iPhone Imperium Galactica II - (by Digital Reality)

Discussion in 'iPhone and iPad Games' started by sladeums, Mar 30, 2012.

  1. SSquared

    SSquared Well-Known Member

    Jan 27, 2009
    1,030
    0
    0
    Software Developer
    Pacific Northwest
    Found my old manual. Back when game manuals were substantial. Was surprised to see this was from 2000. I didn't think it was THAT long ago. The manual is extremely rich with information and strategies. Thought someone might want to search for a downloadable PDF of it. I did a quick search and could not find one.

    Too bad about rotation. The original let you click on the mini-map oval to change your perspective. Or left/right click on map window. I tried two fingers to spin and rotate and it did not work.
     
  2. PCKid

    PCKid Well-Known Member

    Oct 21, 2008
    309
    1
    18
    Game Player
    Western Australia
    I spent awhile looking for a pdf but none found. Plenty of text walkthroughs but thats it
     
  3. geoelectric

    geoelectric Well-Known Member

    Apr 22, 2010
    464
    22
    18
    San Jose, CA
    Same here. Wonder if we could convince Digital Reality to put a scan up.
     
  4. Tommet

    Tommet Well-Known Member

    Apr 5, 2011
    357
    1
    0
    #44 Tommet, Apr 2, 2012
    Last edited: Apr 3, 2012
    22:30 hrs/min of upgrading to ios 5.1 later, I can now Dl this game. :)
     
  5. Stefx73

    Stefx73 Member

    Jul 25, 2011
    24
    0
    0
    Anyone found a web site with a forum about this game?
     
  6. PCKid

    PCKid Well-Known Member

    Oct 21, 2008
    309
    1
    18
    Game Player
    Western Australia
    Guess this is it?
     
  7. Bool Zero

    Bool Zero Well-Known Member

    Dec 14, 2010
    1,922
    0
    36
  8. Tunesmith

    Tunesmith New Member

    Mar 1, 2012
    3
    0
    0
    Having spent some time with imperium Galactica 2 I'm a bit conflicted.

    It's an amazing game, an old space 4X favorite of mine that's 12 years old. But it's a shoddy port in the end with the bare minimum given regards to the platform PC > iPad transition. It's the full fledged PC game, with the exception of multiplayer and minor camera control omissions wrapped in a thin iOS skin.

    No game center integration or other iOS features like multitasking support. The UI works well but the touch interactivity is hit & miss-sloppy during actual gameplay. Feels like they've just hid the mouse cursor and replaced it with a "droplet" effect that registers your taps 0.5 seconds too late. I've also had the iOS header with the wifi/clock/battery stats appear and overlap UI elements randomly, further adding to the "PC game in an iOS skin" feeling.#

    There has also been no advancements or additions done to help new players into the game. The tutorial consists of a lowres video explaining the basics of the menues but it doesn't actually explain anything in regards to why you should do X when and why when playing. The campaigns dump you with 2 star systems and a fleet and that's it, off you go. This game needs its manual, it's a crime that the meaty PC manual hasn't been included as a PDF or similar.#

    Anyone interested in this game be ready to fend for yourself (or at least download the manual from somewhere and read up!). It's a great game if you're already familiar with it but coming in cold will burn you hard.#

    Maybe the devs will update the game with new features and such but I'm not betting anything on that.
     
  9. SSquared

    SSquared Well-Known Member

    Jan 27, 2009
    1,030
    0
    0
    Software Developer
    Pacific Northwest
    I am having a problem where my planets are not auto building until I go in and manually toggle an auto build option. They initially say "Civilian" but nothing is getting built until I actually set it myself. Even just selecting Civilian will start the auto building process. Anyone else seeing this?

    Finally had some time to start playing this tonight. Starting out on the Solarian campaign to refamiliarize myself with the game.
     
  10. odi0n

    odi0n Well-Known Member

    Dec 6, 2011
    219
    4
    18
    #50 odi0n, Apr 9, 2012
    Last edited: Apr 9, 2012
    @ Tunesmith

    Yep. You explained it about right.
    I am the one coming in cold. Never played or heard of this game until now.
    I come from a console background. Anyways, yea, 2 planets a fleet and off you go - to get my ass kicked.

    I would appreciate if the developer dropped by and commented on these things and if there are any plans for a PDF (or better yet) iBook 2.0 version of the manual.
     
  11. SystemX

    SystemX Member

    Oct 28, 2010
    15
    0
    1
    Software Implementation Analyst
    I have not bought this yet as I am also interested in how these two compare to each other before I leap into another game.

    I have Starbase Orion but little experience with IG2. I only had the game way back and never got around to IG2 for reasons that elude my memory now. So I can speak to some of the comparison but am still hoping someone with experience with both can fill in the gaps.

    In my opinion, I think Starbase Orion plays similarly to Birth of the Federation. The galactic map, planetary resource management, space battles (turn based commands/ watch outcome), planetary colonization /invasion, ship ranges and spies are similar. Starbase Orion doesn't have diplomacy of any kind, research opportunities can expire (dropping away for new projects). Starbase Orion is also universal and supports ICloud saving, Ships components can be customized.

    Imperium Galactica has time span game progress. The game progresses in days, hours, minutes and you could pause time to issue commands (Think of Sim City on IOS). Space battles with a RTS interface for commands, ground based battles, basic diplomacy (as I recall), and extensive research tree and spies element.

    Can anyone add to this or correct any misrepresentations I have claimed?
     
  12. JasperA66

    JasperA66 Member

    Jan 24, 2010
    20
    0
    0
    Government
    I am having the same problem with autobuild. It doesn't seem to be turned on by default.
    Anyway totally loving being able to play this old classic again. Still getting my ass kicked though. Guess I had better read up to improve my strategies.

    I can't comment on Starbase Orion. Sounds like I should give it a try though as I am a sucker for these sorts of games.

    Now we just need Sid to bring Alpha Centauri to iOS.
     
  13. SystemX

    SystemX Member

    Oct 28, 2010
    15
    0
    1
    Software Implementation Analyst
    So I caved and bought IG2 last night. The game is considered to be a classic and for $3.99, I decided to bite in case this was a launch price and the price goes up higher in the coming days.

    Unfortunately, I somewhat regret it. The observations on this forum thread are all correct. Deep down the core game that is so great is there and the dedicated / nostalgic folks out there are probably going to love it. Heck that might have even been me had I not bought Starbase Orion first. However...

    I have an iPad 2 and the resolution of IG2 was the first thing I noticed. The resolution is low and left me feeling like it was a pixel doubled iPhone game. The tutorial is, in some cases, demonstrating areas where the text was not even legible. The story and transition videos are entertaining but pixelated. Even elements of the user interface didn't seem polished or smooth.

    Using the interface appears somewhat unresponsive. I definitely get the feeling of a ported interface of a hidden mouse pointer fulfilling commands based on taps. Multi-touch is abysmal. There is a clear 0.5-1sec delay before the UI applies the pan or zoom controls which also makes it feel like it's overly sensitive.

    In the space battles the ships (Solarian anyway) are dark and can blend in with the background of space or a dark surface of a planet. The selection boxes for the ships are visible but the low resolution makes this all kind of more difficult then it needs to be. Not to mention the rotation of the views which could help this is also not in the IOS.

    The auto-build on new colonies does appear to be broken, at least initially.
    There is no multitasking support therefore make sure you save frequently.

    A quick investigation on to some of the developers other IOS titles and you will also see that Liberty Wings, Scarabeus and Ubrain have not seen any updates in a year or more. If you do the math that is before IOS 5.0. Therefore one can expect that developer updates may not be frequent. Those of you whom are perhaps waiting for fixes to the aspects of this port that you do not like may find they never come.

    All in all Imperium Galactica feels like a straight port with no real considerations put in to place to really make use of the touch interface intuitive and natural. Still if you can get by the negatives, the nostalgic game content is all there with few sacrifices from the original.
     
  14. Twenty One

    Twenty One Well-Known Member

    Jan 19, 2012
    288
    0
    0
    Oil & Gas Engineer
    Oklahoma City, USA
    Unplayable from crashes as well as confusing UI and lack of a "real" tutorial

    Another game (like Combat Missions Touch) ruined by crashes, bugs, archaic/bad visuals and a pathetic tutorial for such a deep, complex game with a very confusing (and crappy looking) UI.......wow

    THe PC Devs need to get their shit together with these unplayable and horrible looking "ports" and realize that people's expectations are extremely high for such powerful hardware as the iPad.

    Yet again, another Dev that needs to take note from Slitherine (Battle Academy) on how to port a quality strategy title to the iPad.
     
  15. icepulse

    icepulse Well-Known Member

    Aug 7, 2008
    600
    0
    0
    Reel it in, lad.

    It ain't THAT bad!
     
  16. SSquared

    SSquared Well-Known Member

    Jan 27, 2009
    1,030
    0
    0
    Software Developer
    Pacific Northwest
    Thanks for confirming. I just have to remember to manually set it as soon as I colonize.
     
  17. JasperA66

    JasperA66 Member

    Jan 24, 2010
    20
    0
    0
    Government
    Overall I think this is a fantastic conversion of a classic PC game which totally works on the iOS platform. I do agree that it's somewhat daunting for newcomers, but it plays well for those of us that spent a few hours with the PC version. The original came on four CDs with an install disc and then a separate disc for each of the races. It's really a nice job getting all this into a nice iOS package. Hopefully the developers will iron out the few bugs here and there in future updates and all us Imperium Galactic II fans will be very happy indeed.
     
  18. syntheticvoid

    syntheticvoid Well-Known Member

    Jun 20, 2010
    14,504
    124
    63
    Musician & factory worker.
    a[V-O-I-D]
    Yeah, its hardly unplayable, and I thought the tutorial was fine. Picked the game up in about 10 minutes after watching the tutorial, and haven't had any real problems with it. Like Spaceward Ho! I feel lucky to be able to experience playing this since on my iDevice, since I haven't played the original... It's a fantastic game.
     
  19. Twenty One

    Twenty One Well-Known Member

    Jan 19, 2012
    288
    0
    0
    Oil & Gas Engineer
    Oklahoma City, USA
    #59 Twenty One, Apr 15, 2012
    Last edited: Apr 16, 2012
    My bad...

    I need to apologize for my initial post in this thread on my first impressions....it was a bit harsh (bad day/mood) and I was mistaken.

    Anyway, after more time with this game I'm really liking it aside from the crashing issue. It's a deep and complex game that provides actual FUN in a unique way with hybrid TBS/RTS gameplay that most games like this fail to provide....COMBAT IS ACTUALLY COOL/FUN!! I'm also warming up to the visuals although I still feel they could use some improving which includes the user interface. And I still feel that an actual tutorial mission would be much better than the current video....especially for someone like me that has little experience with a game like this or other "4X" games....

    This really is an awesome game with incredible replayability but it just needs a little polish and a few tweaks as I would expect the Devs are hard at work on support and updates. Thanks to the Devs for porting this game to the iPad. It's great!
     
  20. Twenty One

    Twenty One Well-Known Member

    Jan 19, 2012
    288
    0
    0
    Oil & Gas Engineer
    Oklahoma City, USA
    First update is out

    Update is out. It just says "minor bug fixes" which I'm hoping is the crashing issue. Hopefully they add multi-tasking in the next update...we need to be able to listen to our own music and switch between apps, etc...

    Really enjoying this game more and more as I am getting familiar with the mechanics...love the real-time combat!!
     

Share This Page