The most complex game?

[olaf73]

This game is pretty complex, I agree. But, it feels even more complex because the docs are not up to snuff.

olaf

[Lord Hammer]

Originally posted by quantum_mechani:
QUOTE]I have to disagree, IMO Alpha Centaouri's economic side is far ahead of most games(with it's multitude of terraforming options).
SMAC to this day has the best (with most options) diplomacy that I've seen. You're probably right though, that SMAC's biggest shortcoming is its tactical system, which is why I play Dominions . [/QB]

Yep, SMAC has much depth as far as terra-forming and diplomacy. You could actually make "friends' with the ai and they would help you in your struggle, a very deep game. Sadly, as i buy make/buy more uber-computers SMAC has been left behind. EU2 and HOI and company are by far TOO complex to get any enjoyment out of IMHO . Dom2's complexity lies in the multitude of races/units/spells etc., then tackling the learning curve which once overcome you realize you've only just begun, you pick another setup and learn all over again .

[quantum_mechani]

Originally posted by Lord Hammer:

EU2 and HOI and company are by far TOO complex to get any enjoyment out of IMHO

Really? From the little I played of EU2 it seemed quite simple with only three unit types and few technologies that did much.

[General Tacticus]

Originally posted by quantum_mechani:
Originally posted by Lord Hammer:

quote:

---

EU2 and HOI and company are by far TOO complex to get any enjoyment out of IMHO

Really? From the little I played of EU2 it seemed quite simple with only three unit types and few technologies that did much.

---

Ah, but the diplomacy in EUII (or more exactly the "do not piss off the AIs or they'll all gang up on me" syndrom) is very complex. And while there are only 3 army types, their effectivness in battle depends on a whole lot of factors, so the tactics stay very complex.

[Saxon]

EU2 seems simple at first, but it keeps getting more and more complicated. The documentation is good, but not specific. As such, you have a lot of work to figure out how things like ethnicity and religion interact. It often makes political, economic and religious sense to reduce the size of your kingdom! Try finding another games where you have to give back conquests and where bigger is not better. It is almost like the Sims in that your goals are very unusual, it is more the playing that matters than the end goals, it is a strategy game, not at 4X game. It is a very, very complex game and as a player, you have fairly blunt tools to make changes. This is perfect, it is just like the Kings of the time faced. There are lots of reports available, but they only give you some information, you have to do a lot of thinking.

I agree with Lord Hammer, it is pretty heavy going sometimes. I have to be in the mood to work at a game to play EU2 and I have to know my history for things to make sense. Dominions also requires a lot of thought, but not the same high level and historical back ground. I can almost always play Dominions, EU2 is a once in a while when I have a Saturday free and feel like working.

[Bossemanden]

Documentation for EU2 is rotten. The reason being primarily (but not exclusively) that it has been patched so heavily as to make a different (and much better) game.
I like Dominions II very much, but my all time favorite is still EU2 by far (with Victoria second).

Edit: I find EU2 and Dominions to be approximately equally complex, but in very different ways. HOI is possibly a bit more complex and Victoria quite a bit more (maybe a little too much).

[ January 09, 2004, 09:56: Message edited by: Bossemanden ]

[Keir Maxwell]

For me the comlexity in dom is in large part the vast amount of approaches to playing - each with their own learning curve. For me there are always so many new things to learn. By combining enough well thought out elements the game produces possiblites which I imagine the creators never thought of but which emerge out of the logic they have created.

Complexity 10

cheers

Keir