Easier Ship Sharing IE Downloading & uploading other user created ships

In game program to load and manage custom built ships?

from GalCiv2 Forums
Ok so why aren't there many user created ships being shared or available for download ? I'm thinking it's probably because there isn't an easy way to do this or it isn't well published how to do this.

I don't know if this is feasible or possible but one idea that struck me as kind of obvious and that would galvanize a crazy ship building community that is already out there (just check out that ship threadLink ) is if there was an in game Custom Ship Manager.
This Custom Ship Manager should make it easy for us to load up custom designed ships and manage which ones we want to appear in a particular game (instead of having all the user ships available at one time which can be overwhelming in a game). It would give a point and click interface to a procedure that right now is a bit round about to install ships, which is extracting the files to particular folders etc. The Custom Ship Manager wouldn't have to be in the game but can be accessed through the main menu.

Another useful feature might be some type of checking utility that would tell the player what files they are missing if they're trying to install a custom ship.
Ability to access the Shipyard or a Shipyard like Utility with full library of hulls, jewels, etc outside of the game IE not having to create a map and game to do this.
Error-checking mechanism so that we can check to see if our designs will show up in the game and at what stage (required hulls/weapons).

Deleting unwanted Mods and custom ship downloads.

Perhaps another feature would be it could connect to the web and right into the downloads section of the website's Library and players could upload and download easily. Right now all I see is 3 downloads in the "Ship" section of the library which is funny because I know for sure there are so many ships out there that really creative and artistic users have created that a bunch of people would love to download and use in the game but don't know how or can't get access to it (b/c the creators don't know how to upload their creations).

I think the long-term benefits of making it easier for the ship building community would be tremondous not only in adding more value and enjoyment but also increasing customer loyalty. I hate bringing up other game's as an example but I must say the Skin and objects community of the Sims is really strong and I think that's because they provided the community with really easy to use utilities that made integrating user created works into the game very easy to do.

-my 2 cents,
ehnProdigy

p.s. I apologize in advance if some or all of these features are already in the game and I just happen to not know about it.
3,575 views 4 replies
Reply #1 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Hi, I'm brand new here, and have not found a FAQ thread relating to this. If it exists, please don't shoot me; point a blind person like me to it kindly, if you would!

I am a graphically challenged person. I have no sense of scale or perspective, and couldn't create a ship design if my life depended on it. My efforts in the shipbuilder have led me to frustration, though I recognize that it is a great way for people to essentially create their own ship mods without doing any modding.

So, my questions are:

1) Is it possible to import someone else's ship designs into one's own game?

2) If so, are there any ship sets available for download currently?

3) If yes, could someone please point me to them?

I am not a huge fan of the starting ship skeletons, but I can't build my own, so I hope the answers to these are yes. Based on the above post, it seems that the answer to 1) is yes, but one can never be sure.

Thanks for your help!

-khel
Reply #2 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Prodigy,

I couldnt agree more, last night I discovered a bug (unsure if it has been fixed, running original game) where I had named several versions of a ship design the same name - this was working fine till I reloaded my game and all the old designs appeared, not just this but when I told my planets to build the latest version with the latest weapons, they reverted to building the original version (with no weapons) so I had fleets of ships with no weapons .

then I tried deleting the ship files where the game saves them, but when I reloaded there they all were again

then i tried to mod the savegame file - so that was the end of that game

this is a critical issue facing this game

the user has to be able to manage these ship designs, especially if the game is going to keep all the old versions of ship, and preferentially build version 1

cheers
Galactic Civilizations III
Reply #3 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Keep your eyes peeled for unofficial fan site stuff like Darth Griffin's Galactic Core. www.thegalacticcore.com

He's agreed (in another thread) to start hosting mods and stuff. Currently, there are several ships to look at and download if you like.

I don't disagree with your post, just pointing out where you can start getting some ships

So without further ado, I'd like to answer some questions before I go.

1) Is it possible to import someone else's ship designs into one's own game?


Yes. I've done it myself with the ships from the link I provided. and that answers #2 and #3 also.
I would also suggest getting Kryo's hull mod since you'll need that found in the galactic library on this site, yes a readme with instructions is in the zip.


~enjoy.

Reply #4 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
It's *possible*, but it's a pain in the ass. How hard would it be to simply have an 'import design' function? Many players aren't going to jump through the hoops required to get the designs of others working in their games.