Nookrium (youtube/twitch) is doing a live play later today and I noticed he has a discount code worth 20% off over on on Slitherine’s site. Code: Nookrium20. I jumped on the game the second it was released and sadly missed out on the code.
Wargamer has the same discount. Code is wargamer20.
I’m on the fence on this. In my younger days I would have been all over it like stink on a baboon, but at my age and stage in life I prefer simpler games, not those that require me to absorb a 350 page manual.
I guess my standards for the “lift test” have changed as I’ve gotten older.
Right there with you, I’m holding off till I’m convinced it’s worth the lift required because while 350 page manual is welcome in that it likely means most of your questions are answered it also means there’s a lot of minutia to figure out and just as you said my standards for the amount of work I’m willing to put in has changed over time.
Is it possible/easy to replace the in-game portraits?
Wargamer used to be owned by Slitherine the publisher of Shadow Empire just fyi if that matters to anyone.
Anyways I am buying it :) Looks great!
That’s how I am. In my find I hear about something like this game and think I’ll dive into it. In reality I’ll start it up and stare at it and then play something simpler.
The manual has a ton of lore and background sci fi fiction that isn’t strictly needed to play the game. It’s hard to tell off hand how much of the manual’s bulk is truly vital.
And yes, the visual look of the game is a bit shy of AAA territory, to be sure. Does the job, especially in terms of map and units, but the typefaces, fonts, typesetting, and portrait art are all sort of awkward at times.
Yes but how does it PLAY? :)) Awkward but intriguing? Geeky but appealing? Shy but seductive…? Guess I will know after I actually have time to play this puppy on the weekend.
However, the ancestor of the game, Advanced Tactics WW2, played surprisingly fast compared to wargames of a similar scale.
At least, there was an option to make small games that would be short and satisfying to play (while I could never really get into The Operational Art of War).
I feel the same way lately and I’m glad to hear it’s not me. I sigh when I think about reading manuals and watching videos to learn some new game because I’m afraid I’m not going to like it.
Especially a worry with somewhere like Slitherine where they won’t give out refunds.
I’m worried about the text size on my 4K, and whether their scaling options are going to make it readable for me. It’s an expensive gamble…
I wish it were on Steam already so I had the option of refunding if needed.
Is anyone playing at 4K?
Just downloaded, and hope to give it a look tonight. Not playing on 4k, so sorry, no idea. Text size looks okay on my laptop.
The previews / reviews make it sound great & it certainly name-checks the right influences!
But OTOH it’s a little hard on my (getting older) eyes & the first 100 or so pages of the manual I’ve read barely make sense. Many unexplained acronyms, minimal copy editing, the creeping feeling that lots of very necessary info is being lost in translation.
Diego
I am. There’s some scaling options in the preferences and I have mine on 7/8 resolution (125% DPI) and it’s not bad (definitely not quite as crisp though)
The manual says:
The options to the left (7/8, ¾, etc…) keep your actual screen resolution the same but adjust the DPI of the rendering. Downside of using this options is that unless you are using the ½ Resolution option the graphics and especially some fonts might turn a bit a fuzzy. Its important to stress that the ½ Resolution button (only available on 4K monitors and better) is the only one that gives a truly clean result.
Edited to add I have a 32" monitor so YMMV if it’s a different size…
So far this seems like a great summary of the game, good and bad (direct from the manual)
For a strategy game there is a relatively strong role-playing angle where you’ll need to keep your Leaders happy in order for them to do their jobs well and not get any ideas of rebellion.
There is a lot of potential micro management to engage in and to offset this the game has Stratagems that allow sweeping actions by just clicking the ‘Execute Stratagem’ button. This allows a mental break from the micromanagement stuff, for helping the player get out of a fix and enforcing the
thematics as well.
This game is one of the most ambitious games I ever made. It has grown complex and that is why it took years to build and probably will take a few years more to completely fine-tune. (don’t be afraid all complex games need a few more years to fine-tune, I am just stating it honestly)
The only thing i would add to that, you are going to RTFM or watch youtub videos, because they made a lot of interface choices, that are not intuitive. Otherwise loving the vibe from it, and the potential/apparent depth!
Also on the manual 26 pages of lore! Vic loved making this game i think :)
Yeah I guess it’s tough to judge anecdotally because screen size and how far you sit make a big difference. I have a 55" and sit a few meters away, and run 300% DPI scaling in Windows. Looking at the size of stuff on the promotional screens I get the strong feeling that everything will be too tiny for me.
If it’s not too much trouble, maybe you could post a screenshot running at 4K res with the highest DPI scaling the game allows? Then I could check it on my screen. :)
I guess the DPI options shown depend on your screen too, the screenshot in the manual only has two:
What is the largest percentage it allows on your 4K?
1/2 is the largest, I get 4 options on my 4k rig rather than the 2 in the manual.
I can put some screenies up tomorrow if you’d like
Fwiw, I’m using a 32" 4k monitor and I run SE at 2560x1440 using the in-game Res picker and that gives a properly scaled but larger font display.
I reckon you could pick 1929x1080 and it’s fill the screen well
Well that’s the thing, (to be extra needy) with these types of games I’d like to be running in a borderless mode at native res, so I can easily refer to the manual. :)
It does have a borderless window mode doesn’t it?
It doesn’t release on Steam until later in the year - which is the problem for those of us unsure if it will play nice with screen resolutions, as there are no refunds.
(Slitherine/Matrix purchase will get you a Steam key later)