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Micro-management

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MachineGun:
Hi. UFO-AI is a really high quality game -- excellent graphics and sound, and a very impressive concerted open source programming effort.

There is only one problem I have with UFO-AI, which was the same problem I had with the old X-COM games: After the first few months (game-time) of game play, the game involves an enormous burden of micro-management. Eventually it seems like I get overwhelmed with all the minor details, like keeping track of which base is researching what technology, moving aircraft parts from one base to another, making sure every crew is supplied and equipped with weapons, checking on troops in the hospitals, making sure aircraft are properly equipped... and so I get bored and go play Eboard or Wesnoth.

Maybe a focus of more future development efforts should be more and better auto-management tools, which can be utilized when the user starts to get a lot of bases. The auto-calculated battle option is nice, but more base auto-management tools would help.  Aircraft auto-control options might be cool too: how about making it possible for some aircraft to automatically launch upon UFO radar detection?

Anyone else agree/disagree? Do I have a point, or is this "micro-management" an essential part of the game?

geever:
I don't think ufo:ai has too much micromanagement. I don't like that auto-aircraft idea either. If I know that aircraft can't shot down the ufo I'll have to recall it every time and so...

An auto equip feature and equipment templates are planned though.

-geever

Captain Bipto:
I don't think there is too much micro-management but the devs are planning on making management more effective anyhow.

Volatar:
I also do not think it has too much micro management, but that is because I enjoy micro management.

You will find that X-Com's  (and its sequels and spinoffs and remakes) main draw may be the combat, the premise, or even the feel. I have noticed that those things may bring people in, but what really holds people to the game(s) seems to be the ability to micromanage down to the tiniest detail. Some people (me included) really enjoy such things.

The hard part about developing such a game really seems to be the balance: the ability to micromanage deeply, but not the need to.

Captain Bipto:
Yeah, what he said.

One reason for the different time scales is to give you enough time to go through and make sure your various bases (assuming the other bases are not just glorified hangar bays) are doing what they are supposed to.

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