Is the game gonna be 3D in one of the mini expansions??

ok, well, sounds like your looking for a z-axis, that would be incredibly difficult.

Why? All other 3D games magange this just fine. Eve Online for example. Hell most 3D games out there do this.

And when placing objects just have an axis lock option. For example. You first select the spot like you do now in the game, then lock that posision. Then select the other axis (up or down) and lock that.

That would be awesome, but a bit hard for the player considering the RTS style of this particular game. Almost all TBS games are 2d. And since this games is succeding at conveying the TBS atmosphere to a rts, I like it as it is. But that would still be awesome.

JPhamel

Just forgot to mention.

You guys will probably have in mind SOTS which is 3D turn based. But I find moving around the map REALLY annoying. If  I could move around in the map as in sins I might play SOTS again.

Anyway, the subject here is sins.

You have to assign a key in key layout option that makes your ships move in Z-axis. 

I tested that out. The Z-axis didn't seem to do a thing. Maybe this is something they are planing to emplement into the game....

It's been there since the beginning. It was removed for a time, but now it does work and it's a tactic some people use.

Click move, move the mouse to where you want them to go, hold your Z-axis key, and move the mouse up and down.

Ok, but it that is the case, what about cannons? They are only indicated with a flat circle. Am I just supposed to visualise with my minds eye the "bubble" that their fire range is supposed to have? Because obviously if you can fly downwards, then you can avoid getting shot at by them.

The thing you have to realize, is that if they did make it "true" 3D, who would play that? 

I mean sure, it's realistic (and i'd love to see it).  But now, rather than rotating your map around to get a better viewing angle, etc....anything can go anywhere.  As it stands now (if you had 3D available), you could hide an entire fleet underneath a star and nobody would know a thing....well, other than the player-icons that show through objects).

All i'm saying, is that sure it's a cool thing we'd like to see, but i don't think it would be very good to put it in, as it were.  It would just make things more complicated, regardless of how frigging awesome it would be.  I'll just stick to using my "`" key for the Z-axis, as it suits it's purpose

Seriously instead 3D, I would pick an expansion that is totally for the AI.

Or four vasari starbases.....

I can't take that seriously. That's like asking who would want to play an airplane simulator game in 3D.

Space battles in space with free movement is glorious. Try out EVE Online, or the good old Star Wars Supremacy (which in my point of view was the original in creating this new "genre" that Sins like to brag about they have created).

EVE Online is an MMORPG, not an RTS. Not familiar with SW Supremecy though.

The trouble with three-dimensional movement is it's difficult to map smoothly onto a two-dimensional instruments like a mouse and monitor. Homeworld manages, but Homeworld is a game of micromanagement and tactics. Sins on the other hand is a game of overarching strategy and empire management, More to the point, if you had z-axis movement what exactly would you do with it? How would the fundamental gameplay be altered?

Well, you could place object over/bellow eachother for one. Which would make things more neet rather than placing them in tight rows.

Ship wise, you could try to avoid the range of cannons and fine a way to "sneek" past. Or like mentioned above, hide under a star/sun/planet. Place different fleets on top of eachother to mask size and fool the enemy etc....endless possibilities really.

Meh, the advantages of strategically positioning units on the Z-axis would be outweighed by the additional micromanagement/control issues.

If you want a more 3D RTS then try out the "Homeworld" games. They did a pretty good job implementing the game in 3D, and while the controls were pretty well done it was somtimes a royal PITA to get the camera to do what you wanted it to quickly.

I prefer the simplicity of the camera/movement controls with the option to move in the Z should I feel some kind of strange urge to do so. Having to deal with "hidden" fleets/SB's that are lurking about and build defenses spherically around the planets? Pass.

Agreed.  It's a good idea, but it would add SOOOO much more complexity to a game that is already complex and deep enough to challenge 95% of the people playing it. 

Homeworld did it just fine, so there's your proof that it's not "hard" or would make things "difficult".

The biggest problem is that the game would look really stupid. Almost all the ships in SOASE are designed with fixed weapons that point straight forward. Meaning battles fought in the Z-Axis would look amazingly bad as everything had to stop and rotate to bring weapons to bear.

Take Star Wars, for example - the Star Destroyer's top and bottom surfaces are bristling with weapons, so that it can attack things going over or under it, and it's designed 'fat' so that you can't just attack it from the side to avoid the guns. Game-wise, with independent targetting of all weapon batteries, it would be extremely effective in three dimensions.

Now, how many naval ships can you think of require it to rotate and point straight at the enemy to bring its weapons to bear?