Getting people back to AotS?

Far too soon, people payed full price only a week ago for the last DLC.

Drop off is expected over the summer in most games. The Expansion will be the next thing which will bring a major boost I think. Each major patch brings the numbers back up a bit too, so could happen again with 1.3.

I usually play the game in Single Player, I just don't like the ranked games, (reasons: small maps)

I think I played all the scenarios available in the game, but they are ok... Stardock need to do something better with scenarios. (More interesting story per scenario) What about a Multi-map scenario? will that be possible?

I am also Waiting for an automatic matchmaking for medium, large, and epic maps.

Most of the people that I know who have this game are also SP players only, they just don't care about anything else.

They all have gone back to older RTS games, since nothing in AotS really is getting their interests peaked.

A Vulkan version won't affect player counts.

Lowering the hardware requirements and increasing skirmish replayability is the key.

Remember Homeworld: DOK? It's at lower numbers and that has the Homeworld license.

Giving away DLC would be a fast way to end development on Ashes and move to a different project.  It's DLC that funds development and it sells well.

Skirmish replayability:

Someone in another thread said that some of the scenarios are event driven... like "when the player reaches this waypoint, do X."

(no, I haven't tested the theory, but seems reasonable, plausible, and probable based on my experience of the game)

Is there a way to vary things up more?

like... randomly adopt strategies, instead of using waypoints to determine timing?

Just a thought.

I find a lot of games do the waypoint thing, and I generally don't pick them up again after I play through.

BUT... if the game kept doing interesting things...

Just curious what's possible, and whether SD has explored alternatives. 

I imagine a random generated strategy is a lot harder to code.

I think you will be waiting a long time, you would need many many times the current MP community to support that.

Not directly relevant but it is a shame more of the top ranked players don't to custom games, but for a few exceptions they mostly just do 1v1.

That's because 1v1 is so awesome in ashes!

If a Vulkan port was made, then you open the door to Linux, Apple, and other platforms, which would bring in more people.

Using Vulkan also does make the game more playable on older hardware, since it is faster, then it can work with lower spec machines.

A random skirmish generator would be pretty cool!

I do think that AOTS is a very interesting game in every-way and I do see that its getting better every month.

That's why I keep playing it, I am just a guy who love to play big maps and not small.

Yes maybe, But i am sure its not a big deal for Stardock to just add more options for the Auto-match, The Tech is there and its getting better. so adding more options to it will be easy, i know he Community its not a big one yet, but it will be through the years if Stardock keep updating the game.

I did play a lot of ranked 1v1 games in beta, so much that i got tired of it so i just went into big maps, those maps are really fun to play because you can do everything you want and create every strategy possible. (you cannot do that on the small maps)

1v1 games are good and fun for a while, just very repetitive, but not that awesome as you call it, have you tried the biggest maps? that's I can call awesome!

Well guys dont know about others, but i have given up on AoTS because:

1) Balance issues (i hadnt been here for 2 months now, but i dont think it got better). 2 races is not enough cause always there will be a dominance by one of them over the other;

2) Repeatative gameplay (every game ive played was like "well been through that scenario, seen that");

3) Lack of content (single player is getting boring after a while, and i dont actually care for mp). You can say to me "hey, what content do you want from a RTS game?" Ill just point in a direction of sc2, where blizzard managed to do wonders with RTS genre via atracting casual players and actually making it fun to play. Although i didnt liked sc2 gameplay, but the content via allied commanders mode/campaign/maps/mods is a lot better for a casual player as myself (i cant really remember last time i played sp or mp map in sc2, but i do frequently play allied commanders mode cause its fun);

4) Large amount of useless (in my view) DLCs. I did not enjoyed a single scenario mission that came with core game, so im not interested in buying some more. The map selling is something you shouldnt make money with in a RTS game IMO;

5) Devs are actually breaking promises. AoTS was advertised as massive strategical RTS game. Where does the "massive" part come along? Almost all of the sp/mp games are limited in time due to early agression being the best tactical solution there is. And cmon, 1/2 bombers/aircrafts wining a game in a "massive RTS"? Even the larger maps do not give you any sense of massiveness. I do remember these positionings of AoTS - "command thousands of units, ten thousands of units". Didnt seen it in game even once, and believe me i tried. 

About that "strategical" part. Micro everywhere. Mismanaged your units in the beginning by 1 sec, lost a production node, and instead of starting with 2 of them, you start with one and pretty much lost half of the game. Same goes for "early agression gank type attacks" by aircraft. 

Ive been following AoTS developments since last december when i bought the game, and i did had some high hopes for it, but sadly all that AoTS got to provide is a nice technical solution to a next gen gaming. Thats all. I know there was a debate on wheather the game is considered "finished" or not. I do think it is finished, but it is just not fun imo. 

Sadly that a lot of my friends have given up on AoTS too for similar reasons. And i dont actually think a "sale" of some sort will help.