Brad Wardell interview

[Asharak]

At the very least, it's part of my sig.

- Ash

[Roguetad]

I loved it when developers took the time to post and answer questions on GG, and now on OO, even when He Who Shall Not be Named would appear. I was already planning on buying GalCiv2, but thanks to Brad hanging out here and spending time with us, it’s gone from “probably going to get in the future” to “order now”.

Please use your mom’s quote as one of the marketing blurbs for the gamebox!

[Asharak]

Ahahaha!

Brad revealed another gem along these lines in an IRC Q&A chat they held yesterday:

[19:16.45] (GreenReaper) (Gorstagg) Q: Frogboy, have you considered additional non-humanoid like races, to give a different flavor to Gal Civ? Such as Jellyfish that float in Gas Giants. Etc.. though they are sentient, ala MoO3.
[19:16.56] (Frogboy) The Yor complain about this a lot.
[19:17.11] (Frogboy) At one point, they say "You know, where are the Silicoids?"
[19:17.21] (Frogboy) "Why not have a silicon race? No. I'm stuck with meat."

Oh, if anyone's interested, the full chat transcript (it's quite along, although very informative) is here. There's some good stuff in there, including a couple screenshots of ships made with things from the Bonus Pack.

While I'm posting, there's also a new gameplay example up.

- Ash

[Incendiary Lemon]

Brad in your Human AAR you bring up how the Drengin designed their ships to defeat yours. What sort of discovery process do they go through? Are they always aware of your designs, is it a result of specific espionage, or are they reacting to their own battlefield experience?

[Kobra]

Brad in your Human AAR you bring up how the Drengin designed their ships to defeat yours. What sort of discovery process do they go through? Are they always aware of your designs, is it a result of specific espionage, or are they reacting to their own battlefield experience?

Thats what I was wondering.. If they "Magically" discover it, then the AI would be cheating - it happens often in games though and I hate it.

I suspect they "Discover" their flaws after a battle or two and adjust.. But until Brad weighs in, that is just a guess. That would be how i'd program it.

[Daehawk]

Well since I cant buy a new game Im installing some old stuff. MOO 1 for the 4x. Ill pretend the Bulrathi are the Drengin and the Meklars are the Yor and stuff. For space battles im going with Starfleet Command 3.

Oh and Im also playing Aramada 1 and 2 ...sigh

[Grifman]

While I'm posting, there's also a new gameplay example up.

Looking good, I read another one on the site about a programmer playing as the Alterans and losing to the Drengin. Lot's of fun to read.

IMO, it looks like Stardock has fiixed my biggest complaint with the previous version. GalCiv was a bit "bland" to me. But from seeing the screenshots, it seems the alien races actually have a fair amount of personality. It makes the game seem more alive. And ship design adds alot - and I love how tactical battles play out even though you can't control them. Looking forward to some good time with this one.

[SuperHiro]

Is this going to be a no-disc-required-in-drive game?

[Bob]

Is this going to be a no-disc-required-in-drive game?

No disc required.

[Asharak]

Is this going to be a no-disc-required-in-drive game?

No disc, no StarForce, no copy protection whatsoever. The game comes with a serial number, but it's not even necessary to input it to install the game (that said, without inputting the serial number, you won't be able to use Stardock Central to get updates or submit your game scores to the Metaverse).

- Ash