FreeOrion

I think the discussion moved into the design features thread.

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I'm in a hurry, I'll try to find it later, But what about Rebellions and Piracy? If they are to be implemented at all? Rebellions with gov't, and piracy could go whereever space monster/random events went.

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Chris Walker
| c.walker (at) mgt.hull.ac.uk |

WorldForge.org

I'm not sure about that. After all, you can't take rebellions and piracy home to meet your parents.

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Time flies like the wind, fruit flies like bananas.

Rebellions will probably get squeezed into some of the infrastructure/colony management sections. (this area of FO is still largely undefined. it frightens me.)

-Aq

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Surprise and Terror! I am greeted by the smooth and hostile face of our old enemy, the Hootmans! No... the Huge-glands, no, I remember, the Hunams!

Tzlaine mentioned in another thread that moral might not be in the game. Checked the roadmap and it's not mentioned.

Was a decision reached, re: moral/unrest? If it's in, could the word be mentioned on the roadmap...perhaps v.8?

It would be good to have it.

I definitely agree, it makes the player's strength a matter of something other than population with 'their flag' on it, because the flag could change without another player Having to be involved.

and bombort

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Master of orion 3 rules. (a pause) Why are you guys getting tomatoes out?

Hey, guys! This is my first post, so be kind if this has already been mentioned elsewhere.

Unless you're going to be cribbing text directly from the previous MoO games, you're going to have to allot some time for writing/editing game errata, i.e. in-game text. Errata includes everything from game story to tech descriptions, and is a lot more work than you'd think. AI diplomatic responses alone could cover 20 pages even with a one-response-per-outcome scheme.

If you are not copying text from previous games, you will need at least one English Major type to write and edit text, because programmers tend to be, ahem, slightly less profficient at grammer and spelling.

The nominal way to write text would be to have someone write as development reaches the appropriate stage, e.g. ground combat text at v.0.6, espionage at v.0.7, etc.

My hopes are up for a true successor to MoO2!

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Professor Hernandez, Human ambassador to Silica:
"Hey, rocks are people too!"
Black Dawn

Having an english major write the game text would be great, but not for the reason you give.

Programmers, and the rest of the design team, who speak english fluently are quite capable of writing technically correct english.

Writing good dialogue is, however, rather more difficult than just spelling words right... (and dialogue is often improved by selective and appropriate bending of grammatical rules). A talented writer, with or without relevant degrees, would be very helpful for their ability to create and convey interesting characters and situations.

... I would almost predict that when races and storyline are given their major focus, that the need for a 'storyline' designer may be required. Having someone with an english major, or someone who is has experience in creative writing, would be a great asset.

Not saying that any of us don't have any creative skills, mind you - if that were the case this game would probably look like an ASCII drawing of a planet with ASCII character 001 moving about it.

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There are three kinds of people in this world - those who can count, and those who can't.

Sorry if I offended anyone, I was trying to be funny. I know many programmers who write very well, and in fact most of my more illiterate friends are med students .

Writing errata becomes much easier if the designers clearly note the type/purpose of each element as they are designed. For example, a good way to mark a Laser Beam tech would be:
Weapon; Beam-type. Tech level 1. Initial space taken up: X. Minimum space taken up: Y.Special weapon effects include: (none). Possible weapon modifications include X, Y, Z...

The more information you give your writer/writing team, the better and more interesting your errata will be. I've been working with the writing team of a small Montreal game software company for half a year now, and while writing errata is tedious, it can also be a lot of fun if the proper information is provided.

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Professor Hernandez, Human ambassador to Silica:
"Hey, rocks are people too!"
Black Dawn

This might sound like blasphemy, but the VegaStrike guys have put a huge amount of time and effort into documenting their universe; so much so that there has been murmurings of publishing a book based on it. Especially Jacks (from the VS forum) who is the official VS universe guru.

It might be worth snooping around there. Maybe sharing a universe could be a good thing, given the massive depth needed. But then again maybe it wouldn't work because it would certainly dictate terminology and tech tree content, something that might not sit well.

*shrugs* Just a thought that could not only save many man years of hard work but also help enhance the VS universe.

WE FOUND A WITCH!!! CAN WE BURN HER?!??!


- Seriously though, I guess it's up to the dev's to ponder. They (the stories) may not go well together, or they may link like two missing jiggsaw puzzle pieces.

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There are three kinds of people in this world - those who can count, and those who can't.

This stuff is pretty much what I do. I'm much better at creative writing than I am at, say, generating the tech tree (as seen in Aquitaine's procrastination of the production thread).

At any rate, I run a Project for Interactive Fiction, am in the process of trying to sell a screenplay, and was an English major.

That's not to say my writing isn't crap, but as far as the technical side of it is concerned, I think I've got us covered.

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Surprise and Terror! I am greeted by the smooth and hostile face of our old enemy, the Hootmans! No... the Huge-glands, no, I remember, the Hunams!