Messages

1

Feature Requests / Re: Saving during missions.

« on: July 21, 2014, 10:37:34 am »

I assumed that someday you would want to put it on the market.

This is an open source game. That means (roughly) anyone can do what they want with it. Open source means it is already released to the "market".

If you mean selling the game, I don't believe that was ever the intention. Personally I would say that your implication of "putting it on the market" would mean at some point making it Closed Source which is completely against the concept of Open Source.

Since I am completely unqualified to contribute to your effort in any way and any comments I might make would only be my opinion and not at all relevant to your personal goal of 'having fun'. 

Why do you suggest you are completely unqualified to contribute?

The aim of the game being Open Source means that any can contribute to making the game better. You can provide ideas, and if the development team believe that it is worth spending the time to code, will implement it.
Alternatively, if they don't agree with it or don't consider it a priority then you can code it yourself, or find a friend who can, and the changes can be submitted for consideration for inclusion into the "official" project. Alternatively, you could maintain a seperate alternative version of the game with your own features. The project is "Open" to all these options.

If the above is true then you certainly can do what ever you wish and any critical comments are absolutely out of place.

Even if the game were being developed towards a "completion" point and sale, the developers are still allowed their opinion on how they think the game mechanics should operate. I don't see why them being able to do what they wish is dependent on whether the game is available for sale or not?? o.O

Critical comments however, are not out of place. If they are constructive then they can be helpful. If they are not constructive, or don't fit with the vision of the devs, then they can be happily ignored.

2

User modifications / Re: aircraft mod

« on: July 21, 2014, 10:13:34 am »

Oh you think the same as me jejejeje. i know is a game, but a firebird flying around the planet without refueling... is difficult!

Why is it strange to think that in 50 years time a plane couldn't fly all the way around the world in a single trip? Aircraft manufacturers are working on planes like that right now. Doesn't seem even remotely strange to me.

3

FAQ / Re: How to see inside base?

« on: July 20, 2014, 03:53:43 am »

I guess after losing a big base like that, I only had two, it wouldn't be worth it to try to continue. Too big a loss in money and money is too scarce.

Do you have a save from before the base attack? Even if you aren't one to reload if you mess something up, not knowing what the base was like I think is a legit reason.

4

Windows / Re: Text graphics problem in 2.5(?)

« on: July 02, 2014, 07:43:58 am »

Can you get a screenshot we can look at?

5

Discussion / Re: My 2.5 feedback

« on: June 22, 2014, 05:34:31 pm »

5. The issue with outgunning the aliens is a structural one that ShipIt has raised in the past. As soon as the aliens field a weapon, you can research and deploy it quickly, so their advantages are very short-term. I don't think we've found a good way around this that doesn't feel like a hack, but it's certainly on our radar. It's actually one of the reasons that Needlers work the way they do. They're a pain to face (getting wounded all the time) but not as effective to use yourself.

I would think the answer to this is simply that alien armour is more effective at blocking their tech. If I recall correctly, that is how it is documented at the moment (possibly only for the grenades) and how it seems to work. I used plasma rifles as soon as I got them early game but by mid-game they were virtually useless. Maybe dropping their usefulness in the early game (and the other alien tech) even more would have the desired effect?

6

Discussion / Re: My 2.5 feedback

« on: June 21, 2014, 08:13:41 am »

Interesting reading everyone's perspectives, both in this thread and others.

I used the grenade launcher and flame-throwers heaps in early game (2 of each on a squad) and found them super useful, but far less so by mid-game. I used the rocket launcher a few times initially, but found after about the first 6 months that I was taking far less shots with it than anything else so dropped it.

I'm still in love with my snipers, especially with EP rounds. I also make extensive use of assault rifles with EP rounds and fairly frequent use of grenades.

I have also never bothered with secondary weapons. The TU's required to get it out of the holster, shoot and return to the holster is usually more than using the primary weapon. I've found it far more effective to carry and use grenades for close range.

7

User modifications / Re: Question for modding

« on: June 18, 2014, 07:51:44 pm »

ufoai_2.5~git20131101-1_amd64.deb

If you are on a 64bit OS then yes. Otherwise you need the i386 file, but I expect you are on a 64bit system.

8

User modifications / Re: Question for modding

« on: June 15, 2014, 05:01:40 am »

But, i when you said "ufoai (i386 or amd64)", you refers to: ufoai_2.5~git20131101-1_amd64.deb, or i need the 2.4 base to upgrade?

2.5 is a completely separate installation, there is no upgrade. I do not know if the 2 versions packages will interfere with each other so I would suggest only installing 2.5 for now, and once that is working, then consider 2.4 if you still want to play it.

9

Bugs in stable version (2.5) / Re: 2.5 bug:Dragon now comes with an Mind Control module!

« on: June 08, 2014, 12:36:47 pm »

Ok, fair call. So you can epxloit the fact that the alien craft is trying to follow you...

It might be helpful if you suggested how it could be done differently so as to be "fixed".

10

Bugs in stable version (2.5) / Re: 2.5 bug:Dragon now comes with an Mind Control module!

« on: June 07, 2014, 06:40:32 pm »

How is it an exploit?... or did I miss something in your video?

11

Bugs in stable version (2.5) / Re: 2.5 bug:Dragon now comes with an Mind Control module!

« on: June 07, 2014, 09:26:36 am »

When an alien craft is flying towards you, it will continue to track your movements... that's kinda the point. It is trying to catch you and shoot you down.

As far as I know, this only happens when the alien craft is slower than your dragon and you are flying away from it, so it tries to catch you by going the opposite way around the globe. Other than that, I would say it is normal behaviour?

12

Discussion / Re: Newbie Questions / Moving Civilians

« on: June 01, 2014, 06:16:10 am »

I think civilian psychology would be the most 'realism adding' element. If an alien approaches, or a human (Phalanx or civilian) gets shot in close proximity, civilians could have a certain probability of panicking / bolting / hiding (would be great to have extra graphics for that, but I suppose it isn't strictly necessary...).

The problem is the civilians take their turn just like the aliens and soldiers. They do move away from aliens when it is their turn.

It's difficult to picture how the scene would work an a realtime sense... in realtime, they would be panicking and probably going in different directions and generally getting in the way as there would be shots all around. So I think the current movement is possibly realistic (except for the not attempting to hide), but it looks odd because it is turn-based.

Visually, increasing their movement speed might give the impression of them panicking.

It would be nice if they tried to hide better but that would require a more advanced AI of course.

If you could take some TUs to order calm civilians to a back room, even better. They could obey on a certain probability, perhaps weighted according to your reputation with the nation? (evil / desperate players could send them out as 'scouts' to expose enemy positions. A costly tactic, but hey, war is hell...)

When I first started playing I kept trying to figure out how to get the civilians to go back to the "Safe Zone" areas. Eventually I gave up.

Interacting with civilians would be neat. I initially thought they might follow a soldier once they were in an adjacent square or something. That would allow you to lead them away without having to add anything to the interface, but would cause issues if you were just trying to pass them while hunting down an alien.

I also like the idea of being able to command them somehow. If nothing else, just to tell them to get out of the way. I've no idea what would be a good interface for this however.

Perhaps you could knock them out with the butts of your guns? Quicker than using antipsychotics on them... doing it could annoy the nation, but less than the civilian dying (perhaps it could have a small chance of killing them anyway).

You can stun them already, but knocking them out with your gun would save you having to switch weapons back and forth.

13

Discussion / Re: Impressions on 2.5 vs 2.4

« on: May 24, 2014, 10:02:59 am »

sick bay:
Why is it now so that all hired soldiers are always displayed ? In 2.4 it was a quick overview how many and which soldiers are wounded.

This is for when implants are implemented.

Alternatively, add a "remove all" button in the aircraft menu. The way it's now, I always need to switch to the equipment screen before or after removing soldiers just to remove all of their equipment.

I agree, that an easy remove all button would be nice. Not sure I'd ever use it though. :-P

I actually like this change, as it's more realistic,

Yep, I agree. The hospital does seem far better than in 2.4, possibly even a little too efficient? (either that or I'm lucky that I put my soldiers in and wait for the next wave of UFO's)

soldier clothing styles (urban, arctic and so on):
The choices got removed, supposedly because they don't have effect ? Good.

I vaguely recall still seeing this option, but in a different place. *shrug*

While optimizing the carried weight, the popup informing about not enough time units is very annoying. It needs to be clicked away all the time. The flashing red warning below the soldier image is perfectly sufficient.

I disagree with this. I like the popup saying that I was dumb, but configurable would be an option. Unfortunately I frequently? don't notice that it has gone yellow and so my soldiers have degraded TU's when I start a map. Good thing I save lots! :-P

Also, the weight display would be more useful if it displayed (in addition) the weight the soldier is able to carry in addition without suffering a TU penalty. And perhaps the maximum carrying capacity displayed should instead be the half of that, since that's the value the player is more interested in.

A "weight remaining" value might be a good idea, but you don't want to make numbers too confusing.

I haven't played 2.5 enough to really comment on it, but if there are less UFOs, there is much less money from selling those, or their parts, and the loot from the resulting missions. Thus nations should pay a lot more, to have the same money, since costs for buildings and equipment as well as maintenance costs seem to be the same.

Seems like no problem to me. I've only had a couple of times where I was hanging out for the next UFO so I could start the next upgrade or whatever.

This is the worst part. There are less UFOs to make the game less tedious and more map variation to make it interesting I suppose. *But* even for scouts and so on, there are now huge maps, such as the "mansion", which is a pure pain in the ass.

Hahaha, I completely disagree with this. I love the bigger maps. I much prefer mansion when it is full size to when it is only half the map. Yeah, it can take a while to find all the aliens, but I personally enjoy it.

Maybe it is the short attention span that people have these days and the need for instant gratification. The game should take a while, that's the kind of game it is!

Also, the crashed UFO is seldom (never ?) visible.

Hmmm, that's different to me. I'd say I get the crashed remains of a ship almost all the time. I get surprised if I don't see the crashed remains.

In 2.4 one can detect the remaining number of enemies from the UFO type. Say, it's a scout, you already killed 1 and see 2, thus there can none be hiding somewhere and ambush you. That's a huge tactical advantage. In 2.5 it is necessary to somehow track the UFO type by out-of-game means...

I don't like this at all. Personally I think the number of aliens in each ship should be random but within limits based on the size of the ship. You should never know everything about your enemies before you even start, that is simply boring. The game should be a challenge, it should be unpredictable.

14

User modifications / Re: Question for modding

« on: May 12, 2014, 06:41:39 am »

I need to download all the files? If i download them, how can i install them?

You don't need to download all of them, some packages (uforadient, ufoai-server, ufoai-music, ufoai-dbg, ufoai-tools) are optional.

The base minimum to download are:
ufoai (i386 or amd64), ufoai-common, ufoai-maps, ufoai-misc, ufoai-sound and ufoai-textures

To install them use dpkg:
sudo dpkg -i ufoai*.deb

15

User modifications / Re: Question for modding

« on: May 10, 2014, 11:06:35 am »

Don`t worry my friend. I want to install 2.5 but i use linux and i`m not expert working with the system. I need a compiled version, just like de 2.4.

There is an official Debian release being developed by apo (a Debian Games Dev). You can get the testing packages here: ftp://46.182.19.209/ufoai/

The thread can be found here: http://ufoai.org/forum/index.php/topic,7862.0.html