CM and the future

[Redleg]

I am very tempted to purchace CM, if only to provide funding for future versions of the game. Is BTS planning to do the following things in future versions?

1. Graphically represent all soldiers instead of representing squads and teams with only three or less soldiers?

2. Get rid of the turn based system and allow the game to be paused for orders at the will of the human player?

3. Allow for simpler targeting of crew served weapons such as placing an icon on the screen to select arty, mort and mg automatically so finding them isnt such a pain.

As it stands the game if fun but a hassle to play for me. This is, however, the prototype of the perfect game. As as a ver 1 game, it just aint to shabby at all. So, it the above are on the drawing board for future versions, I will invest in it.

[Coolguy101]

i can answer to the best of my ability:

1) Well there is almost no one that will be done for CM 2 as computers can not handle all the textures. I have also heard it will most likely not go to a 1:1 representation at all because the screen will become verry crowded.

2) BTS has clearly stated that it will not go real time. If you do a search you can find out the reasons.

3) Personally i find it quite easy to find my units. I use the unit bases and scale up the units to +2 or +3 (i dont remember)

good luck

[patboivin]

You can also press minus (-) or plus (+) to move from unit to unit, sometimes I do that when I know that one mistake might turn my scenario into a nightmare.

It helps double-check that nothing was forgotten.

As for turn-based, the game is based on a cardboard chit game called Advanced Squad Leader, www.advancedsquadleader.com

That game was totally addictive for intelligent players who wanted to manipulate hundreds of chits on a map board during a game. Games in ASL often lasted through the weekend, or had to be chopped up into weekly sessions of four hours or more before the battle would be over.

fun fun fun!!!

Combat Mission lets you play similar engagements in much less time, you get to experience the battle instead of pushing cardboard chits around, and it really tries to be historically accurate.

I think it's the best computer game around! (OK, Star Trek Armada looks promising but that's just a slugfest, not much thinking involved I suspect).

If you don't like turn-based games then maybe you should try games like Red Alert, where it's more a matter of how quickly you can move your mouse pointer than about strategy. Well OK there is SOME strategy involved in Red Alert but nothing like in Combat Mission.

In CM you can also create your own games on the fly, you can't get this kind of realism so easily in any other game that I know of.

[Redleg]

turn based does not equal "a thinking mans game". Nor does being real time reduce the complexity or tactical thinking required. I quess what I was getting at is that I would like to control when i go into an orders phase as opposed to the game dictating to me when I will stop for an orders phase. Stopping at critical moments when I want the action to just go onward as well as being helpless in critical moments to change orders is aggravating. Of course this is just my opinion.

[Supertanker]

For a single player game, I would like to be able to pause whenever I want. I also recognize this would make a fundamentally different game, as I believe you would lose a lot of tension and the feel of being a higher-level commander. That doesn't mean I wouldn't buy it! So, Redleg, since you have your own design decisions in mind, and at least one customer, when are you going to start coding?

For multiplayer, I think being able to pause anytime makes a game nearly unplayable. Ever played multiplayer Baldur's Gate? Frigging annoying. Taking away multiplayer pausing in a wargame then reduces the game to a clickfest, with victory leaning heavily toward the faster mouser. Now we are too close to Command & Conquer for my tastes.

[Redleg]

of course I did not consider multiplayer. But CC works MP, Why not this? I guess that would make it fully RT then tho. Im not totaly converted to TB, but MP pauses would be annoying granted.

BTW, I will probably buy it anyway, even if I dont consider it 'the perfect game' because I love being on the ground that is being hit by arty BOOM! Boom! BOOM!

[Coolguy101]

If you could pause the game during an action phase i think the game would loose it's edge. It is thrilling and at the same time dissapointing seeing that you led your men right into and ambush and cant give them orders for what you want to do with them for another 15 seconds or something and the way it is now makes you plan carefully your moves. bad execution can cost you the game.

[Guest Seimerst]

Redleg, (a term of endearment in the field artillery world),

Your question is a good one but here is my two cents. The "turn" represents 60 seconds of real time combat- you are the company/battalion commander (depending on the scenario)-- this is also a simulation as much as a "game" so at that level, it is totally unrealistic to be able in your role as the commander to even understand what Corporal Schmedlap sees and wants to react to, much less observe, decide, issue orders, have your orders reach their "target" have your "target" understand them and take action-- all within one minute of total confusion and chaos.

There are other games-- and some good one too, that do what you describe, but I don't even for a moment consider them to be decent simulations. CM is an incredible piece of programming magic-- realistic as the state of the art in coding and computers will allow and one great game on top of that.

[Renaud]

I go for hardcore strategic/tactical simulation wargamer and CM is right up my alley. CC2 was incredibly fun and a classic game. But, i'd hate to see CM watered down from it's no-compromise position on detailed military tactical simulation. Frankly I could give a flip if it ever appeals to the masses. If it did it would probably start looking like something we already have hundreds of copies of on store shelves.

For the semi-historical military side you have CC1-4 and for everyone else there's a boatload of fictional-setting tactical warfare rts in space, land, sea and air. There are already tons of good RTS games, why make another one.

Ren

[Kraut]

2. Get rid of the turn based system and allow the game to be paused for orders at the will of the human player?

The game IS real time. You DO pause to give orders. Every 60 seconds you adjust orders or give new orders. Once i started to think this way about combat mission i enjoyed it much more.

As it stands the game if fun but a hassle to play for me. This is, however, the prototype of the perfect game. As as a ver 1 game, it just aint to shabby at all. So, it the above are on the drawing board for future versions, I will invest in it.

This ain't a prototype for anything. This is the real deal.

Play the game more, get used to the system and most importantly, throw out all you know about other wargames and sytems. Only if you do this will you be able to enjoy combat mission. I know, because this is the same process i went through ...

MK

[kump]

Redleg,

Your basing you judgement on past RTS experience with other titles. You've assumed that CM is attempting to fit the same mode. Sorry, it ain't going to happen. This is no prototype. This is a new way to presenting WWII tactical wargaming, giving us real time combat in a turn based format. It attempts, and in my opinion succeeds, in giving us an up close and exciting experience of tactical combat.

If this "new" way of wargaming that BTS has implemented succeeds to capture the hearts and minds of "wargamers" everywhere is yet to be seen, but I think it has a good shot of doing just that. However, I don't care if it pleases the RTS, FPS, RPG, or whatever the general masses of computer gamers is hot for. Its not targeted for them, its aim is on pleasing the wargamer crowd.

Hopefully, many will find CM an experience of a lifetime and transition or adopt computer wargaming as a new avenue to computer gaming enjoyment and let some other more shallow titles gather dust on their shelves.

CM is history in the making, not a prototype attempting to slowly become something you can recognize as a true RTS game. CM is making its own definition of a good wargame, and up to now, its like a King Tiger (BTS CM on turret) nose to nose with a lone M8 Scout Car (Other Wargames).

Oh yea, and I'm behind that King Tiger bowing to the ground saying....

"I'm not worthy, I'm not worthy"

Sorry, I can feel the CM revolution starting and my undeniable edging to CM fanatic.