Aaron Hall Interview at The Orion Sector

[Ed Kolis]

http://www.orionsector.com/pages/se/se5interview060213.php

[Captain Kwok]

I always forget about that site, it's actually a nicely run site. I should make sure I have links to it from my site.

Oh yeah, the interview also has some nice nuggets.

[Fyron]

One of the complaints from SE4, was that it was "spreadsheets in space".

Whoever complained about that needs to be shot...

[PvK]

As I recall, that was a complaint about SE3, where it was perhaps more valid from an aesthetic perspective, but still stupid.

Shoot 'em both...

PvK

[Thermodyne]

IIRC. it is a leftover from SE2, which was like a spread sheet, even in combat. So now it pops up from time to time.

[Baron Munchausen]

Yeah, the complaint dates from SE III but it's now become a 'sound bite' that hordes of people who know nothing about the game repeat mindlessly. How many playable strategy games can you name that don't use spreadsheet conventions to display masses of data? This stupid comment has got to be ignored. We want spreadsheets in space! Dressing them up a little bit doesn't hurt, but the game is about the information, not the graphics.

[geoschmo]

The kind of people that use this as a complaint aren't likely to be interested in a 4X game anyway. About the farthest they'd come along the continuum would be something like Age of Empires or Rise of Nations. Both of which are games I enjoyed very much personally, but they are different then Space Empires. I wouldn't want Space Empires to be turned into those things.

[Raapys]

Personally, I don't care about the 3D part at all. I just want new features, events, and lots of new innovative technology and components. Something to make the races distinctly different would be nice, although mods will presumably do that anyhow. Ground combat sounds nice though, along with the (hopefully) improved AI.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

I could do with a few more spreadsheet options.

I also started my computing life on the Vic 20, so you'll excuse me if I happen to like pretty graphics. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/tongue.gif

[Randallw]

Hey, my first computer was a Vic20 http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

[Atrocities]

Imperator Fyron said:

One of the complaints from SE4, was that it was "spreadsheets in space".

Whoever complained about that needs to be shot...



People like that are the ones who read a review of a game, and then never play it. That comment "spreed sheet" was from an old review of SEIV DEMO from way the hell back in 2000. It just shows you that some people are so ignorant that there is no helping them.

Aaron did a nice interview. It was an enjoyable read. I will have to buy this game when it comes out.

[Gozra]

My first computer was an Apple II then I switched to a C64. I hope the june 2006 date is firm. I am trying out other games to see how they play and have tried Orion 3. I really want to play SEV. Moo3 is really not too bad quite a bit of the tedium of 4X games was taken out. If the Moo3 folk had actually gotten rid of the obvious bugs they would have a good game not better than SEIV but almost as good. BTW a playable game with OK graphics is better than a graphic masterpiece that plays like doo-doo.

[Kamog]

I'm glad SEV will have the inner and outer hulls and armor, just like SEIII had. I liked that feature of SEIII, it made the ship design a bit more interesting. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

The first computer I worked on was a Commodore PET, back in elementary school. I didn't actually own my own computer till many years later. The first computer I actually owned was a Macintosh Powerbook 145.

[Kana]

What is interesting is that in an era of RTS/FPS image and bang for your buck type games...there are still games that are graphically inferior that are still being played, and even updated abit...IE WinMBT, SPWW2, even Empire. Plus there are games like Civ 4, and Gal Civ 2. There are companies like Shrapnel, Matrix Games, and Battlefront to name a few, that develop what would be considered very spreadsheet like games. If the didn't sell, then why are they being made...obviously there is a market, maybe not a mass market, but a market none the less...

Kana

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Want an underdog? http://www.knightsoft.ca/

[se5a]

if you like spreadsheets in space then please email aaron and tell him so.

just incase we get overcandied useless chart things that don't realy give much usefull information.

[Kana]

narf poit chez BOOM said:
Want an underdog? http://www.knightsoft.ca/



Speaking of underdogs...I'm sure some of you have been here...

http://www.the-underdogs.org/

Kana