Game is Fantastic

Goatman455 · Post by **Goatman455** » Sat Apr 09, 2011 6:27 am

Finally, someone made one of these games right. Sure, at times it's rough around the edges, but as someone who has tried every open ended space sim out there, this is one that finally got it right.

Complete open-endedness, no BS HyperJump restrictions, Even the ability to fly into the atmosphere freely.

It isn't the first to do all this, but something about it just feels right. No argument the game could use more polish, but I'll take concept over implementation any day on a space sim. I have seen many that were polished and tightly focused but just failed to grasp the concept that freedom, openness, and atmosphere is what this genre is inherently about.

I hope the developers keep not only updating this game, but producing new games as well.

Well done, best $30 bucks I have spent in a long time.

What does everyone else think?

[Edited on 4-9-2011 by Goatman455]

Post by **Marvin** » Sat Apr 09, 2011 6:33 am

warsign · Post by **warsign** » Sat Apr 09, 2011 6:36 am

From post: 105414, Topic: tid=7481, author=Goatman455 wrote:
What does everyone else think of the game?

I play Starwraith 3d games for 3 years. I played Renegades, Legends,Arvoch and finally Mercenary. Just one word can describe this situation and the games. Amazing!

[Edited on 4-9-2011 by warsign]

MiaZ · Post by **MiaZ** » Sat Apr 09, 2011 12:08 pm

From post: 105414, Topic: tid=7481, author=Goatman455 wrote:Finally, someone made one of these games right.

It isn't the first to do all this, but something about it just feels right.

Well done, best $30 bucks I have spent in a long time.

What does everyone else think?

I think I agree 100%

Scavenger4711 · Post by **Scavenger4711** » Sat Apr 09, 2011 12:54 pm

Yes this game truly is a masterpiece!

When you have a look at other space-sims then you'll recognize that neraly everyone feels the same - for me they all look/feel like a clone of Freelancer (yes, Freelancer also might be a "clone" of some other game. But that's the first one I ever really played for a long time

)

For me the special things in Evochron are the atmosphere, it's endless freedom and the newtonian physics.

49rTbird · Post by **49rTbird** » Sat Apr 09, 2011 2:59 pm

Hello Goatman455, Welcome to the forum and the Sim. Have fun and hope to see you out there sometime.

Ravenfeeder · Post by **Ravenfeeder** » Sat Apr 09, 2011 6:04 pm

Whadda ya mean it's got rough edges, and needs some polish - like where, and how?

Imho, it's the best darn space sim game ever developed, and, as I'm nigh on 68, I've been around a few.

Shieldwolf · Post by **Shieldwolf** » Sat Apr 09, 2011 7:24 pm

wwwwwWoof. Awesome game and welcome to the EM universe. See ya out there.

Maarschalk · Post by **Maarschalk** » Sat Apr 09, 2011 9:37 pm

From post: 105414, Topic: tid=7481, author=Goatman455 wrote:
I hope the developers keep not only updating this game, but producing new games as well.

Well done, best $30 bucks I have spent in a long time.

What does everyone else think?

[Edited on 4-9-2011 by Goatman455]

Hi Goatman455, welcome to the game and forum.

The Developers? These games of Evochron are a one man show...LOL....and they are awsome...the games that is....and of course also the one developer Vice is awsome....

:P:P:P:P:P

Goatman455 · Post by **Goatman455** » Sat Apr 09, 2011 10:15 pm

Wow, one person is doing all this? Amazing.

"Whadda ya mean it's got rough edges, and needs some polish - like where, and how?"

When I said polish I didn't mean that in a super negative way, I was just trying to be objective, not to let my personal love for the game get in the way of my judgment.

Knowing this is a one man show, changes everything but I just kind of meant some of the screens (like the Map Screen) could be redone a little better I thought, the stations are massive, but we only see a single docking screen, not much to do there. I have heard the manual isn't very good, but I found the tutorials in game to be very well done.

Really, they aren't huge things, nitpicks really, I mean if the game had a large team or bigger budget, I am sure it would be a non issue.

Don't take it the wrong way, like I said, I would rather have an ambitious and well thought out concept prioritized over the exacting implementation and polish.

In a game of this scale, with an independent developer, these things will naturally happen. The other end of the spectrum is having a linear story in 1 sector with a ship or two to choose from. I think we are all happy with the way it turned out.

Again, it's just my opinion but I think that with small budgets you either have: Tightly focused and polished, or Ambitious and rough around the edges.

Personally, I'll take the ambitious game any day. I am loving the game, super happy with it, and I think it is one of the best Privateer/Elite style games of all time, and considering I just found out it is made by one person, that is just an amazing accomplishment. Hard to believe the quality and polish is as high as it is considering all of that.

Besides, look at Call of Duty Black Ops. That game had a huge budget and huge teams and the PC version came out buggy as hell. They were so rushed some people can't even play the game properly.

It just goes to show you how much better things turn out when people care about what they do, have passion for it, and focus on the quality of the experience over the business $$$ end of it.

Wish there were more developers (or people) out there like this.

[Edited on 4-10-2011 by Goatman455]

Goatman455 · Post by **Goatman455** » Sun Apr 10, 2011 4:34 am

Game is so good, had to make another reply about it, having massive amount of fun.

BTW, I do think the interface is really good. I mean given the complication of what is being presented here, the interface handles it extremely well. I read a review that said it was too complicated and I had to laugh, it's trying to simulate spaceships, how can you do that simply without ruining the game? I have played countless simplistic space sims and most all get boring very quick, but this one manages all that complication within a very simple interface, and that depth equals more fun.

How is this crammed into 200-350 mb? Is it just really tight, efficient code?

Ravenfeeder · Post by **Ravenfeeder** » Sun Apr 10, 2011 12:19 pm

Something else I feel I should point out. If there are any legitimate problems with the game, or, any worthwhile changes suggested, Vice, the one-man developer, is on it, sometimes within minutes. The game is constantly changing, and evolving. Then there are the various mods contributed by various, talented, players such as Warsign, and Accountant. There's also an extremely good nebula background mod by another player, whose name, unfortunately, I can't remember (old age problem).

There's the Rem1 server, mad Mike, who provides his dedicated services free of charge, and, offers advice to players who may get stuck.

Welcome to the forum, and the game. I hope to see you in MP, which, imho, is the best venue to enjoy the game,

GORF · Post by **GORF** » Sun Apr 10, 2011 1:24 pm

From post: 105527, Topic: tid=7481, author=Ravenfeeder wrote:Something else I feel I should point out. If there are any legitimate problems with the game, or, any worthwhile changes suggested, Vice, the one-man developer, is on it, sometimes within minutes. The game is constantly changing, and evolving. Then there are the various mods contributed by various, talented, players such as Warsign, and Accountant. There's also an extremely good nebula background mod by another player, whose name, unfortunately, I can't remember (old age problem).

There's the Rem1 server, mad Mike, who provides his dedicated services free of charge, and, offers advice to players who may get stuck.

Welcome to the forum, and the game. I hope to see you in MP, which, imho, is the best venue to enjoy the game,

You hit the nail square on the head with this post .A few years back I bought UT3 from atari .......couldnt play at all with my joystick , joined thier forum ,submitted an issue , last I checked they still havent fixed in over 3 years lolol:)

To sum it up ,Vice 's games and the community behind them are second to none.

mooooo and welcome

Goatman

[Edited on 4-10-2011 by GORF]

Avenger · Post by **Avenger** » Sun Apr 10, 2011 2:58 pm

There are some rough edges, like all games out there, some have more then others, this has few but none the less they are there.

For instance the capital ships in this game are pretty tame, they don't strike fear into the hearts of pilots in a smaller ship.
This makes the capital ship pretty much "useless" other then the carrier it has little to no function on the big picture.

1 pilot in a Ferret can blast a capital ship into space garbage with cannons and lasers, that is just wrong.
In many games I played a capital ship is a fearful opponent and it needs more then 1 ship to take out.
I know this game is supposed to be a solo survivor type of game but this is drifting towards silly.

If someone offered me a job on a capital ship in EM I would decline it due to not wanting to work in a branch with a survival chance of 0% if you end up in a fight against 1 commited skilled scout ship pilot.

Another thing is the rediculous damage from Fulcrum Torpedoes and Proximity mines and the amount you can carry, another reason you shouldn't want to be a crewmember on a capital ship in EM.
You can bring 1 Excalibur Pack or 8 small missiles and your missile bays are full but you can also bring 8 FT's instead that can blow a hole in a planet if the game engine allowed it.

Again going to the Ferret, a little scout ship can carry FT's inside that puny little hull..........how?

Then there are those chickens in MP that use FT's in dogfights.........lmao.

What would be more logical is that the proximity damage is reduced as well as the overall damage to make it more like a tactical weapon instead of a miniture nuke and give capital ships a defense against incomming FT's.
As well as more defensive weapons against smaller ships so that taking one out really is a challenge.
That and reduce the amount you can carry in a relative small space ship.

In all fairness I am more afraid of a garbage dumpster full of rotting coffee filters and egg shells rolling off a hill then a capital ship in EM.

Ravenfeeder · Post by **Ravenfeeder** » Sun Apr 10, 2011 4:55 pm

Come on, Avenger. If cap ships were more destructive, more durable, you'd be stuck, in SP, to doing box missions. The same would apply in MP unless you could get others to help you.

You have to strick a balance between reality and practiclity.

I like FTs. Nothing funnier than someone launching an FT at you, missing, and blowing themselves up. And, they do great explosions.

Post by **Marvin** » Sun Apr 10, 2011 5:04 pm

From post: 105537, Topic: tid=7481, author=Avenger wrote:Again going to the Ferret, a little scout ship can carry FT's inside that puny little hull..........how?

I'd imagine it would be similar to how a puny F-16 can carry a nuke.

Avenger · Post by **Avenger** » Sun Apr 10, 2011 6:56 pm

In single player you can own a fleet, so I don't see any problems there, and in multiplayer you will definately find others to tag along for a challenge.

Besides, when you do WZ contracts you even get AI support from military ships as well, on top of your single player fleet or multiplayer group.

Goatman455 · Post by **Goatman455** » Sun Apr 10, 2011 7:57 pm

From post: 105527, Topic: tid=7481, author=Ravenfeeder wrote:Something else I feel I should point out. If there are any legitimate problems with the game, or, any worthwhile changes suggested, Vice, the one-man developer, is on it, sometimes within minutes. The game is constantly changing, and evolving. Then there are the various mods contributed by various, talented, players such as Warsign, and Accountant. There's also an extremely good nebula background mod by another player, whose name, unfortunately, I can't remember (old age problem).

There's the Rem1 server, mad Mike, who provides his dedicated services free of charge, and, offers advice to players who may get stuck.

Welcome to the forum, and the game. I hope to see you in MP, which, imho, is the best venue to enjoy the game,

Definitely, you helped me realize something a little more solidly when I read this: This game is so clearly a labor of love. That's why it "feels" right, because Vice clearly is not only the developer but also a fan and player of these games. He knows what's fun, what's not, what's efficient, what's not, and it just beams through in every facet of the game.

In a day and age where companies are moving from one game to the next trying to make $$$ I think it's confidence inspiring to see someone so committed to making their vision a reality and making it the best possible game they can with the resources available.

Obviously Vice is very, very skilled but it just shows you what one person can achieve with dedication and commitment to their craft and product.

If these huge games from big companies that came out had even 1/4 of their staff with the same skill and attitude, we would literally be in a different world of gaming.

I hope this effort serves as a lesson to all budding programmers or developers out there: If you really love what you make, it shows in the end result. Not only that, but that it is possible in this day and age to still do things the "right" way. It may not be as easy or profitable as rolling through relea$e after relea$e, but the customer can tell the difference in the end quality and more importantly, the intangible "feel" of the product. When it's been thought through and so well designed, people can just tell.

One thing I can suggest is: MORE MARKETING!!!

This game is too good to slip through the cracks because people never realized it existed. I will do all I can to spread the word, because the game is that good, but one man can only do so much.

I really hope Vice becomes rich and famous for what he's done, he certainly deserves it. Even if he doesn't though, this game made a lot of people happy, and will do so for a long time to come.

You can breath a sigh of relief, because it still pays to do things the right way, not the easy way.

Post by **DaveK** » Sun Apr 10, 2011 8:13 pm

Avenger; one issue arising from any suggested changes to the game is that SP and MP are interchangable. You don't like FT's in MP and I think I can see why. However, if you change them then they will be changed in SP as well. What I want to do with FT's in SP (and hence my enjoyment) is then changed as well because of issues in MP. In SP my main use of FT's is to make money trading them. Punier versions wouldn't be as lucrative

I suspect that we all have our "pet changes I would make if I could" - Are FT's often "abused" in MP? The community can freeze out anyone who spoils PvP by using FT's if it is a major issue. If there is sufficient clamour pehaps they could be kicked off the server until they learn the error of their ways

Galaxian · Post by **Galaxian** » Sun Apr 10, 2011 8:55 pm

From post: 105527, Topic: tid=7481, author=Ravenfeeder wrote:Something else I feel I should point out. If there are any legitimate problems with the game, or, any worthwhile changes suggested, Vice, the one-man developer, is on it, sometimes within minutes. The game is constantly changing, and evolving. Then there are the various mods contributed by various, talented, players such as Warsign, and Accountant. There's also an extremely good nebula background mod by another player, whose name, unfortunately, I can't remember (old age problem).

There's the Rem1 server, mad Mike, who provides his dedicated services free of charge, and, offers advice to players who may get stuck.

Welcome to the forum, and the game. I hope to see you in MP, which, imho, is the best venue to enjoy the game,

What he said! The herculean efforts put forth by Vice to not only create and develop the Evochron universe, but also implementing changes based directly on player feedback is nothing short of remarkable.

Best gaming money I ever spent!

MMaggio · Post by **MMaggio** » Sun Apr 10, 2011 9:04 pm

I have rarely seen FT's used in MP due to the potential danger to the user and "innocent" bystanders as well as the fact that while use of FT's may kill all the bad guys, you do not get credit for the kills.

Ravenfeeder · Post by **Ravenfeeder** » Sun Apr 10, 2011 10:17 pm

Actually, MM, in missions, in MP at least, you do get credit for FT AI kills.

Goatman455 · Post by **Goatman455** » Tue Apr 12, 2011 3:40 am

From post: 105563, Topic: tid=7481, author=Ravenfeeder wrote:Actually, MM, in missions, in MP at least, you do get credit for FT AI kills.

Where can you buy the FT and what does it stand for?

Thanks

Maarschalk · Post by **Maarschalk** » Tue Apr 12, 2011 3:42 am

It stands for Fulcrum Torpedo, and you can find them in High Tech Systems.......

Post by **Marvin** » Tue Apr 12, 2011 5:26 am

And prices vary. From about 1.5 million each to over 4 million each.