@christophercotton: You asked for new features ... well ... one wish: It would be nice to have a way to play against computer players with different IQ level in the same game ... i.e. me and three AI players: One dumb with IQ 80, one with IQ 120 and a beast with IQ 180 ... I think that would make it much more interesting ...
Yeah ... the first version came out 1990: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spaceward_Ho! I had the first Amiga version ... later PC then Mac ...
One more bug: After winning a game I played on ... I reached range tech step 18 and developed a colony ship with range 18 ... but it was shown as a ship with range tech 3 .... nevertheless it had the long range ... You shoud take an eye on this ... Regards, Mythbuster
Where did it display the ship with range tech 3? The graphics somewhere? Just not sure when you are saying, "it was shown as a ship" where that was in the interface.
Great idea. I will add it to the list for when we add in multiplayer, we should have some other ways of creating a game and we can add it then. Thanks for the suggestion.
There are not many differences, and only some differences are in the UI. For example, the Mac has a history graph to display your tech levels versus everyone else, or compare yourself to the opponents. The iPad version doesn't have it. Now, for anything that the Mac has, we will be making sure it gets added. Right now, I'm working on adding in the History Graph and it will be in the next update. I think the only other things that the iPad is missing, is a browse all fleets, browse all planets, network play. If I've missed something else, it is probably that it is on our list and I just don't remember it right now.
It is very easy to learn! I would say: five to ten minutes to learn the game ... after one hour you can win your first games with stupid AI opponents ... The big plus is: You can set the game optimal to your level: The AI can set from IQ 70 up to IQ 200 ... you can adjust the starting conditions of your and your opponents planets ... so you can even win the first game while you are learning ... so just fun and no frustration.
This is so cool! Instant buy. I have fond memories of countless Saturday afternoons when a couple of friends and I gathered and played this game. Of course this wont happen again, everyone being married with children and stuff. I for one just love the graphics as they are. Very much looking forward to multiplayer.
Thanks for the reply Mythbuster, with no experience in 4X gaming I didn't want to download it only to walk into a wall of frustration. But with the ability to custermise the game like you say makes this a very tempting buy indeed.
Hi, it was my very first 4x game ... Believe me, you will learn it without any problems. On the contrary, at the beginning, you think that it is too easy ... because it is "only" terraforming the planets, and grabbing metal ... and build some ships ... But after the first few games you will see, it is much more complex ... if you play vs. a player with higher IQ you have to develope your own strategy to find the right balance for spending your money (terraforming, mining, technology) ... there are endless ways to conquer the galaxy ... If you will buy it, please write here something ... I think it is good to read about it from somebody who is new in 4x (and SpaceHo) ... Regards, Mythbuster
Do you mean the "Graph History" or the "Compare Players" Window? In my opinion, the "Compare Players" Window / Graph is the very most important thing which is missing and which should come as soon as possible. I know it is a little bit cheating but I used this window often ... it is good to see, how your ranking is in weapons, Shields, planets etc. pp. ... I think it is not only for beginners very helpful. Thanks, Mythbuster
The game is fairly easy to pick up. Be sure to watch the basic gameplay video that I did http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOnVgW8_NkU It shows you the basics. The basic mechanics of the game are fairly simple. Though this is NOT a casual game by any means. You have one planet. You explore others with Scout ships. You colonize other planets with Colony ships. You fight with Fighters/Dreadnoughts and you protect your planets with Satellites. You improve your technologies. You try to destroy everyone else. It is fairly easy to win a game against easy AIs. But it gets harder when you need to start having a strategy of how fast do you expand (since expanding planets costs you money until they can make money). What technologies do you spend money on. (do you need more Range to get to further planets? or do you want more weapons to destroy the opponent). The complexity is in the choices you make with limited metal and money. I played the game a TON in college on the Mac, and we just loved it.
re: Learning Spaceward Ho! for beginners One of the great core features of Spaceward Ho!, especially when learning the game, is to use the Auto-Play feature. With this feature, you let the computer AI take over your player and make the decisions for you while you watch. You can have the AI stop whenever there is something interesting or just continue until you interrupt it (look for the red STOP button). In the Preferences, you can set the speed for how quickly the AI will "click-through" the messages so you can soak them in before it continues to the next one. I recommend setting 5-10 seconds if you are just learning, for each message so you can read and think about what it means/does. Also, feel free to stop often and see what the AI did for ship creation, dispersal, etc. This feature can really assist you in picking up the game if you are beginning as well as give you tips you might not have considered if you are not a beginner.
The graphs can be seen in the Mac version here: http://i.imgur.com/ivzjr.png The single graph history has both the Compare Players (5th icon from left the Trophy Cup) and the other history information. Are you talking about that? or some other window?
Hi, sorry, right now I have only the "old 4.05 Windows" version, because my Mac version does not work anymore on my Macbook Air ... in the Windows version it is spliited in two parts: One history window where you can see the complete history ... and a second window to compare the players ... I just sent you a mail with a screenshot.
After following this thread and watching the tutorial video on you tube, I took the plunge and downloaded the app. Will let you know what a 4X newbie thinks in due course.
