With a trailer recently released for HW2 and some early previews popping up from GDC and Sierra’s PRE-3 event, what’s your level of excitement for Homeworld 2? Is this a “must-buy day 1” or a “wait for the reviews” kind of game for you? And are you a Homeworld fan or did that game pass you by the first time? - Alex
well, I’m playing homeworld cataclysm right now, and dreading the moment that it ends. so it’s fair to say that i’ll be in line day one.
since, we’ve got a hw thread started here, has anyone played hw:c multiplayer? does it work, and is there an active community?
Garden?
I followed the Homeworld development from really early on. Was a daily participant in the #homeworld IRC room and spent too much time on the relicnews.com site.
Picked up Homeworld and Cataclysm both on release day and played the hell out of them for weeks each. Both had solid single player games that were followed by a satisfying multiplayer system afterwards.
I am excited as all hell that Homeworld 2 is on its way. After I completed the first HW, I really wanted to see the story continued.
And yet… without more information about HW2, I’m not sure if I’m going to pick it up on day 1. I’m not saying I’m going to wait for reviews, but I am going to wait for more information. What changes have been made? That’s a big question.
The graphics look improved (heck, there wasn’t much room for improvement. Homeworld is still one best looking games out there). The ship selection looks like it is more varied.
Dunno though. Going to try my damnedest to get into the beta and see what changes have been made. I’m 27 now with a family and I can’t just drop $50 on a game the way I used to. I don’t want to end up paying $50 for a Westwood style expanson pack (eg. every C&C game after Red Alert).
I know I’ll enjoy the game, but the question becomes; is it worth picking up right away, or do I sit around and wait for a sale?
Garden?[/quote]
:roll: nonononono
It’s funny how often I hear people talk about how the graphics didn’t need improving and that by the looks of things they left them pretty much alone. Pull up HW on your screen, and then pull up a hi-res show of HW2. It’s like comparing a Monet to a photograph. One looks real… until you look at the second and see how much detail it was missing.
Relic has had 3 major areas of work on HW2
- Engine - better graphics, moddability, articulated turrets, etc.
- Interface - easier to use, more functionality
- Depth - hardpoints on mothership, capital ship subsystems, strike groups (this is a huge point)
They’re not reinventing the wheel, which I think is good given how “out there” HW was originally. They’re polishing, refining, improving, and expanding - a great design for a solid sequel that doesn’t forsake its roots.
Wait and see. I did like the original HW quite a bit, although I think the research aspect was underdeveloped, and while it was fun to abuse salvage corvettes, it wasn’t exactly balanced. :D
NB: I haven’t really been keeping up on any of the news/screen shots/previews for it, so I am ignorant of what is changing for the sequel…
Garden?[/quote]
:roll: nonononono[/quote]
Close, though:
http://www.quartertothree.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=13295&highlight=#13295
I’m glad they’re not changing the core of the game. HW and Cataclysm, as I said, were both great games that I still enjoy playing.
I tend to enjoy Cataclysm more than the orginal Homeworld because Cataclysm was an evolutionary step. You can see that there were opportunities to improve the core system, and the makers of Cataclysm did that.
So when I’m asking about “what has changed?”, I’m mainly wondering about what little improvements were made. I don’t want a new game, but I am curious about the tweeks.
Are they using the Cataclysm system of salvage/worker combo ships, or are they different ships again? Has the fighter/corvette/capital ship rock/paper/scissors system been refined to the point that it works? (capital ships ended up being the end all be all of ships. Fighters were supposed to be a good way to stop capital ships and were designed to force players to utilize all 3 ship types. The problem is, fighters took so long to do any real damage to a capital ship that they were next to useless. Bombers worked nicely in huge waves, but you were better served spending the resources on a mixture of Destroyers and Missile Destroyers. Fighters were only useful for early harassment of harvesters, but were easily detered by a small number of Defenders).
Anyway, I’m sure I’ll find out everything I want to know in time.
RE: Graphics. I commented in my first post that it I was surprised that they managed to improve the graphics. I noticed in the movie that they seem to have increased the ship detail, and have even improved hte already excellent explosions. I’m looking forward to seeing the graphics in full 1280 x 1024 glory when the game is released.
I may talk big about being able to resist the draw of buying the game on release day… but I know I’m probably going to preorder from EBWorld and spend a few sleepless nights playing it after it arrives.
Garden?[/quote]
:roll: nonononono[/quote]
Close, though:
http://www.quartertothree.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=13295&highlight=#13295
[/quote]
[size=7]BUSTED![/size]
:lol:
Homeworld 2 is pretty low down on the radar for RTS fans right now; for most id say its not even on it at all. Impossible Creatures killed any lingering ‘faith’ in Relic and now HW2 is seen as a having a huge chance of being released incomplete in the rush to release after Impossible Creatures bombed. Also, HW wasn’t widely accepted in the RTS community, for one or another reason, although it was well regarded by those who did get it.
For me personally its ‘meh’; while i liked it at the time it was a bit immature and despite some good ideas wasn’t well balanced. Sierra seemed to totally drop the ball in multiplayer; i was in both beta (the 1st and 2nd public) and as soon as a patch allowed players to skirmish vs. the AI rather than force them to play human opponents, players evaporated, and it seemed from that they drew the conclusion multi sucked, and apparently set it far down in importance. With Frozen Throne, Rise of Nations, AoM expansion, HW2 will hit the market saturated, so had better have damn fine graphics and gameplay to get attention.
Help any? :)
Multiplayer is a bigger emphasis in HW2, though single player is still the main draw. You mention some good RTS’s coming out, but none of them deliver on the same goodness that HW or HW2 did. Every RTS I’ve played besides HW has been a rehash of Warcraft II, with very little variance in the formula. The 3D strategies possible in HW2 sets it far apart from those.
Of course I agree that as far as the mass market is concerned, it doesn’t show up higher than the games you menitoned - just with experienced hardcore players.
P.S. Yes, a Sierra MARketing WEASel. Thought that was self-evident. ;)
I think most complaints come from we Windows 2000 and XP users who simply wished OpenGL support was a bit better.
I preferred the slight enhancements in HW:C, but hated the virus storyline even if it reminded me of the PnP RPG “Traveller: The New Era”, mostly because I wanted more regular fleet on fleet actions without the infections.
Even though it was still “Battlestar Galactica”, I prefered the wagon train home storyline of the original.
I just assumed you had a Tolkien elf fetish.
I loved the style and presentation of HW. My main problem with the series is I don’t want resource collecting, teching and building. My interest is strictly in the battles. The fact that I was a die hard Myth player for years has nothing to do with it. Neither does the large David Weber collection on my bookshelf. :roll:
I did a preview of Homeworld for CGW, and loved the game.
Then, the release version game came out, and the “pause and give orders” feature had been ripped out. The single-player game was so much better with that feature (more strategy, less clickfest) that I just didn’t enjoy it without it.
So, if the new one has a “pause and give orders” feature, I’m excited. Otherwise, nah. :-)
Homeworld: Cataclysm put that feature back in, IIRC.
Today’s Penny Arcade removes the last shreds of anonymity the Marketing Weasel might have enjoyed.
I spoke with Alex Rodberg (a.k.a. “Marweas”), Sierra’s “Brand Manager” for the Tribes franchise a couple days ago.
Of course, most of you clever industry people probably figured it out yesterday. As a clueless outsider I need all the help I can get.
Hmmm… Looks like I need to find a copy of that!
Does it “retro” add it to the original Homeworld as well?
LMAO!!! Man, I can’t wait to read Alex’s next post. :D