent money elsewhere and played other games, and havne't played it since its release... hoping for a decent patch, hopefully this next one hurries itself up because I tire of waiting ;). all I really wanted was the naval fleet ctd clicky resolved lol, when did it come out, march? feels like I've been waiting 6 months lol, anyway looking forward to the new patch and here's to never losing a game to a crash ever again!
Tight money? With GB?? :laugh4:Quote:
Originally Posted by Fisherking
I agree with the sentiment, however, those are separate teams in most game dev studios. If the eye candy keeps coming, it's a sign that the AI programmers are still burning the midnight oil on Empire, instead of the entire crew being shifted over to the next game or expansion. So be thankful for the eye candy. :)Quote:
Originally Posted by Hosakawa Tito
Well. More eye candy.
Quote:
June 11th
Hi guys,
Today's slightly late update reveals another forthcoming free unit. The Prussian Garde Du Corp are a replacement for the Prussian standard Household cavalry. These heavy horse shock troops are best used to break enemy lines and overrun enemy positions. With a strong charge and fearsome attack, these riders make short work of those who would oppose a Prussian monarch.
http://www.totalwarforums.com/
Thanks,
Mark O'Connell
(aka SenseiTW)
I can nearly hear the melancholy in Mr O'Connell's post.
"Thanks’ guy's, I've got to write another update in which I need to sound all excited about a new unit!! In the mean time can't we provide ANY information about AI improvements, CTD's or progress with any bugs!!?"
Response: "Nope."
"We gee thanks!! I'll go and write up the next daily update." :shame:
I was expecting a little more news or even word of when the patch might be out.
They started the beta of the patch a week ago, I think and you would think they could tell us a little more.
We even heard about the multiplayer campaign! Why we never heard of it again….well I hope all is well.
I know they have gotten a lot of flak on their forums but I hope it is not making them more closed to sharing information.
But we can sure see they are not allowing the art department any down time while they work on code and AI.
I am eager to see what the next patch brings…even if it just undoes some of the changes from 1.2.
I am not giving up on them but I know time sure is going slow on this one….
From the addition of the units have got a nasty feeling we'll be lucky to see the patch until late July. They're tinkering with alot of the program & the policy seems to be "stability first" so they'll need to test pretty much everything in the program.Quote:
Originally Posted by Fisherking
Anyway, am banking on an Aug.1 release, that way if its out sooner it'll be a bonus rather than a disappointment...My glass is sooooo half full atm :p
Sorry mate, but what on earth gave you that impression? v1.2 got it more stable, but that was after 2 months of it being released not stable.Quote:
Originally Posted by Prodigal
I wrote a really upbeat answer to that, then the site went down again, I passed the dementia test and haven't imbided anything that should impair my short term memory too badly so I'll try again.Quote:
Originally Posted by alh_p
So, yes, not too stable on release, true; but they were probably under pressure. When the backers say GO it happens whether the people making & testing it like it or not.
But! They have Steam now & do a rapid response release, (knee jerk reaction from the new broom I rekon), which makes thing a bit better here, alot worse there.
Next step they get in beta testers and release what is a pretty stable(r) platform with an aggressive AI, (I've been hanging out on the TW Centre site & I'm not getting into that rabid dog fight about the paradox posts).
So now they're tinkering with pretty much everything trying to give all of us a little bit of lurv, adding more units, changing the AI, playing with the invasion (thing)...They're not yet finished, & are still testing, I rekon we're looking at CA trying to provide a good-stable update, (patch is a consumers way of being cruel).
If they didn't care they'd being doing what they did at the start & be pumping out mini fixes every couple of weeks.
So there we have it, CA loves everyone, (who isn't associated with paradox), and want to makes us all happy bunnies before they go on holiday.
Now that's me being really optmistic, but until they release a buggy, know nothing, WELCOME TO UR DESKTOP, I think they deserve the benefit of the doubt on this one.
PS - If anyone from CA reads this, sorting out the trade route thing would be cool too :whip:
Go see the new update for the 12th of June.
http://shoguntotalwar.yuku.com/topic/53425?page=3
Or for those that don't want to go to "That Place":
Quote:
Today we introduce the Spanish Grenadiers. They are a replacement for the standard Spanish Grenadiers with a distinctive bearskin hat to mark them out as exemplary on the battlefield.
https://img132.imageshack.us/img132/...grenadiers.jpg
Thanks Elmar. It has been a hard day.
LOL
Clone troopers!
I'm not too pleased with the new Spanish Grenadiers and Prussian Garde Du Corp. The Spanish look like a fancy reskin of the existing bearskin greandiers, and the Prussians look like currisars but with a new hat and gloves.
But it does add some divirsity so that's a plus.
I don't mean to be a snot, but for those who complain about the new units, what are you really complaining about?
- Are you saying that the units did not look in real life the way CA is presenting them in in the game? If so, how about some pics showing how you think they're supposed to look?
- If you're not challenging CA's representation of the unit, are you instead complaining that you wish they'd provide us with different units other than reskinned grenadiers and heavy cav? If so, what other units would you rather have? Please include unit names and pics so we can all chime in on how rediculous those units look, too.
If you're just complaining that the new units look dumb, you'll have to take it up with the silly outfit designers of the original uniforms, but they've been dead for over two centuries.
More Faces++Quote:
Originally Posted by A Very Super Market
-Not soQuote:
Originally Posted by Servius1234
-They just aren't that different from what we already have. Speaking from a purely modding prospective, the Spanish Grenadiers don't really bring anything new. The German unit is a little better, I'm sure another modder can find a another unit somewhere that resembles this one. As a matter of fact, it's not all the units that I have a problem with, it was just those two. I particuarlly like the Swedish guard and the Russian Grenadiers because they bring something new to the game which can open up possiblities to mod new units based on the new model. The Swedish guard have a hat unlike anything in the game and the cut of their coat is different from any of the other coats in the game, they could make excellent Royal Marines from the movie Master &Commander. And the Russians bring in a new hat which can't be found anywhere in the game either which could double for great Hessian units.
Not so either.
Honestly, I would forego the unique units for facial diversity. That pic is nice and all, but the symmetrical faces really throws me off.
Didn't RTW or M2TW have semi-random faces (like maybe 5 faces per unit)? I mean, I don't really care, you only see them when you zoom way in, and I'm more of a big picture guy (though if I could automate more of the fight, I'd probably love to zoom in and check out some action).
They do have four faces in the textures. I think you don't really notice this unless your playing on High or above. Plus I've noticed that some models only use one for whatever reason despite there being four in a texture, it must be hard coded somewhere in the model file.:book:Quote:
Originally Posted by Servius1234
RTW had clone troopers, M2 had the variated clothing. Faces were always the same, but in worse quality, I guess.
*I didn't realize that the database stuff was restored and my previous post is back*
The faces usually bother me more in screen shot close ups than in the game.
In combat I am fighting the battle and not looking at the troopers to begin with.
This is an area I just don’t care that much about.
In Empire TW 1.0 were many clones, too. So I don't know where is problem? I'm very happy, because CA will make unique units for factions! It will be more variety, because in game actually all guards infantry and guards cavalry for all factions look that same.
I think that cA made great work! More units, more models, better mods! Now they make historical Mitre and Bearskin hats for Russian and Spanish grenadiers! Spain have more historical colour: from yellow to white! Prussian Guard Cavalry and Swedish guards have historical uniforms :D
Great work, CA!
Look that in Empire without patch now, there are many clone faces:
https://img15.imageshack.us/img15/9257/20579061.jpg
https://img10.imageshack.us/img10/90...grenadiers.jpg
These faces of new units are better than from normal Guards and grenadiers from ETW. More details, and more variety: mustaches, beards, blonde, brunette and brown hair (earlier all grenadiers and guards were brunettes):
https://img10.imageshack.us/img10/5065/beztytuuhyi.jpg
and these faces aren't clones!
https://img31.imageshack.us/img31/1291/beztytuu4n.jpg
Off topic i know but those face textures just look like Eric Cartman's relatives :clown:
Is it just me, or is anyone baffled by the fact that people actually give a damn about what the soldiers faces look like? I mean, i know why CA make the units look nice and detailed close up, because you need to be able to compete in the eyecandy screenshots department with FPSs and RPGs and so on in order to get column/website inches and sell more than 3 copies of your game. And, this kind of detail makes sense in those genres, because youre up close and personal with your opponents a lot of the time.
But... is there anyone out there that actually *plays* a total war game zoomed right in like that? When i first ran the game, i had a bit of a zoom about and looked at the lovely graphics and animations and everything, and thought 'oh that's all very nice', and then i actually started playing the game and i havent used anything but maximum zoom out since. Same thing goes for the strategic map, by the way.
I guess it's the same thing as with those people that can't play the game because the incorrect detailing on the uniforms makes them furious. Its... just... how can you tell at any zoom level where its possible to play the game?!?!? :dizzy2:
agreeQuote:
Originally Posted by Servius1234
faces are the least of my worries. it also confuses me when people who are making big noise about wating time on new units actually complain about faces. does anyone actually ever play battles so close that they can see the faces??
It's just part of the joy of having to please all of the people all of the time.Quote:
Originally Posted by Daveybaby
I fall squarely onto your side of the equation Davyebaby
Okay, I hope we're resolved on the issue of the importance of faces (or lack thereof). I think the only thing less important would be the diversity in eye color.
As someone who has mostly played GB, can others who have played more factions tell me whether the new units are:
a) just reskins of existing units with the same stats
b) replacement units with different stats
c) additional unit with different stats
I feel like most are B and a very few are C, but I'm not sure.
Also, any word on when this patch is coming?
Also also, ETW post-release support is vastly superior to Relic's support of DOW2 (the other game I was playing, but haven't for months now). Funny how both games cost the same (at least for me to buy, no idea what they cost to make), but ETW is SO much bigger than DOW2, and has also had WAY more post-release support, even though DOW2 was sold with the implicit promise that additional content would be readily available a la Fallout 3's DLCs.
Its not really the faces, its more of the clone army impression that M2TW broke up despite having the same faces and the feeling that TW has taken a step backwards. People just look too much alike despite having 4 faces and 2 uniforms. People from different parts of Europe don't look so similar as to all look like The Mad Magazine guy or Jonathan Frakes circa 1990.
Honestly, I don't really mind that the rank and file infantry look alike but the militias and less disciplined units probably shouldn't as much. Its more of an annoyance than anything else.
And yes, I do zoom in to watch the battle because its fun especially when you can 100% everything and watch the mayhem. Otherwise what's the point of all the eye candy? I'll be happy with whatever they give us anyways.
I just played Empire for the first time since the last patch and for some reason the game is running really slowly even if I lower the settings whereas it ran perfectly previously. Has anyone else reported this issue?
Opposite is true for me, though I also went with windows 7 RC the combination made things a lot better. I suspect you may need to tweak your graphics settings as possibly how graphics interact with hardware was tweaked in the last patch??Quote:
Originally Posted by Quickening
Now word on the patch yet. They are still showing us units.
Quote:
June 15th
Hi guys,
Today's update features a forthcoming free Prussian unit. The Prussian life guards are equipped similarly to line infantrymen. However their uniforms are altogether more splendid, marking them out as a superior force, in arrogance if nothing else. They do a good job as garrison troops and are dedicated to the crown.
Thanks,
Mark O'Connell
(aka SenseiTW)
http://www.totalwarforums.com/
What is it with all these sodding updates?
I just want the game fixed. I haven't played it for about 6 weeks now, waiting for the next patch and I'm starting to get a little impatient with all the fluff that's coming from CA. I'm never one to diss software developers; I work in that field myself and know how hard it can be, but whoever is project managing the curent workload needs to seriously reprioritise :dizzy2: You know what: we don't care about faces and more uniforms can wait for a major content update. What the public is waiting for is not a content update - it's fixes for game killing bugs and mechanics and a bit of balancing.
I'm not sure why this is so hard to grasp :idea2:
Last night, I even reinstalled CIV4 cause I'm sick of waiting for ETW. May 1st was the last update and it was apparent within hours of that release that the game still has fundamental flaws. Why is it that 6-7 weeks later, we've seen nothing released which even attempts to fix these issue? Why is it that CA seem intent on releasing "the mother of all patches" as a panacaea rather than allow us poor folk that paid for the game to actually play it?
/rant over :beam:
Their description makes them sound like a replacement for guard units but with worse stats than normal line infantry. :dizzy2:
I mean if they're really an expensive elite unit, why would they be good for garrison duty?
The people that work on new units are other people then the guys that work on diplomacy/AI or CTD fixes...Quote:
Originally Posted by maestro
'cos they look nice and have shiny buttons. Like the Spanish King's Irish guards in Sharpe...
Doesn't sounds like they'll be of much use though: expensive garrison units. If they cost more than dragoons and don't receive the policing bonus, what's the point of them? Another uniform?
(can we have the patch now please)
I appreciate that. The issue is that why haven't the bug fixes been relseased? Why do we have to wait for new units and faces to be ready before we can play the game? I don't believe for one second that it's taken 6 weeks to fix the bugs found since the last patch - if that is the case then they need to take a long hard look at their resource allocation.
I just find it frustrating when we're sat here, twiddling our thumbs waiting for ... well, an acknowledgement would be a start ... but waiting for fundamental game mechanics to be fixed, for some serious CTDs to be fixed and general bugs to be fixed and the only updates we're getting are about faces.
How about "today we fixed XYZ bug aaaaand we've got some new faces for you. But no: there's bugger all on bug fixes which is what actually counts. Smacks of bleedin' politicians more than developers to me :juggle2:
Prussian fire-by-rank unit with guard reload and accuracy stats would be awesome. That's like rank 5 Prussian line infantry right off the bat.
Policing bonus wouldn't hurt, but wouldn't really help with a unit like that either.
It could be they are playing that kind of game you know.Quote:
Originally Posted by maestro
They are reporting the good things they can talk about.
If it is just the units the art department is turning out then that is all they will say.
Have you ever heard anyone say;
Blast! We just can't figure out how to fix about 70 of the 437 known bugs and every time we try it causes about 6 new ones to crop up! We have fixed a few but we still haven't got to the other 300 yet.
It has been a couple of weeks since the beta patch went out for testing and as we have heard diddily about it in that time , it doesn't sound like a good sign. Just like the multiplayer campaign. It has been mentioned in one or two posts but that leaves you thinking there may be a lot more to do to it...
It's the opposite, the units are already done, what we are waiting for are is the patch to pass testing.Quote:
Originally Posted by maestro
CA tried to do the quick way and that didn't work and only added more bugs so it's much better now when they take their time and make sure the bugs are fixed without adding in too many new bugs.
I suggest you actually read the previous updates.Quote:
Originally Posted by maestro
CA has time and time again stated some of the major fixes that has been done.
Only reason why we haven't gotten the full list yet is because as I said, the patch is in testing.
The fix list might change, some fixes might get removed because they weren't working properly or fixes might be added because they might have discovered a big bug and wanted to add that to the new patch which again the patch has to go through testing.
The units preview is just something to keep us occupied with while they test the patch.
It's better then "well the patch testing is going well, bye" for 1-2 weeks.
Last update about the testing June 5th and stated that the testers were positive about the patch.Quote:
It has been a couple of weeks since the beta patch went out for testing and as we have heard diddily about it in that time
And update about the MP campaign was done June 4th and again things sounded like it was going well.
I hear ya - still could have released ittereative patches to fix game-breaking mechanics. I guess I just call into question the wisdom of trying to fix everything in one patch.
I've just project managed a large software implementation and so-called mission critical patches are written, tested and rolled out to Live in a very short period of time. Big updates can wait but anything that's system-breaking (i.e.game-breaking in this context) gets dealt with quickly.
I certainly agree maestro. However, what I assume they have done is made the decision that for 96% of the user community the game is stable. Therefore they are focusing on a substantial patch to address a number of core areas of the game, including the final stability issues.Quote:
Originally Posted by maestro
I'm certainly not one of those 96% lolQuote:
Originally Posted by AussieGiant
AG, I don't know about % but lots of us just suck up the CTDs and lags, reload if we must and save a lot...Quote:
June 16th
Due to popular demand today's update will be more technical in nature.
1. We made fixes to campaign map data reprocessing.
2. SimpleUniString bug fixes, we corrected some string values so they were default constructed.
3. We changed rebel data storage to store data in regions as well as armies for code sourcing purposes.
4. Reduced the prestige bonus for obtaining technology first, as a rebalance.
5. Unit group speed matching changes implemented. Unit group formations match speed more coherently.
For those of you hoping for new unit details, this will follow shortly.
Kind regards,
Kieran
not much use in complaining if you can find a fix.
Edit: as of now this is half the update! There is a new unit if someone would like to port it over!
They tried that remember with that hotfix that broke the game that needed a hotfix to fix the hotfix? I'm just glad that they are testing right now. I'm willing to wait for an update that won't totally tank everything.Quote:
Originally Posted by maestro
Well, I wonder who gets paid to check this thread every 5 minutes and how much.Quote:
June 16th
Due to popular demand today's update will be more technical in nature.
FK, I agree I'm glossing over the stability issues for those that still have them or those that are simply taking it on the chin and not writing. To those who are then I certainly say "well done" in the interim. And I pray to the programming deities that this patch crushes those last remaining issues for everyone.
I find it pretty interesting that we come out here in this thread saying "a little bit more than fluff" would be nice, and we essentially get a direct response. That's fairly good feedback.
Yep, again, I gotta say I am pretty impressed with CA's post-release attention. I finally finished my first game a few nights ago, which is a milestone for me because unavoidable CTDs had sunk every other one I had started since release. I look forward to the days when my biggest ETW concern is random faces. I'm happy that, while there are still balance and bug issues, CA is listening to us and giving us more info on that side of the equation.
So, I wonder, did anyone here, especially those who have not reverse-engineered the code yet, actually understand what the first three changes mean in practical terms?
I certainly know all/most of the terms used but I can't really say what effect exactly these changes will have, at first it seemed to me like that was done intentionally, people wanted technicalities so they got some that they cannot really understand anyway, if so, I really liked the joke. ~D
If everybody else does know what exactly they do, then I guess I'm the clown of this thread now. :sweatdrop:
I certainly think your correct Husar. They took the piss to a certain extent with the update. Made a point though.:beam:Quote:
Originally Posted by Husar
Second part of the update
Quote:
June 16th
Hi guys,
For the second part of today's daily update, we introduce another free unit - the Prussian Grenadiers. Wearing a distinctive brass fronted mitre cap, the Prussian Grenadiers are an explosive force to be reckoned with on the battlefield.
https://img188.imageshack.us/img188/...grenadiers.jpg
#1 - I dunno.Quote:
Originally Posted by Husar
#2 - String declarations without initialization or something which is pretty minor since it'd probably onle affect displaying text.
#3 - They added some stuff to their extermal data storage structure to add a some new information probably to make the rebels more intellegent.
...Quote:
June 17th:
Today's update concerns the campaign difficulty levels and current balancing. Looking beyond the changes made to the upcoming patch we're continuing to test different campaign scenarios with various difficulties.
We've increased the likelihood of rebellions on the harder settings now.
The patch has also made it into final testing. This means it's frozen, no more changes made and it now needs final approval, providing we find no issues all will be well.
Kind regards,
Kieran
Good to hear about the patch.
Hopefully it goes smooth.
Should we start taking bets as to when the patch will be up?
Provide Day and Month (Assume 2009 you). Winner receives balloon