Galactic Civilizations III Released!

JonathanStrange · Post by **JonathanStrange** » Thu Feb 19, 2015 10:45 am

Mr. Fed wrote:My hope is that, even without tactical combat, you'll be able to see how ship design and tech focus decisions impact combat.

Just shoving two piles of numbers at each other is kinda dull.

Yeah, that's mostly what I'd like to see: the effect of researched equipment and ship design in battle. Their current idea of pre-battle formations would be cool too. Ultimately, for me, tactical combat is only an occasional thing anyhow. I do like setting some parameters like fleet composition and battle formations, sort of like some of those old ancient history games (like Centurion?) where you just assigned a formation from a template of options and rolled the dice.

ezmacncheese · Post by **ezmacncheese** » Fri Feb 27, 2015 9:39 am

Hmm looks like the early access is 50% off on Steam. The lover of space 4X in me wants to jump at this but the skeptic in me wonders why they are giving half off the price...

What is the general opinion of how the game is shaping up?

RMC · Post by **RMC** » Fri Feb 27, 2015 9:47 am

ezmacncheese wrote:Hmm looks like the early access is 50% off on Steam. The lover of space 4X in me wants to jump at this but the skeptic in me wonders why they are giving half off the price...

What is the general opinion of how the game is shaping up?

Still really early, but looks like a good solid normal Gal Civ game. I have not seen anything earth shattering different from the past ones but still in beta. And I have not played it a ton, as I buy these things to support the developer and wait until it is released.

Jeff V · Post by **Jeff V** » Fri Feb 27, 2015 1:18 pm

If you keep opening the oven door to peek, it will never finish baking. I've seen nothing to indicate it won't be at least as good as Gal Civ 2, and that game was excellent. But I won't look at it until it's done.

RMC · Post by **RMC** » Fri Feb 27, 2015 1:37 pm

I think early access done right does not suffer from too many cooks in the kitchen. If anything as long as the company is willing to listen to people who put their money into the project already, they can improve the project.

Take a look at Wasteland 2, they listened to feedback from the kickstarter and early access folks and the game was better for it.

And I know, your analogy of the oven was not referring to this aspect, but just wanted to chime in.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Fri Feb 27, 2015 2:06 pm

Picked it up last night and I have to say, it's pretty impressive so far. I need to spend some more time with it though. I doubt it will unseat Distant Worlds when it comes to the best 4x game, but I'm still enjoying myself with it.

Jeff V · Post by **Jeff V** » Fri Feb 27, 2015 2:43 pm

RMC wrote:I think early access done right does not suffer from too many cooks in the kitchen. If anything as long as the company is willing to listen to people who put their money into the project already, they can improve the project.

Take a look at Wasteland 2, they listened to feedback from the kickstarter and early access folks and the game was better for it.

And I know, your analogy of the oven was not referring to this aspect, but just wanted to chime in.

I remember the days when beta testing was a tightly managed process and those willing to put up with the arduous process got a free game in compensation for their ordeal. Paying for the pain? Unthinkable. In most cases, a free game wasn't nearly enough.

When you rely on random reports (which very few volunteers bother to file), you don't really get to interactively get to the root cause of the problem or have testers available to try out solutions. Or do companies still use managed testers? I suspect some do, some don't. In any case, beta testing is an arduous process that for the most part sucks any enjoyment out of a game long before it's ready for prime time. I stopped being a compensated tester because it destroyed any enthusiasm for games I was previously looking forward to playing.

FTR, Gal Civ 3 was one of the few games I purchased in advance (a few months ago, during one of the discount sales). I'm fairly certain given extensive experience with other games in the series that it's going to be something I like. I'm not going to bother downloading it until it's done. (and maybe even not right then since gaming season will largely be over when this is done).

Rip · Post by **Rip** » Sat Feb 28, 2015 2:10 am

I'm in as well. Haven't looked very deep into it yet, but hope to this weekend.

What I did see in the five minutes I looked at so far is promising. GalCiv II always left me wanting just a little more so I am pretty stoked that this version may deliver on much of that.

$iljanus · Post by **$iljanus** » Sat Feb 28, 2015 11:36 am

At 50% off how can I refuse? Actually looking forward to trying it out. Various game play videos helped make my decision.

Of course, I liked the videos for Beyond Earth and that was a disappointment...

Rip · Post by **Rip** » Sat Feb 28, 2015 12:28 pm

Been playing a little bit this morning. Having a good time so far. Just wish I had a better idea of what I should do sometimes. Things like where to build starbases and whether I should build another scout or constructor, where to build planetary improvements, etc area little beyond me at the moment.

So I just play at an easier level and winging it. I figure with the opponents being set to beginner and the universe on easy should let me recover from my noobness. Which is sad I have owned the previous iterations and just didn't play enough to learn much. I also set it to immense with all the opponents. I figure that way I can explore all the research and not have to fight for some time.

rshetts2 · Post by **rshetts2** » Sat Feb 28, 2015 3:00 pm

I liked Gal Civ 2 so what the heck, 50% off sounds like a deal, Im in!

Rip · Post by **Rip** » Sat Feb 28, 2015 8:08 pm

OK, stupid question.

I finally filled all the earth building locations so the button keeps sending me to idle colony. I have nowhere to build anything and it seems the only thing I could do is build another shipyard. Not sure I really want another one though. But I never get the turn button. Is there and end turn hotkey I need to use or something?

Seems like you could set the colony to produce consumer goods or something to contribute to the economy or something when you aren't building factories and stuff.

Edit: NM figured it out. I was thinking those things at the bottom that said N/A meant I couldn't build them.

Island Dog · Post by **Island Dog** » Tue Mar 03, 2015 6:02 pm

Jeff V wrote:When you rely on random reports (which very few volunteers bother to file), you don't really get to interactively get to the root cause of the problem or have testers available to try out solutions. Or do companies still use managed testers? I suspect some do, some don't. In any case, beta testing is an arduous process that for the most part sucks any enjoyment out of a game long before it's ready for prime time. I stopped being a compensated tester because it destroyed any enthusiasm for games I was previously looking forward to playing.

That is what's good about Early Access, at least for how we use it. We get a variety of reports from players, and many of those submit support tickets with save/debug files and such which lets the devs narrow down and identify issues that come up. Through our support system we can work with someone who is having an issue, say a persistent crash, and have them try solutions or at least get a bigger picture of what's going on, and the devs can usually nail a solution fairly quickly.

It's been very helpful in lots of ways like that.

Island Dog · Post by **Island Dog** » Thu Mar 26, 2015 2:00 pm

Beta 5 was released today! Custom factions, planetary invasions, pirates, and much more.

Full patch notes are here.

Jeff V · Post by **Jeff V** » Fri Mar 27, 2015 12:48 pm

Any chance this will be done before the end of gaming season?

tgb · Post by **tgb** » Fri Mar 27, 2015 1:11 pm

Jeff V wrote:Any chance this will be done before the end of gaming season?

There's an end to gaming season?

I thought they were talking about first quarter, but obviously it's not going to make it.

Jeff V · Post by **Jeff V** » Fri Mar 27, 2015 3:28 pm

tgb wrote:
Jeff V wrote:Any chance this will be done before the end of gaming season?
There's an end to gaming season?

Yep. Here it's called summer, when the weather is too nice to stay cooped up inside; especially after endless winter.

jztemple2 · Post by **jztemple2** » Fri Mar 27, 2015 3:47 pm

Jeff V wrote:Yep. Here it's called summer, when the weather is too nice to stay cooped up inside; especially after endless winter.

Here in central Florida, where the weather is nice all year, we pace ourselves at all that outdoors stuff so there really is no end of the gaming season.

Lorini · Post by **Lorini** » Fri Mar 27, 2015 3:54 pm

jztemple2 wrote:
Jeff V wrote:Yep. Here it's called summer, when the weather is too nice to stay cooped up inside; especially after endless winter.
Here in central Florida, where the weather is nice all year, we pace ourselves at all that outdoors stuff so there really is no end of the gaming season.

Nor is there an end or beginning in California, particularly when you are retired like I am.

jztemple2 · Post by **jztemple2** » Fri Mar 27, 2015 4:05 pm

Lorini wrote:Nor is there an end or beginning in California, particularly when you are retired like I am.

I'm retired too, but I don't know if I'm retired like you are

. Some folks retire and are busier than when they were working; me, I like my leisure time.

Jeff V · Post by **Jeff V** » Fri Mar 27, 2015 4:13 pm

If I was ever retired, I'd like to think I'd be chasing less sedentary pursuits. My job requires me to sit on my ass all day staring at the computer as it is.

jztemple2 · Post by **jztemple2** » Fri Mar 27, 2015 4:21 pm

Jeff V wrote:If I was ever retired, I'd like to think I'd be chasing less sedentary pursuits. My job requires me to sit on my ass all day staring at the computer as it is.

When you're retired, you get to do it in a recliner

.

Actually between my morning walks, a couple of days at the beach each week, trips to Disney World (45 minutes away, we have annual passes) and our twice yearly big vacations, I'm owed some time on my computer and in my reading chair. My wife is down at our local library right now decorating for Easter, so it's gaming and reading time!

Jeff V · Post by **Jeff V** » Fri Mar 27, 2015 4:32 pm

jztemple2 wrote:
Jeff V wrote:If I was ever retired, I'd like to think I'd be chasing less sedentary pursuits. My job requires me to sit on my ass all day staring at the computer as it is.
When you're retired, you get to do it in a recliner .

Actually between my morning walks, a couple of days at the beach each week, trips to Disney World (45 minutes away, we have annual passes) and our twice yearly big vacations, I'm owed some time on my computer and in my reading chair. My wife is down at our local library right now decorating for Easter, so it's gaming and reading time!

It appears highly unlikely I'll ever be retired...I'll be in my mid-70's by the time my kid finishes college, and if my wife gets her way and another kid comes, close to 80. Retirement is not something I'll ever be able to afford. As it is, my wife can't stand it if I so much as play a game on my phone for a minute, let alone anything lengthy on the computer. When she was working double-shifts, I could sneak some time in, but now she only works nights, and besides, now that the baby is toddling, he doesn't really nap anymore and has to be watched constantly. About the only thing approaching entertainment comes from listening to audiobooks while driving or exercising.

jztemple2 · Post by **jztemple2** » Fri Mar 27, 2015 4:38 pm

Jeff V wrote:It appears highly unlikely I'll ever be retired...I'll be in my mid-70's by the time my kid finishes college, and if my wife gets her way and another kid comes, close to 80.

Yikes!

Oh, and just to try to keep this thread on track, now that Beta 5 is out, are folks still happy with the direction the game is going? As I mentioned above, although I got the game I'm staying away so I can enjoy that just released smell when it comes out in the next month or two.

Island Dog · Post by **Island Dog** » Wed Apr 01, 2015 12:39 pm

Jeff V wrote:Any chance this will be done before the end of gaming season?

We're looking at a May release.

jztemple2 wrote:
Jeff V wrote:Yep. Here it's called summer, when the weather is too nice to stay cooped up inside; especially after endless winter.
Here in central Florida, where the weather is nice all year, we pace ourselves at all that outdoors stuff so there really is no end of the gaming season.

What part of Central Florida?

jztemple2 · Post by **jztemple2** » Wed Apr 01, 2015 12:45 pm

Island Dog wrote:What part of Central Florida?

Brevard County, where the Kennedy Space Center is located.

Island Dog · Post by **Island Dog** » Wed Apr 01, 2015 12:54 pm

jztemple2 wrote:
Island Dog wrote:What part of Central Florida?
Brevard County, where the Kennedy Space Center is located.

Nice! I'm your neighbor over in Osceola.

Jeff V · Post by **Jeff V** » Wed Apr 01, 2015 1:24 pm

Island Dog wrote:
Jeff V wrote:Any chance this will be done before the end of gaming season?
We're looking at a May release.

Well, I suppose I could try it on a dark and stormy day when there is no work to do around the house and the wife is home to watch the baby and not busy with her school work and we're outside of the hours of operation for the baby prison at the gym and nothing else requires my attention...oh, hell, I suppose it will be well-patched by November, right?

Tampa_Gamer · Post by **Tampa_Gamer** » Wed Apr 01, 2015 5:29 pm

Island Dog wrote:
jztemple2 wrote:
Island Dog wrote:What part of Central Florida?
Brevard County, where the Kennedy Space Center is located.
Nice! I'm your neighbor over in Osceola.

I guess I am anchoring the west end of the I-4 corridor for you all

It would be good to see a May release before we all start losing electricity at 4 PM everyday due to afternoon storms starting in June...

jztemple2 · Post by **jztemple2** » Wed Apr 01, 2015 6:07 pm

Tampa_Gamer wrote:I guess I am anchoring the west end of the I-4 corridor for you all It would be good to see a May release before we all start losing electricity at 4 PM everyday due to afternoon storms starting in June...

As a Florida gamer I'm well aware of this seasonal inconvenience; nothing quite scares the pants off you when creeping down a corridor in Doom 3 like a lightning bolt striking the next block over

. Mind you, the storms we get over here on the east coast are nothing like they get over in Tampa, they don't call it the lightening capital of the world for nothing.

I did finally break down last year and got an APC brand full uninterruptible power supply. I've got the entire rig and peripherals hooked to it, including the cable modem and the router.

Island Dog · Post by **Island Dog** » Wed Apr 08, 2015 3:25 pm

We put out the 5.1 beta update this week, and much of it is fixes for reported crashes and several other issues.

The full changelog is here.

Island Dog · Post by **Island Dog** » Thu Apr 09, 2015 4:58 pm

The Design a Faction contest was announced today with the winner getting their faction in the game as a minor race, and a $1000 cash prize.

Island Dog · Post by **Island Dog** » Tue Apr 21, 2015 11:21 am

The 5.3 update was released this week that continues to fix player reported issues, and other things like performance and AI improvements.

Full changelog.

baelthazar · Post by **baelthazar** » Thu Apr 23, 2015 4:03 pm

Island Dog wrote:The 5.3 update was released this week that continues to fix player reported issues, and other things like performance and AI improvements.

Full changelog.

Also, wasn't a release date decided upon? Something in mid-late May? Nice!

EDIT: May 14, according to the website.

Nightwish · Post by **Nightwish** » Thu Apr 23, 2015 8:42 pm

Isn't the game still having a massive amount of things added? How can it even be in beta?
Either they have some mystical development method, or it's going to be another Elemental...

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Thu Apr 23, 2015 9:21 pm

I don't think they would announce a release date if a bunch of stuff was missing and they couldn't get them into game by then.

Nightwish · Post by **Nightwish** » Thu Apr 23, 2015 10:10 pm

Putting stuff in is easier than making it work well.

jztemple2 · Post by **jztemple2** » Thu Apr 23, 2015 10:17 pm

Nightwish wrote:Putting stuff in is easier than making it work well.

My concern too. I'm afraid we might be looking for several post release patches to tweak things.

tgb · Post by **tgb** » Thu Apr 23, 2015 11:08 pm

Other than minor factions, which they have been working on all along, I don't know of anything that still has to be "put in". There may be some balancing issues to be addressed, but I suspect they learned their lesson from Elemental and wouldn't try something like that again.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Fri Apr 24, 2015 9:01 am

The campaign isn't included yet, but they usually don't add that in until release time...at least for any game I can remember playing in beta.