No save? No documentation?

[dfristrom]

I just purchased the Combat Mission app, watched the tutorial, and was ready to dive in. But then I encountered two glaring problems.

1. No save? Really? I couldn't finish my first game in one sitting, and since I couldn't find an option to save it, I assumed that it would be automatically saved, like other well-behaved iOS apps. But no -- when I came back to the app later, my game was gone! Has the game really been designed so you have to finish each scenario in a single sitting?

2. No documentation. This, alas, is fairly common for iOS apps, but I was hoping that a complex game like Combat Mission would have some kind of help or documentation beyond the tutorial, so I wouldn't have to figure everything out through trial and error.

Please tell me that I'm wrong, and that the game does have a save and documentation hidden away somewhere. Or that they will be added soon in an update.

[ClaytoniousRex]

I'll be posting shortly about what to expect in the upcoming 1.1 release, which is not far away at all. I'll elaborate more in that post, but the short answer to your save issue is:

Correct! Explicit saves are not yet in this 1.0 release. When you send the app to the background and do something else, your game will still be there where you left it unless it gets jettisoned from memory. Without getting geeky, that means if you just leave the app to respond to a notification or check a quick email, or if you just put the tablet to sleep and have dinner, then your game will still be there when you come back, exactly where you left it. But if you do some serious long-term work in other apps, then sometimes it won't be.

Obviously, true saves that persist no matter what are what you want and expect. And that's coming very soon in 1.1. (They behave exactly the way that replays do - they are completely automatic so there's not a "save" button to worry about).

As for documentation, it is difficult to spend effort on something that we thought, perhaps mistakenly, that nobody would ever use. If there's enough demand for it then we will be happy to provide it. In the meantime, please feel free to get all of the answers you need here.

[Joe Shaw]

I'll be posting shortly about what to expect in the upcoming 1.1 release, which is not far away at all. I'll elaborate more in that post, but the short answer to your save issue is:

Correct! Explicit saves are not yet in this 1.0 release. When you send the app to the background and do something else, your game will still be there where you left it unless it gets jettisoned from memory. Without getting geeky, that means if you just leave the app to respond to a notification or check a quick email, or if you just put the tablet to sleep and have dinner, then your game will still be there when you come back, exactly where you left it. But if you do some serious long-term work in other apps, then sometimes it won't be.

Obviously, true saves that persist no matter what are what you want and expect. And that's coming very soon in 1.1. (They behave exactly the way that replays do - they are completely automatic so there's not a "save" button to worry about).

As for documentation, it is difficult to spend effort on something that we thought, perhaps mistakenly, that nobody would ever use. If there's enough demand for it then we will be happy to provide it. In the meantime, please feel free to get all of the answers you need here.

I do think a more substantial documentation might be warranted. The tutorial did a pretty good job but, for example, how do I "face" a unit without moving it?

Is there a way to check LOS before placing a unit?

I look forward to the 1.1 update, great to hear that's on the way.

Joe

[bardosy]

The tutorial was extremly FUNNY!

[aka_tom_w]

The tutorial was FANTASTIC (I sincerely hope, with our help, it goes viral)

[James Cobb]

Although the tutorial covers the basics, it doesn't include the expanded command bar. A PDF posted here might help.

[Beakie]

I too want and need some kind of Manual for this game

Having never played a CM game before it's just one more thing that is keeping me from fully enjoying my purchase.... you keep saying that this game is no "Angry Birds" type game. But, why do you insist on having the docs that game has?

I came to this game, hoping that it was a Serious wargame.... I think it is... (or soon will be anyway). I want a manual that tells me what i need to know to enjoy this fine game....

Tutorial was one of the finest pieces of video I'm ever seen don't get me wrong...

But please stop thinking that your whole Ipad market has played your other games, they haven't. I'm proof of that....

Again, just my opinion and feedback....

Beakie

[Charlatan]

I would love to see some additional docs as well. I will comb through these forums, but I've noticed some things that I don't understand:

1) Green / Yellow / Red on vehicle parts - specifically yellow - does that essentially mean? your planned action may or may not be performed?

2) What the effective range for weapons? What happens outside of that range?

3) Is it a given that mechanics in the PC version are directly ported over to the iPad version? If I go diving into the forums and find some factoids is it safe to assume similar results in the iPad version?