GalCiv 1.6 Betas about to begin...

For the daring

from JoeUser Forums

This next week we hope to release the first of the 1.6 Galactic Civilizations II: Dark Avatar betas.  This will be the first major update since release as we look through feedback to see what new features we can look at adding, what play balancing we can do, and what sorts of game play issues we need to address.

One of the requirements we've made is to make the game run a lot faster on lower end hardware.  We have this working internally and the results should be pretty significant even in the first beta. The big thing we did was add ship stacking -- only the top most ship on a tile actually will get drawn and ones underneath will be representated by a symbol. 

For some people, the improved graphics if Dark Avatar come with a price -- slower performance. It shouldn't affect most people (I did all my AI work on an ATI 9800 Pro without problems).  But for people with lower range video cards playing on very large galaxies, all the extra polygons do eventually add up.

We're also looking through suggestions on the computer players. As many of you know, for me, computer AI is the core element of the game.  So finding new ways to improve it and make it more challenging is what makes the whole thing worth doing for me. 

You could even go as far as to say that if it weren't for the constructive AI suggestions we've seen, there'd be fewer updates since there'd be less motivation to do the updates.   I love a good idea from people playing the game.

Internally we've started migrating some of the engine tools from our unannounced fantasy TBS into GalCiv II:DA 1.6 which allow us to optimize performance a little better.  Going forward, some of the dual core and quad core drawing routines may make their way into the GalCiv II engine too (though it really depends on sales since such work would require increasing the after-release budget).

This weekend I hope to work more on the AI.  I'd like to add more text to the alien dialog in this update but there's an expense attached to that since it requires translation into a bajillion languages.

I also would like to add some new custom maps and scenarios but would like to hear if anyone plays those like I do.

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Reply #1 from JoeUser Forums Top
I also would like to add some new custom maps and scenarios but would like to hear if anyone plays those like I do.


I will always try the scenarios, I love how they twist your normal approach to the game after you've mastered the sandbox. Maps alone are not as interesting.

Many of GalCiv II's scenarios seemed to test the same skill; how fast you can get out of the gate before the computer realizes what's happening. The funnest one was the one where the Dread Lords actually got to build ships and start taking over the galaxy and you had to beat them back. The long game, in other words. It was also very fun to have different starting technologies and see how that affected the ships you could design.

GalCiv I had amazing scenarios. The one with all the resources in the center for you to race to. The giant duel with you and the Altarians against the Korx and the Torians. The duel against the Torians that you had to play five times to figure out how to win. All nice long matches, but a very different experience from the sandbox because of different goals and different starting technologies.
Reply #2 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
would like to hear if anyone plays those like I do.


Yes. I enjoy the custom maps. Makes for some interesting games.

Since I'm one of those lower end users, I look forward to the enhancements geared toward making the game run smoother. Keep up the great work.   

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Reply #3 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I like the idea of scenarios also. You can do things with a scenario that we, as players, cannot. You can change the goals and victory conditions, starting abilities and techs, and setup of the galaxy in new and interesting ways; this could make them like a 'game within a game'.
I'd like to add more text to the alien dialog in this update but there's an expense attached to that since it requires translation into a bajillion languages.


I have always liked the dialog in GalCiv. Some of it is quite clever, and rather funny. When I first started playing the game, I would often laugh out loud at some of the things those crazy aliens said, and I would definitely like to see more of it. Why not ask for help in translation? There are players on the forums that speak every one of those "bajillion" languages. I'm sure that they would be thrilled at the chance to be a real part of the process. It could be done via e-mail. Start a thread, and ask for volunteers. I might suggest taking three translations from each language, if possible. There are a few jokers out there, and it just wouldn't do for "I reject your offer" to be translated as "Your mother just swallowed my condom"

Add my thanks to those that have come before for the hard work you and your crew do to keep making a great game even better.
Reply #4 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Looking forward to the first beta as we all love new enhancements

Carry on the good work Frogboy   
Reply #5 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Brad is there to be an update to the minor AI to make them more aggressive as hinted in the question and answer session you hosted?
Reply #6 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Tch. Aren't they already aggressive? In my last game on tough, the Carinoids and Jessuins went around declaring war on the Terrans and Korath.
They.. got their butts kicked, granted. But they were.. aggressive.
Reply #7 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I'm looking forward to the better performance as well. Is there going to be any work done to tech trading after the last patch made it very difficult?
Reply #8 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
What I think would get more people to play the scenarios are better descriptions for them -- the in-game descriptions give a real brief overview of the type, but don't specify things like galaxy size, etc...

Maybe I'm thinking about the map choices (strife, Milky Way, etc) -- THOSE could really use some descriptions!!
Reply #9 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Hoping this update solves my lag and graphic problems. Looking forward to it.

Saving up for a new computer anyway.
Reply #10 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I wonder just how much of the ideas in that monster thread are going to end up in this patch, or a later one. Some of them were pretty far out there, but a lot of them were fairly reasonable.
Reply #11 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
And this is why Stardock has taken its place as my favorite game company. For he's a jolly good fellow...
Reply #12 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Are we going to see tech trading adjusted? It still kills me that I can barely get a 3 for 1 on most of my trades.
Reply #13 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Personally, I don't play the campaign or the scenarios, and don't have any interest in them.

Sandbox mode is MORE than sufficient for me. I'm good at this game, but not an expert. The AI still challenges me at high difficulty settings, and I haven't even tried the AI on it's highest. That keeps me going.

I'm not pooh-poohing scenarios, I'm sure they rock... but just giving you some feedback as to how many people play them.
Reply #14 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
YOU RULE FROGBOY!!! YOU ARE OFFICIALLY THE ICON OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE!! YOU GET 1000/1000 FROM ME.
Reply #15 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I am really looking forward to the beta's. It gives us players a chance to help you with our feedback before the final product is released.

I personally don't play the scenario's, but I think it's because I haven't found one interesting enough to do. (But that's just me)

I also am looking forward to your new and improved AI, and hope like Teancum that the trade negotiations are a bit more realistic.

Great job!!! I have never had a developer do better!   
Reply #16 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
How about adding hot-seat multiplayer? Can´t be *too* difficult, as the "structures" are still build into the engine and you kinda, sorta can cheat yourself a hot-seat match anyway. ^^

No, really. I imagine the whole network stuff for *real* multiplayer would be tons of work, but hot-seat basically is "add another player and let them play turn after turn".

I miss my MOO2 hot-seat afternoons with my friends.
Reply #17 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I really hope the off-type defense bug is fixed in the beta's. I've given up on playing until this is fixed. Even my last medium galaxy game was killed by it.
Reply #18 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I'm looking forward to increased performance on low end hardware as I really haven't been able to play since upgrading to dark avatar.

For me it doesn't take that many ships on screen to really slow things down. Can you maybe give us some more graphics options to control performance? I suspect that low performance on my machine might have to do with how the ships are being lit and shaded, and I'd like to turn number of lights, and any shader stuff you might be doing down or off.

Adding more options to turn down rendering detail helps a lot in terms of making the same game run on a lot of different hardware. Also maybe some level of detail variation with distance from the ships? Considering that most of the time the ships are only a n inch across on the screen, I don't need a ton of polygons and high resolution textures.
Reply #19 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Absolutely. Yes. More maps and scenario please. I'll play being playing GC2 for at least another year.

Btw are you planning a second expansion before a GC3 ?
Reply #20 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Maybe you could give players the option to used a web based display like the database uses, with little pictures of the tutorials. Also the tutorial on rally points could be improved by showing a better example, like nameing one after the star system its in, and I would like to see a tutorial on the civ manager as well. The game is fantastic, don't missunderstand me; I used to just play Rebellion because GalCiv1 wasn't quit as good. Now I just play GalCiv2. I think the game needs a few improvements to cut down on excessive/redundant forum traffic - like adding a star base management screen similar to the civ manager(it could even be a submenu). The rally point system also seems to be a little buggy - whenever I use it to change rally points it always selects every ship instead of the ones specifically designated as using the specific rally point. Maybe this a bug and not an improvement??? If I have fleets standing guard they all go to the new rally point even though I never assigned them a rally point to begin with. I would like to be able to see what ships are assigned which rally points and their destination times on a screen similar to the civ manager; It could even be included in my starbase management suggestion. I think the game also needs to handle colony rally points for constructors seperately from regular fleet rally points - so I can control my SB upgrades more effectively. When I play a SB influence game on a gigantic map the details really grind - it can take me 30 minutes to figure everything out each move and literally hundreds of moves. Of course there should be a tutorial with the new features (released together hopefully). And then the game really needs some learning senarios referenced in the tutorials, that allow the player to apply the techniques covered in the tutorials. That way the player can learn how to apply the specific tutorial lessons with out having to deal with the AI (i.e. special victory conditions without an AI where the players learns how to run his economy, manage a military, manage moral, use rally points, and engage in fleet combats with a enemy ships only [no AI worlds that overwhelm the newbies with tons of ships]), etc. Also a better fleet combat simulator would be awesome (its one of the features in Rebellion I think still rocks, even though I can't design ships like in GalCiv2)! Finally, after much thought I think it would be appropriate for players to be able to design SB modules themselves! Just as ships were canned in GalCiv1 and are now designable in GalCiv2. I think GalCiv3 should allow players to design SB modules themselves with the shipyard or have the option to use the canned modules like we can currently with ships. It would allow players/AI with the appropriate techs to make more survivable modules and SBs in the end game. And how about an optional AI learning mode which could be enabled or disabled by the player that collects basic information on specific player tactics for the AI to use in tough or higher modes?
Reply #21 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Just a correction: I think the game needs a few improvements to cut down on excessive/redundant forum traffic - like adding a star base management screen similar to the civ manager(it could even be a submenu).

should have followed: When I play a SB influence game on a gigantic map the details really grind - it can take me 30 minutes to figure everything out each move and literally hundreds of moves. Of course there should be a tutorial with the new features (released together hopefully).

Also the AI learning mode should be a custom senario on a small map where the AI weighted heuristic tables for specific attributes could be graphically interfaced (GUI) with game components (planets, ships, etc.) for easy updating/modding/tweaking for those who want more challenge. And NEVER EVER EVER consider multiplayer for GALCIV because that will kill the AI and its really the main attraction for this game. Lets face it, multiplayer will doom GalCiv to the same fate as Legions of Iron (which was a pretty good game but had scripted AI ...
Reply #22 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I'm downloading the newest builds now (250mb heightmaps lol) but I'm somewhat disappointed to see that custom maps still don't have thumbnails. Looking for 'that one with the spirals' is impossible. I'm not asking for dynamic thumbnails that change as you alter map settings (which would be neat), just a single thumbnail per custom map to show you what it is. No start positions, no big hints, just something identifiable. I was surprised when there were no such thumbnails (forcing everyone to play each map just to find out if they wanted to play it) when it's pretty standard in any game with selectable maps.

In any case, it's fantastic that the game is still supported, and the AI plays a *far* better game than it did at launch. I'm not a big fan of tying the storyline (which I have zero interest in) to sandbox race stats, however. Aside from the UI clumsiness and excessive clicking, it's a fantastic game.