Dachande18

I had entire legions of my troops fucking destroyed by those things... God, seriously, I'd have like 4 squads/units (whatever you call them).. Four clickable guys. And they'd all get run over. One goddamn tank would come in and just swath through them. That in itself is okay, but it's frustrating because I had some tie-mauler-killers (forget what they're called) up infront of my infantry, and even with a few of them going full bore, the mauler just flew past and mashed my guys.

LOL, well, for one - maybe they took that from the movies... : But, in all seriousness, I don't honestly beleive that there will be major balance issues when the game is released. It makes no sense for them to have the Rebels be super powerful... No one would like the game, and that's just BAD development... And, we all know Petroglyph aren't bad developers. Do you really think they'll let something like that slide by? I mean, if you had your hands on the full copy of the game. And you're part of the Petroglyph team, going through some Quality-Control (AKA: having super-fun time), play testing the game. During a Rebel/Empire fight, with fairly even numbers of troops. Oh, but 'lo and behold... Every single battle, the Rebels cleansweep the Imperials without any hope/chance of survival... Don't you think, as the developers of the game, they might see this as something to balance out? That they might pick up on the fact that, "Hey, something's fubar here." I mean, c'mon... These people have plenty of experience. They're not going to randomly attribute 'bad aim' for no reason. That said, nothing is for sure. But, as far as I'm concerned, the Demo is an unfinished, incomplete product... I mean, by definition, that's what a Demo is! So, the preceeding is just my opinion, but I think it makes more sense than, "OMG, in a two race game, one race is 3000% better than the other!"

Here's hoping.

I'm not sure why I'm the first to bring this to the table (perhaps it's because I'm unaware of how very obviously wrong this might be...) In relation to the CC versus tartan problem... This was a DEMO... And we're complaining about/debating/stressing over units, abilities and factions that have been unlocked via moddability. Perhaps these are all just 'nerfs' that were put in place as part of the demo.. For example, in the mods, some of the ground landings are screwed up. For example, one time I (as Rebels) tried to do a planetary invasion on a planet, and the Empire's troopers were stationed in the 'base' area for the map... The problem being that the 'base' itself started off as Rebel... Obviously an example of the demo's limitations, despite our ability to make more of it than was intended. We were never supposed to go past the three available areas (Hoth, asteroid field, Tatooine) of the demo, thus none of the other places in the universe are properly set up, or coded, or what have you. The same extends to the ships. Perhaps these Imperial 'nerfs' are simply something that was never intended, nor ever really a problem in the first place. Think about it - we were never supposed to play as the Empire in the demo anyway... Why would they take the time to make sure everything is finally tweaked and properly set-up? I have a feeling that this will not even be an issue in the final release. Aside: In relation to my earlier question about the Y-Wings... So, am I to understand that a single 'unit' of Y-Wings (the three fighters) are able to badly damage/limit the functionality of a Star Destroyer? Seriously? One trio of fighters, if you use the Ion Cannon ability, will have the full effect of that 'ability'?!?! I was under the impression that it simply sapped shields faster or something. However, having Y-Wings (especially if it only requires one 'unit' of Y-Wings to do so) severely disable a Star Destroy with one salvo of tiny Ion Cannon blasts doesn't make any sense at all. Can someone elaborate a little more... Am I still mis-conceiving things here?

Actually, that is an excellent point. I noticed that you couldn't form your 'battle-groups' right away. It's a major hinderance in the game. I hope this is something that can be addressed. The ability to move a large fleet into a battle situation, but then choose which will be your 'lead' forces is critical. If I want to send a billion snubs in first, then mop up with captial ships, I should be able to do this. If EaW truly wants to let us have "Complete Control" of every battle, this relatively easy change would go a long way towards that. In short: It is absolutely critical that the user is able to choose the make-up of their initial attack force.* *IMO

Sorry to butt in here... Could someone explain/link to an explanation of this ability, just for my own curiousity? I've tried to use this ability before, but I don't think I know the difference between this and just using bombs to knock out hardpoints... The the ion cannons work faster/better? Do they knock stuff out temporarily? What gives?

1. Similar to Cain's suggestion about formations, the ground combat becomes very difficult and disorganized when different unit types start intermeshing with eachother. Oftentimes it is difficult to control the units effectively, because they don't maintain any type of formation, even if you try to manually force them to do so. 2. More importantly, it would really be helpful if the Rebel Troopers and the Plex Soldier were not automatically put in the same 'group' when clicked on. I'm not sure if this is a bug or not, but seperating them into two distinct groups would be very useful.

Best. Comment. EVER. Seriously though, I've been watching these forums for quite awhile, and I don't think I've ever witnessed such a close pairing between the development team and the consumers. Despite my initial displeasure at some aspects of the Star Wars universe being left out, it really seems you guys at Petroglyph have got it under control. Kudos for the effort. Bryan AKA: Dach

Well, I DO have lots of faith in the Petroglyph team... So, here's the scenario: 1. Empire at War is released... It's either innovative, fun and replayable or it's boring and predictable. This is all depending on how they make it. As everyone's said, the Demo is but a slice of the full game... But if one slice of a greater whole is really bland, then.... 2. Regardless of how 'fun' the game actually is, it will sell like mad, a La Star Wars tradition. Thank god for consumer power. 3. Then, with the 'success' of Empire at War, Petroglyph is signed on to make Empire at War 2, learning from their experience with Empire at War - as a company as a whole and concerning the game. So, I think the situation's okay. For now, I'd just really like to get my hands on the full game, so we can make educated and more complete comments. Because, until then, I withhold any further judgement.

Quick background: I was very excited for Empire at War initially, but later developments scaled back my excitement level considerably. It wasn't so much Petroglyph's fault either. Let me elaborate. Wow Igor... I feel for you here. All these ideas you suggest make the universe feel so real and fully of life... And that might be part of the problem. Think of it this way: how do you effectively control all these aspects of the game? Moreover, are the current 'masses' willing to accept/ready to handle this level of complexity and strategy? Don't get me wrong, I'd love to have hundreds and thousands of troops at my disposal... Or, for that matter, more than '20' would be a good start, but that's not my point. My point is, there is an increasing tendency in the gaming world today to make things look much cooler than they really are. To make things look as if they are a totally immersive experience, when infact they're simply a standard strafe/fire, point/click, build/attack scenario. And, admittantly, it is difficult to go much further into the complexity when a LARGE portion of your revenue stems from a young/inattentive/unwilling to have a substantial learning curve/only familiar with 'rushing' strategies/need to have things "now-now-now" group of people. (Did that make sense?)... Simply put, I think the problem is that the majority of people playing games nowadays are always on the prowl for something with a quick 'hit' of action... So, there's less draw for a totally immersive, contemplative game. The main focus is getting people online, into the action, quick to the point... Not slow, intellgent contemplation. And even if a developer wished to create the latter scenario, they'd be pushed by the producers to make something 'more accessible'... Sorry if I went off on a tangent there. However, I suppose I mourn the days when the releasing of games excited me... When 'new' games didn't always feel like old games with a new paint job. Bryan AKA: Dachande PS - I was going to mention the limitations of our current technologies interface (mouse, keyboard, monitor make it difficult to effectively control large-scale situations)... But I'll save that for another time. But, just to think about it... Wouldn't it be awesome (and far more effecient/natural) if they started coming out with new technology... Imagine a touch-screen/Nintendo DS stylus-type interface, but the size of a keyboard, and with huge amounts of customizeability and functionality.... Mmmmm... Innovation. PS V2.0 - Also note, Igor, I'm not really responding to or contesting any points you've made. In fact, I rue the fact that your suggestions, and several others I've contemplated myself, haven't been included in the game. However, for what it's worth, I concur with most of your feelings. I, as a gamer, want a complex, thought out, and intellegent experience. Furthermore, I want controls that feel intuitive, believable scenarios, and thoughtful subject matter. I'm sure EAW will satisfy a great number of these needs. However, I hope that feedback such as ours will be read and noted for later endeavours, so that perhaps eventually it will be common knowledge that a large majority of gamers are infact mature adults, who are seeking an equally mature, complex and intellegent gameplay experience.

I've played... Not for two long (two or three of the tutorials)... I'll pass judgement later.

I set up a tracker and torrent, and I'm currently uploading at 100kbps speeds. I've only got one person connected right now, and I'm willing to take about 9 more. If you want a spot, add me to your MSN (dachande18@hotmail.com) or PM me your e-mail address and I'll send you the torrent. If you want to do this, make sure you've got some upload bandwidth. Sorry, no link available. I didn't host it on a public tracker. Just FYI though, I will make this easier to get once more people are sharing. Just for now, I want some people who are willing to upload at full speed.

I'm ready to share with a torrent, but I don't know how. Unless someone can give me a quick tutorial, good luck. Edit - Sorry, I could be more clear. I have the Demo, but have been trying in vain to get a torrent working/uploaded successfully. I'm willing to upload with quite high speeds, but I have no idea how to get it working. If someone can help me, great - I'd prefer to share and help peopel get it. Otherwise, I'll just go play myself.

(Repost from Sticked Demo-Link thread) I have a Gamespot subscription... I'm getting speeds of 500-400 kb/s... Soooo... Yeah, I've got about 15 minutes left. Rather than be a dick about it and just start playing while everyone else is stuck downloading at shatty speeds, could someone let me know how to upload this baby to a tracker for bittorrent use. Then, we'll post the link and I'll start sharing with my full bandwidth speed for a few hours, which is about 100-200kbps on a good day. If I do this, I want people sharing though. I won't be able to play the demo while I'm uploading, because it will bog down my system. So, I swear to god if people start leeching and dropping, I'll give up and go be greedy. But I'd really prefer to get this out there and help the community start playing. If anyone can PM me with bittorrent instructions, or contact me on MSN (dachande18@hotmail.com), feel free to do so. My download has about 10 minutes left. Or, Cain, if you have somewhere I can upload it/something I can do with it to make it available for the community, lemme know.

I have a Gamespot subscription... I'm getting speeds of 500-400 kb/s... Soooo... Yeah, I've got about 15 minutes left. Rather than be a dick about it and just start playing while everyone else is stuck downloading at shatty speeds, could someone let me know how to upload this baby to a tracker for bittorrent use. Then, we'll post the link and I'll start sharing with my full bandwidth speed for a few hours, which is about 100-200kbps on a good day. If I do this, I want people sharing though. I won't be able to play the demo while I'm uploading, because it will bog down my system. So, I swear to god if people start leeching and dropping, I'll give up and go be greedy. But I'd really prefer to get this out there and help the community start playing. If anyone can PM me with bittorrent instructions, or contact me on MSN (dachande18@hotmail.com), feel free to do so. My download has about 10 minutes left.