Elemental Reflections (and Civ 5)

I haven't been around the elemental scene for the last couple of months really simply because i felt Brad and co didn't listen to us during beta. I had faith however they would pull it together, but was completely wrong upon playing the release version..  What frustrated me was some of the things i suggested were missing or a problem in the beta were simply ignored and were only after release was there an attempt to rectify certain issues in the game. I know i'm not alone here. I even tried asking questions on the forum and messaged Brad but to no avail, he simply ignored me much to perhaps their own detriment..  So much for Stardock listening to the community..

In the meantime ive been playing Civ 5.. The release initial release version of Civ 5 is much better than Elemental. Much more polished and refined. Feels like a complete game regardless whether or not people are missing features from Civ 4.. After seeing positive remarks after the last two patches however i decided to give elemental another go. From my limited time playing i believe elemental is catching up and to everyones relief, getting better.. Thankfully better is Derek's appointment.. now at least there should be less airy fairy stuff and more professionalism.. As a strategy gamer from the early 90's, i've still got my fingers crossed.. looking forward to 1.1/1.2 and the first expansion..

Here a few suggestions (i've copied and pasted) that I actually raised in the Civ 5 forums in regards to improving Civ which may be transposable for Elemental also.. I haven't been able to play enough into Elemental in the past though to actually know everything Elemental has..

1. AI improvement in general. This obviously helps replayability.

2. Random events. This obviously helps replayability. This thread has several good ideas.

3. Replays need to be added back in as an option whenever you quit a game so can watch back on the world as it grows. The following thread has promoted this. I know I like the option to watch the world grow..

4. Heres my idea to prevent unit spam and help generate battle fronts and wars.

1. Make unit costs cheap/quick to build so as to help armies appear quickly and in fronts rather than staggered.

2. Make unit upkeep high so as to prevent standing armies early on until you have enough money to actually support them.

3. Add a check for the AI to prevent it from bleeding money.

This would then allow players to churn out armies quickly and early on in the game, but not engage in a war for a long time without bleeding. Obviously helps the game in general.

5. Random naturally aggressive AI player(s).. they could just be full blown aggressive pricks and go to war constantly or just harass players outside their borders by attacking constantly... The idea and difference between battles and war/invasion.

Points 4 & 5 essentially help to counteract each other in effect whilst at the same time helping to create wars if you get my drift..

6. A (semi)random tech tree. Choose a category Science/Culture/Warfare etc.. to receive a random categorical tech. This way you wouldn't have the same expectant build routines and would have to think on the fly. Definitely adds replayability

'you would have your selection screen which would have the option to research categories instead of technologies for example culture or science or warfare or production etc.. then a categorically relevant technology is secretly chosen, but you only find out which one it is when its unlocked and becomes available to use.

so for example you want farming, you could choose the production category and get trapping instead but you could get farming next if you chose production again.. you wouldn't be able to skip massive sections of technology and jump into future techs.. this would mean the tech tree would have to be rebalanced and expanded to ensure there is always a relevant pathway when choosing a category..'

7. Pillage option upon city capture. There are downsides to city states or taking over cities in general. If you have a pillage option available upon capture you can then take possibly take slaves, resources and gold back to your city as a 'booty unit' as such. Then your left with an option to 'Pillage and Flee' which leaves the city in the existing kingdoms hands or by 'Pillage and Install King' thereby installing the city as a new independent city-state.

You could pillage city-states as well, thus earning a steady income or resources etc. This would again add replayability.

8. Rebellion/Revolution. Although I am a proponent of war in Civ games, there needs to be greater implications for taking over cities through war. Extending on from other threads on happiness and previous Civ 4 mods, there should be a minor chance for rebellions and or revolutions in occupied cities. This chance should go up exponentially the greater the unhappiness of an civilisation.

Rebellions could form as instant enemy/barbarian soldier assaulting one of your occupied cities with the result a liberation to the previous civilisation. Revolutions could also occur which form an entirely new fully formed civ. This would add to replayability by ensuring that constant domination has repercussions and constant management.

9. Hotseat. Cant believe i missed this one even though its been bandied around the forum so much. This would definitely add to replayability.

10. Advanced City States. Well this one I is a monty to be changed eventually, but I've puzzled how to make it better. They need to have a real active world presence rather than token city/quests. Once again this could be accomplished by making them more bloodthirsty. The other side of the coin is in regards to tribute etc.. For me if a city isn't bloodthirsty, its economically motivated (ironic i know). This then lends to the point of being taken over by other civs, but in civ we give tribute essentially to gain favour. This is a flaw in the design imo.

At present you can receive units or culture or food after giving tribute. What you should gain alongside these is tribute money if you dominate or threaten a city state. This would then add a double play. You can gain there trust by fulfilling quest objectives, liberating etc. to gain bonuses including an extra income. Or you can dominate a city state into submission. This would result in the same bonuses given, but also automatically create a 'liberate' quest from the said city state directed at other civs thus influencing diplomatic relations, whilst also creating chances for rebellion/revolts. This would definitely add to replayability.