What are you playing currently?

ParadiseLost

Well-known member
Dude, you are complaining about the game not plying itself so that you can just not play the game and say you did. It sounds like you wanted to play cookie clicker, not a base builder.

Because most of the gameplay IS just a clicker.

I came here for the basebuilding, but the way the game is designed, it forces you to spend an excessive amount of time idly grinding out the world map. (At least on Hard).

I wish the idle clicker part of the game was automated away.

Why does it need a bunch of 3*/10/20/60 minute timers? Why not make missions more dynamic?
 

Doomsought

Well-known member
Because most of the gameplay IS just a clicker.
No it isn't. Base builders are not cookie clickers, they are a genre from the 90s when we actually wanted to play our games. The original Evil Genius is a classic base builder that was made for people who played Dungeon Keeper in the 90s. Evil Genius II is a faithful sequel, and anyone who liked the original Evil Genius or likes Dungeon Keeper will enjoy it.
 

ParadiseLost

Well-known member
No it isn't. Base builders are not cookie clickers, they are a genre from the 90s when we actually wanted to play our games. The original Evil Genius is a classic base builder that was made for people who played Dungeon Keeper in the 90s. Evil Genius II is a faithful sequel, and anyone who liked the original Evil Genius or likes Dungeon Keeper will enjoy it.

The world map is absolutely a clicker.

I want to play a basebuilder, but the game is very insistent that I should play its world map clicker instead.

Evil Genius II is a faithful sequel, and anyone who liked the original Evil Genius or likes Dungeon Keeper will enjoy it.

A lot of reviews I read are people complaining that they cut the depth from the original EG in this sequel.

Indeed, almost all negative reviews are by people who played the original game. A couple of them make the same comparison I did about it feeling like a mobile game.

How many hours have you actually played the game?

And note... I'm not saying its a *bad* game. I dislike some of its mechanics pretty heavily, and I just don't think its as good as EG1, and I don't think its a $60 or even $40 game, but I'd have much less of a problem if this game had been launched at 2/3 of the price it was.

But I also played it for ~10 hours so far, so it can't be that bad.
 
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Doomsought

Well-known member
Indeed, almost all negative reviews are by people who played the original game. A couple of them make the same comparison I did about it feeling like a mobile game.
That is because you are trying to play it like a mobile game. You should stay on the base screen most of the time, focus on expanding and only go to the map when you have an opening.
 

ParadiseLost

Well-known member
That is because you are trying to play it like a mobile game. You should stay on the base screen most of the time, focus on expanding and only go to the map when you have an opening.

You also have to go on the map to check and make sure you don't have lockdowns*, because those will (1) make you lose your current scheme and (2) contribute a significant amount of threat making you more likely to get attacked (on the higher difficulties, lockdowns are pretty fatal).

Additionally, in the game, your two biggest concerns are (1) Heat/Threat and (2) Gold. Your primary way of dealing with both of those things in the world map, which is poorly implemented (many, many people are critical of it in both negative AND positive reviews of EG2).

So yes, everyone is spending 80% of their time in the base, Doomsought, because its way more fun. But a lot of the most important stuff in the game is happening on the world map, because that's where 80%+ of your income is coming from (including pretty much all the income you're using to expand) and that's where all the events that will contribute to a potential invasion will happen.

* There's also very short events that pop up... Each mission has a timer for how long it will be available, and occasionally, special missions pop up that give you the opportunity to sabotage or postpone a Named Agents attack on your base; those are pretty important and another thing to check for.

My point is that I believe the map is both (1) a large and critical part of the game experience and (2) poorly implemented.
 
Went back to playing Hearts of Iron 3 again. All things considered I generally, generally, prefer having complete control of every division on the front lines to the "draw a line on the border then paint arrows over it, by the way you can only delegate leaders on a Field Marshall and General level" system of Hoi4. Not just battle control either. Being able to design each division as I see fit is also preferable to Hoi4's template system. I should clarify that I prefer using a mod that makes division composition historically accurate (AKA: actually interesting to engage in) by adding in all kinds of little support battalions to create well-rounded units rather than the default "3 infantry brigades and the occasional support brigade makes a division" system. Yeah Hoi4 is more complicated with it's battalion level division designer, but it never feels as engaging. Hoi4 is in this weird limbo between being streamlined and being complex that may be open of honing by modders but still feels off. Things like the production system, which would feel more impactful if what you could produce was expanded on instead of just 3 or 4 tiers starting in 1918, and I definitely like their air and naval combat system more.
Granted, Hoi3 is shallow in many respects (politics is just window dressing outside of using spies to boost certain parties so that they can win elections and a coup mechanic that's hit or miss, little potential for AH aside from editing the country files yourself or using cheat). This is also extremely niche, but with Hoi3 and prior game's unit picture system you could at least easily add to the pictures yourself with basic knowledge of GIMP to give each unit type a photo corresponding to it's tech level if you wanted. Really helps visualize how your units change as you research better gear. Hoi4's icon system and 3d troop models doesn't feel as in-depth.
Ideally this kind of game would let me edit my armies down to their divisional commanders (portraits optional) like in Hoi3 but have a national focus and air/naval combat system and equipment system in line with Hoi4. But I get it, paradox wants that Casual gamer audience and those loadsamoney from DLCs.
As long as I'm posting this I might as well mention another idea: more "immersive" integration of equipment and manpower to the functionality of ground units. Hoi2's units had a simple mechanic where the number of tanks, trucks, cannons, etc were shown as part of the unit's health bar. Hoi3 only had the amount of men in each brigade and nothing about actual equipment numbers. Hoi4 gets it right with the equipment system and the ability to capture enemy guns in combat or use the loot from a defeated foe. The only real indicator is a flag icon but it works. On the other hand it's limited by the whole template system. The only way you can alter individual divisions is by swapping their template which happens immediately bar adding new equipment. No taking a unit behind the lines to upgrade. Also there's equal application of casualties across all component brigades in Hoi3 and Hoi4. An innovative idea would be to give more options with regards to disbanding units. Instead of sending the whole unit into a nebulous manpower pool, you could disband components into the rest of the division after particularly messy battles or merge depleted divisions into a new one to replicate the kind of ad-hoc formations that say the Germans were rolling with by the end of the war. A division history mechanic might also be included.
 
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Robovski

Well-known member
Evil Genius 2, the world map is the biggest weakness IMO, it is less than what we had with Evil Genius 1. As someone who bought it up front, I think if you are interested or liked the first game, get it on sale.

Played the Humanity open Dev (Victor) last week and that seems to be shaping up.

Currently back to World of Tanks while I wait for MechWarrior 5 to release on Steam.
 

ParadiseLost

Well-known member
Evil Genius 2, the world map is the biggest weakness IMO, it is less than what we had with Evil Genius 1. As someone who bought it up front, I think if you are interested or liked the first game, get it on sale.

Played the Humanity open Dev (Victor) last week and that seems to be shaping up.

Currently back to World of Tanks while I wait for MechWarrior 5 to release on Steam.

I found the Open Dev of Humankind so disappointing I returned it.

How P2W is World of Tanks? Saw a video of Spiffing Brit playing it and it looked interesting.
 

Robovski

Well-known member
I found the Open Dev of Humankind so disappointing I returned it.

How P2W is World of Tanks? Saw a video of Spiffing Brit playing it and it looked interesting.
Welp, I started playing again this week after probably more than 6 years away with a fresh account on Steam. Seems to be more to get you going than there used to be with a tutorial and quest rewards that never used to be in the game when I started like 8-10 years ago. It also seems like early progression grind is reduced for progression in a national tree, but crew Skilling seems about the same (but they will start you with one good crew). It's a fun arcade-y tank battler at low level and that's what I most enjoy.
 

ParadiseLost

Well-known member
Welp, I started playing again this week after probably more than 6 years away with a fresh account on Steam. Seems to be more to get you going than there used to be with a tutorial and quest rewards that never used to be in the game when I started like 8-10 years ago. It also seems like early progression grind is reduced for progression in a national tree, but crew Skilling seems about the same (but they will start you with one good crew). It's a fun arcade-y tank battler at low level and that's what I most enjoy.

Ouch, checked the reviews and its 36% positive... it looks like a lot of older players review bombed the game.

I'm focused on games that I definitely want to finish this summer. The Witcher Trilogy, Red Dead Redemption 2, COD MW 2 and 3, Destroy All Humans, Nier Automata, along with Yakuza 0-2.
 

LindyAF

Well-known member
Thinking about trying to actually finish the fallout games.

Anyone have any recommendations for a mod for Fallout 4 that makes the weapons make some sense?
 

ParadiseLost

Well-known member
Put a ton of time into the strategy games Radiis.

It's a hidden gem with a unique mechanic: you have no moving units, only buildings.

I also pre ordered Before We Leave on Steam, which releases Thursday.
 

Aaron Fox

Well-known member
Evil Genius 2, the world map is the biggest weakness IMO, it is less than what we had with Evil Genius 1. As someone who bought it up front, I think if you are interested or liked the first game, get it on sale.
Actually, as a player of the first Evil Genius game, the world map is the worst part of EG1, at least EG2 actually makes sense in comparison. It even tells you that your minions on the world stage actually take their cut and leave, which makes things easier. Still has the disappointingly low population limit though (thankfully it isn't EG1's 200 minion levels of bad). :(
 

Husky_Khan

The Dog Whistler... I mean Whisperer.
Founder
Sotnik
Anyone play Warpips yet? It's the first Early Access game I think I've ever purchased. I saw it on some various Lets Plays and was immediately intrigued at the deceptive simplicity of the game and played it through... several times already before finally getting some burnout. :p



It's like a Tug of War style RTS game I suppose. Pretty nicely polished and very fun to play casually... though it can exert some brainpower during the mission loadout screen as you ponder what to bring to each battlefield. The soundtrack is great too!
 

ParadiseLost

Well-known member
Mafia II was incredibly disappointing and I uninstalled it halfway through.

Played through Chapters 1-14 of A Plague Tale: Innocence between last night and today.

Only 3 chapters left, but I'm kind of feeling tired of playing it straight, so I'll take a break for a while.
 

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