Pixman

Guys, when it's ready it's ready. Those of us who were around when CMBO was pending know enough to just sit tight until the release. BTS knows what they are doing and they have their priorities straight -- build a quality game, release it as quickly as possible, and support it properly once it hits the streets.

Steve and team, Sorry for the late reply -- too much damned travel! First of all, Happy Holidays to you and any other grognard reading this post. As much as you guys are dedicated to us and your work, please take the time for what is most important, ie your family and loved ones. Secondly, I cast my vote for releasing CMBB when it is ready by your standards and not before. We have enough plastic, chintz and cheap sensation to choose from out here. Your "games" are of a different ilk altogether, born of a commitment to quality rather than commercial prostitution. No matter when you release it, every person subscribing to this board will buy it instantly once available. So do it right, as I know you will. Take good care and kindest regards, Pix

Any Allied aircraft? ------------------ Fact is the enemy of truth. - Don Quixote

No, no, no!

Late summer - early fall of 1999 I believe. ------------------ Fact is the enemy of truth. - Don Quixote

Hey Steve/Charles, I've moved in the past year. I'm not sure which address you have for my preorder -- I ordered quite a while ago. How do I get you my current address without reordering? I tried the "Contact Us" link and it did nothing. Please advise, I'd hate to miss the "first wave" of shipments on D-Day because of bad dog tags. By the way, I have said nothing since the gold demo release -- basically because I am speechless. You have redefined war and strategy games to a level I never dared to hope for. I pray the market and industry reward you guys for your vision, sacrifice, skill and refusal to settle for less than what is possible with the technology at hand. I also salute those in the greater development effort who have provided research, voices, names, textures, testing, etal. to really flesh out an already great product. Pixman ------------------ Fact is the enemy of truth. - Don Quixote

I have a Toshiba Tecra 8000 with a NeoMagic MagicMedia 256 AV adaptor in it. I have loaded Direct X 7.0. It only has 2.5 MB of VRAM, but a fast processor, so the frame rate is slow but acceptable. My problem is that this funky pinkish magenta color shows up all over the graphics. This is true in the videos as well as in text. For example, the scenario names in the screen where you choose the scenario are in the color. At the same time, the textures for vehicles and soldiers look very realistic, with nuances of greens and tans, etc. Somebody please help! I travel a lot with my new job and CM is going to be my life saving companion to eliminate boredom on the road. But it has to run on my notebook. Pixman ------------------ Fact is the enemy of truth. - Don Quixote

Hi guys. I have not posted in a long time, but I thought this might interest all of you. Some of you are probably aware that Sierra/Impressions has cancelled production of their much anticipated Civil War Generals III. Let me assure you that this fan of CWG II is greatly disappointed as are a host of others. My point in this post is to share with you the reasons for the cancellation as given directly by Jeff Fiskle -- chief designer of CWG III. I cut the following from the CWG III message board and pasted it intact: <BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR> Greetings, I am used to assuming a persona, or some play with words when I post on the forums. That hardly seems appropriate now. I am writing to say that we wanted to let you all know in a more personal way than a press release that Civil War Generals was cancelled. That is why we informed you in a stylized newsletter. Since Sierra purchased us five years ago, Impressions Games has been our own little island of strategy game development in Cambridge MA, while Sierra labored on in WA, and CA. The bad times that Sierra experienced seem to be over, and we were never really directly affected by their turmoil. The reason we have been left alone (besides the 48 states between us)is we have a great track record with the quality of the products we produce, and we police ourselves. We made a mistake when we began Generals3. We thought that we could make a fantastic Strategy Game that took place in a Civil War setting. This game would be fun for everyone who had enjoyed Risk, or Axis and Allies, and at the same time it would be the best Civil War Game ever. We were on track and making that exact game. The problem was that every person we showed it to, in France, Germany or even the US said, “Oh you mean it is a US Civil War Game?” Using Shogun as an example,(thanks Dell)if you notice not a single preview has labeled it a wargame even though the slogan is total war. It is perceived as a strategy game. It is this kind of subtlety that was going to kill Generals before it even made it to the shelves. Face it, any type of PC gaming is niche. Even ‘mass market’ PC Games are not common topics for conversations around the dinner table. So what if the Sims have been on TV, and every major media publication. If you walk up to the first stranger you meet and ask them if they know what the Sims are, they will think you mean the Simpsons. PC Games in the Mass market? Far from it. Not only were we a PC game, we were plunked down into the wargames niche, and that is a small niche within a niche. If I am the owner of a 400 square foot store known as Babbages, or EB, I don’t want a big bulky ‘war game’ box. I want a playstation CD or a Diablo II. So if we are going to put the effort of a Diablo II into a product, should we not hope to achieve something better than a small corner next to ‘other Wargames’? So 2011-15 is the 150th Anniversary, who knows, maybe Civil War Games will be in demand. Hopefully we won’t have to wait this long. Like Ken said, not this game, and not at this time. Thanks for sticking with us and sorry it ended this way. The least we can be is honest with you about why it happened like this. Jeff Fiske Designer, Impressions Software <HR></BLOCKQUOTE> Sound familiar? Almost straight from the Battlefront Manifesto and chimes in with some of the posts Steve has put on this board as well. Steve produced CWG II, and he and Jeff know each other, but I would be surprised if Jeff consulted with him before posting his statement. From my dealings with him, Jeff is a class guy. Obviously, he stood up honorably and told it like it is to his loyal and disappointed constituents. The bottom line to me is that Battlefront and BTS are right on track with their marketing strategy. They recognize the "niche within a niche" that we represent and value us for it. They want to keep quality PC wargaming alive and know that even quality, dedicated, well resourced companies like Impressions cannot deliver in the marketing mainstream. So they have created their own channel for development, marketing and distribution. As we have all experienced to date, this has some pros and some cons. In my opinion, the pros far outweigh the cons. Especially when you consider that, without their efforts, we might not get any quality wargames at all. I applaud you BTS. The flipside of my disappointment with Impressions is greater appreciation for you. CWG III was going to be a great game. Jeff knows it. I know it. Everybody knows it. And they still did not make it. Lose, lose, lose. My last comment is, if Jeff or others from the Impressions team become available as fallout of this decision, I hope there is room for them in our little world here. They really have a lot to offer to the wargaming community. You guys are great. Thanks for all your sacrifices. Pixman ------------------ Fact is the enemy of truth. - Don Quixote

My thoughts: "CM2: The Dead of Winter" "CM3: The Sands of War" "CM4: Blitzkrieg!" ------------------ Fact is the enemy of truth. - Don Quixote

And what a killing Wizards of the Coast is! Between Magic: The Gathering and Pokemon, they have cleaned up. ------------------ Fact is the enemy of truth. - Don Quixote

Funny, Napoleon's men and leaders felt the same way 130 years before. Why do people insist on invading Russia? Pixman ------------------ Fact is the enemy of truth. - Don Quixote

Sorry to hear of your loss Fionn. God bless. Pixman ------------------ Fact is the enemy of truth. - Don Quixote

Bravo BTS. Thanks for the update Steve. I'll add my voice to the "I can wait for you to get it right" crowd. I have so much on my plate right now that I'm actually glad it is not out yet, because I would not be able to give the game the time I would like anyway. That is why I have not started any PBEMs -- I don't want to make an opponent wait forever for my turns. Hopefully I'll get some things ironed out here in the next few months. By then the complete game should be out and I can add my name to the list of those getting their butts kicked via PBEM. Until then, keep up the good work guys. That includes Fionn and the rest supporting the development and marketing efforts. Pixman ------------------ Fact is the enemy of truth. - Don Quixote

Mark IV. Those were fruit bats, not tropical birds, lol. In fact I think one was "Eric the Fruit Bat". ------------------ Fact is the enemy of truth. - Don Quixote

Anyone who understands the workings of an open market economy can become a millionaire. People with entrepreneurial spirit are arriving on boats and airplanes everyday that are dirt poor. Many of them will become very wealthy. The key reason most people do not become wealthy is that they do not understand that it takes delayed gratification in the short run to amass great wealth in the long run. I contend that any person in his 20s making $15k to $20k a year can become a millionaire with the right amount of discipline. The hard truth is that the enemy is always within -- never without. ------------------ Fact is the enemy of truth. - Don Quixote