Evochron Mercenary

[prymus]

Been eyeing this game for a month or so now, looks beautiful, sounds like a lot of fun. Anybody have any experience with this game? If so, what are your thoughts.

 

[Scott Tortorice]

I've tried the demo for the previous version of the game and it was nice. It is similar to the X series, but in this game you can actually land on planets. However, this being an indie effort, the production values aren't as high as with X:TC.

I would try the demo to see if you like it as these space sims are very hit or miss with people.

 

[prymus]

Why am I not surprised that it was you who answered! Thank you Scott, now how about giving someone else a chance eh! Just joshin' my friend, of course I appreciate your input.

 

[Scott Tortorice]

When it comes to sci-fi games, I can't help myself. It's an irresistible impulse. Mine, mine mine!

 

[prymus]

Dude, its not just the Sci-fi games. You domintae this PC games forum. Not that I mind. In fact I enjoy seeing a friendly, familiar face(avitar?) when I visit here. Its nice to know that if I have a question, or whatever, I can count on you to respond. I just like yanking your chain, because I know you will take it the way its meant, friendly and fun. Keep up the great work, keeping us all informed, and up to date on whats happening in PC gaming land. Thanks bud.

 

[Scott Tortorice]

Thanks.

 

[Scott Tortorice]

I really have to get back to this amazing one man effort. It is a solid space game that just needs a bit more polishing to hit the 9.0 mark (as far as I am concerned, anyway). Hence, the reason why I am excited to see this teaser for the forthcoming expansion.

[video=youtube_share;PqwX_UcZKwQ]http://youtu.be/PqwX_UcZKwQ[/video]

I love the walker idea. It is so cool to be able to fly over all sorts of strange, procedurally-generated planets. Now we will be able to get out of our ships and go exploring (planetary loot will be in the expansion ).

You can read about other enhancements in the expansion here: http://www.starwraith.com/evochronmercenary/development.htm

 

[Nexus6]

I actually tried this demo about two years ago. It was kind of nice and very pretty, and I liked landing on the planet very much. That was very cool. One thing that bugged me slightly though is that you never actually see any people. Rather your interactions with people for quests and supplies are all through text boxes. I left it on my hard drive for a while thinking that I was going to get back to it, but never did. I dunno, I might actually like it if I really fleshed it out, but in the meantime there have been a lot of other games clamoring for my attention. I would also add that as Indie games go, this one has gotten pretty good press, and I gather that the developer keeps updating it, so it might indeed be worth my giving it a retry at some point.

 

[prymus]

Hey gang, I bought the game a while back but have not spent much time in it. Only played about halfway through the tutorial. But it does look fun and I will be watching for the exp pack. I just have sooo many games on the old HDD that I need to play. Been trying to recover from a bad wreck the last couple weeks and am typing with one hand so games are kind of out for a while. Keep us infoprmed on the progress please. Lastly, hope your father is doing well Tort.

 

[Scott Tortorice]

Hey gang, I bought the game a while back but have not spent much time in it. Only played about halfway through the tutorial.

That was the longest, dullest tutorial I ever experienced.

I just have sooo many games on the old HDD that I need to play. Been trying to recover from a bad wreck the last couple weeks and am typing with one hand so games are kind of out for a while.

Wow, what happened?!?

Lastly, hope your father is doing well Tort.

He is finally home from rehab. Now comes all the follow up doctor visits, in-house rehab, on and on and on....

BTW: I haven't had anyone call me 'Tort' since high school! Wow, haven't heard that in a while! :laugh:

 

[prymus]

Thats good to hear about your Dad Scott. Mine had a stroke over 45 years ago and has been fighting a steep uphill battle ever since. But I know he is glad to be able to keep up the fight.
Hope you don't mind me using the Tort reference. It just seemed like something a little different, surely didn't mean anything negative using it.
And yup, just doing half the tutorial was long, but it was exactly the kind of tutorial I need, being a slow gamer and all.

 

[Scott Tortorice]

Thats good to hear about your Dad Scott. Mine had a stroke over 45 years ago and has been fighting a steep uphill battle ever since. But I know he is glad to be able to keep up the fight.

Amen to that!

Hope you don't mind me using the Tort reference. It just seemed like something a little different, surely didn't mean anything negative using it.

No offense taken. All my friends called me that, so you can too. I just haven't heard it in a long while.

And yup, just doing half the tutorial was long, but it was exactly the kind of tutorial I need, being a slow gamer and all.

Once you get the hang of the interface, it is a surprisingly easy learning curve. It's just that your dashboard throws out so much info that it can be overwhelming.

Supposedly the expansion is going to be out in time for Christmas, so there is that to look forward to at least.

 

[prymus]

Thats cool news, going to have to keep up on that.Should be all back to semi-normal(not sure I've ever really been normal) by then.

 

[Scott Tortorice]

The Evochron series is 50% off over at Gamer's Gate for those of you who are biding their time before jumping on Elite: Dangerous

:

http://www.gamersgate.com/games?prio=relevance&q=EvochronMidweek&aff=ggnews

I have reinstalled this game after a long layoff and I am having a blast again. It is helping me keep my wallet shut while I wait for Elite to get further along the dev cycle.

 

[prymus]

Well, having played only an hour quite some time ago I may have to do the same. I don't quite recall why I stopped playing it or why it was un-installed. But am going to get back into it tomorrow perhaps. Glad to see you still around Scott. Hope you and yours are well.

 

[Joda]

Been eyeing this game for a month or so now, looks beautiful, sounds like a lot of fun. Anybody have any experience with this game? If so, what are your thoughts.

Evochron was an ambitious project and they accomplished a lot back in the day. Roaming an open universe, landing on planets and awesome flight mechanics. But the Universe is rather small and there is no Evochron server but private servers run by lets just say, people who aren't exactly objective; this leads to all sorts of problems especially when it comes to Corporation/guild politics. But Evochron is more or less a dead game now. Hardly anyone plays it anymore and graphics are sub-par by today's standards. But they were able to land on planets which even Star Citizen and Elite Dangerous are not able to do! Sure it really isn't much to look at but their heart was in the right place. Of course their flight mechanics is what sets the game apart; to be honest I prefer Evochron flight mechanics to that of Star Citizen by far. But is it worth playing? If you want to experience real inertia style space flight? Absolutely! But if you want to experience an open universe with lots of active people and beautiful scenery? You might want to pass.

 

[Scott Tortorice]

Well, having played only an hour quite some time ago I may have to do the same. I don't quite recall why I stopped playing it or why it was un-installed. But am going to get back into it tomorrow perhaps. Glad to see you still around Scott. Hope you and yours are well.

Hey Bill! Glad to see you around, too! Hope things are going good for you! Just trying to get through the summer over here.

The same thing happened with me and Evo. I remember being really hyped for the planet walking expansion, but as soon as the expansion was released, I stopped playing it. LOL! Don't even know why.

Evochron was an ambitious project and they accomplished a lot back in the day. Roaming an open universe, landing on planets and awesome flight mechanics. But the Universe is rather small and there is no Evochron server but private servers run by lets just say, people who aren't exactly objective; this leads to all sorts of problems especially when it comes to Corporation/guild politics.

I never even bothered with the MP servers. I know the dedicated Evo players like to push them, but the pleasure of Evo for me was the SP gameplay. I am curious if I will feel the same with E.

But Evochron is more or less a dead game now. Hardly anyone plays it anymore and graphics are sub-par by today's standards.

I've always been curious why Evo NEVER really took off (pun) in a big way. I was checking its Steam stats and saw that the most players it ever had online at any time was 700 or so when it was released back in 2012. It quickly dropped to 30-40, then briefly peaked around 500 (I think this was when PC Gamer did their review in 2013), and then immediately dropped to 20-30 people, where it has stayed. I was checking out the Steam forums the other day and people who had just discovered the game were having a blast and wondering why they had never heard of it before. Me, too. Evo is a solid space sim - and a remarkable achievement for one guy - but people just keep overlooking it. Strange.

But they were able to land on planets which even Star Citizen and Elite Dangerous are not able to do! Sure it really isn't much to look at but their heart was in the right place.

Good summation. However, I actually think the graphics are pretty darn good for a true indie title. The planet topology and weather is actually pretty darn impressive at times. And the sights of space are also nicely rendered considering the limitations of the engine.

Of course their flight mechanics is what sets the game apart; to be honest I prefer Evochron flight mechanics to that of Star Citizen by far.

I also prefer it to X3. Again, another excellent facet of the game that gets overlooked. Dogfights are actually pretty fun in the game without getting annoying like with X3.

But is it worth playing? If you want to experience real inertia style space flight? Absolutely! But if you want to experience an open universe with lots of active people and beautiful scenery? You might want to pass.

I agree the universe could be more active, but it still is pretty well populated by AI. I also like all the comm chatter added to the game - that was a stroke of genius. Makes everything feel even more populated. I don't know, I think even by today's standards Evo is a solid space sim that packs a surprising amount of content into a nice little package. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who likes space sims.

Oh, and your criticism of this space game is completely unwarranted and trollish. Therefore I am going to have to ban you. For life.

*Banned!*



Forgot to mention that the dev is still cranking out updates, which is nice. This is from last week:

Evochron Mercenary 2.878 Update...

AUGUST 1 - SFSW
Version 2.878 is now live and includes the following improvements:

- Current selected device now displayed in individual axis channel control mapping menu.
- Individual axis channels can now be mapped across multiple devices (previously required the complete binding process).
- Crew members are now kept with the player in an 'inactive' status when they pilot ships that lack the capacity to use them.
- Ship rescue distress call time limit doubled and cargo delivery distress call time limit increased by about 50%.
- Option to move a selected crew member to the top of the list in the crew management console added.
- Updated button input binding system to better accommodate button 32 on certain devices.
- Clearing individual axis channels now limited to selected device only.


To access the option to move a crew member to the top of the list, hold the Alt key in the crew management console.

The server program has also been updated for this version to accommodate the new distress call time limit increases. Server operators will need to update to the new server build to allow for the longer time limits in multiplayer, otherwise the old limits will apply.

I wouldn't be surprised that Evo is getting a new influx of players as people like me who are waiting for E to get further along the dev cycle use it to bide their time. That would explain the sale over at GG today, too.

 

[Joda]

Hey Bill! Glad to see you around, too! Hope things are going good for you! Just trying to get through the summer over here.

The same thing happened with me and Evo. I remember being really hyped for the planet walking expansion, but as soon as the expansion was released, I stopped playing it. LOL! Don't even know why.

I never even bothered with the MP servers. I know the dedicated Evo players like to push them, but the pleasure of Evo for me was the SP gameplay. I am curious if I will feel the same with E.




I've always been curious why Evo NEVER really took off (pun) in a big way. I was checking its Steam stats and saw that the most players it ever had online at any time was 700 or so when it was released back in 2012. It quickly dropped to 30-40, then briefly peaked around 500 (I think this was when PC Gamer did their review in 2013), and then immediately dropped to 20-30 people, where it has stayed. I was checking out the Steam forums the other day and people who had just discovered the game were having a blast and wondering why they had never heard of it before. Me, too. Evo is a solid space sim - and a remarkable achievement for one guy - but people just keep overlooking it. Strange.




Good summation. However, I actually think the graphics are pretty darn good for a true indie title. The planet topology and weather is actually pretty darn impressive at times. And the sights of space are also nicely rendered considering the limitations of the engine.



I also prefer it to X3. Again, another excellent facet of the game that gets overlooked. Dogfights are actually pretty fun in the game without getting annoying like with X3.



I agree the universe could be more active, but it still is pretty well populated by AI. I also like all the comm chatter added to the game - that was a stroke of genius. Makes everything feel even more populated. I don't know, I think even by today's standards Evo is a solid space sim that packs a surprising amount of content into a nice little package. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who likes space sims.

Oh, and your criticism of this space game is completely unwarranted and trollish. Therefore I am going to have to ban you. For life.

*Banned!*



Forgot to mention that the dev is still cranking out updates, which is nice. This is from last week:



I wouldn't be surprised that Evo is getting a new influx of players as people like me who are waiting for E to get further along the dev cycle use it to bide their time. That would explain the sale over at GG today, too.

Yeah, I often mentioned Evochron on SC forums, before I was banned, lol, and there usually was dead silence afterwards. Probably because the Devs knew the flight mechanics were brilliant and probably because most gamers never heard of it. Also mentioning that you can land on planets didn't sit well. lol.

 

[Scott Tortorice]

Yeah, I often mentioned Evochron on SC forums, before I was banned, lol, and there usually was dead silence afterwards. Probably because the Devs knew the flight mechanics were brilliant and probably because most gamers never heard of it. Also mentioning that you can land on planets didn't sit well. lol.

Ha! That doesn't surprise me. There can be only one!

 

[Scott Tortorice]

I think it says quite a lot about this one-man effort that it still holds its own in the world of space sims. I've been having fun with Elite: Dangerous, but I have to say that EM still slightly edges out Elite because of its planetary landings. It can be refreshing to enter a planetary atmosphere for a change and fly over some terra firma. Or just enjoy the rain on your windscreen. Really, the only area where ED noticeably exceeds EM is the accurate astronomical sim running in the background and its much more intuitive navigation system (EM's biggest fault is its awkward nav map that makes getting anywhere a real pain in the neck). Long short: while ED is fun, and I suspect has a bright future if they keep shoveling the content out there as fast as they have been in its first six months (and especially if they can give us planetary landings this winter), EM still has a lot going for it. I think that says quite a bit about the skills of EM's sole dev...or the lack of skills at FD :devious: (even though I have defended FD, I still find some of their gameplay decisions bewildering in the extreme. If it wasn't for the fact that I have been wanting a solo space sim with AAA looks for some time, I would probably be much harder on ED frankly).

Speaking of: new game teased! Found this on the Steam forum:

Some of you are asking about some info from Vice regarding updates, new game etc.


With Vice permission, I am allowed to give you some answers.


Vice has been working on a side project for the last 4-5 years for a new Game.
Some of the features that came up has been added already to Mercenary.


Why do I know this? I'm an Alpha/Beta tester for his new game and I can tell you ....
.... it is AMAZING!!!!!


The new Project is a new Game completely. Basic flight dynamics will be the same
as in Mercenary tho.


A few points about the game:
- Clan fights are no more! Instead there is an ongoing battle between the Alliance and
the Federation. You pick a side for your profile.


- Combat is a bit different, energy management is more important.


- New ship designs. Ohh my are they beautiful!!!


- Wildlife added to planets.


- Planets are MUCH bigger.


- Now you build stations with modules. You design the look of it and you can
even add defense turrets.


- Guess what, you can also build cities now! ;-)


- And even better, all stations and cities can be destroyed.


- Taking over territories are done with fighting, not doing contracts!


- Lots of more contracts to do, even catching birds can be done! ;-)


- Engineering Lab is added. Now you can build stuff and install on your ship.


- Lots of more parameters to play with when building your ship.


- Not all stuff can be bought. Some are "secret" and must be found.


- Blueprints for cool stuff can be bought from AI pilots or found hidden in crates etc.


- All new Quest system. You can chose between quests as much as you like.
Fail/win option in the quests as well (different paths)


One of my first test with the new contracts was a planet screaming for help.
Asteroids where about to hit the surface. I took the contract and jumped in!
There I found some asteroids .... wait a minute, they are moving towards the
atmosphere!!!!! I had to blow them up before any of them hit the ground.
Once I destroyed the first one, the rest hit the atmosphere and started burning.
I couldn't see anything for all the smoke and my jaw just dropped in amazement.
The result, I failed!! I forgot to shoot the rest of them LOL!


And YES, if they hit a city, some or all of it will be destroyed!! Not to worry, YOU can
rebuild modules!


There is no ETA on release yet, but rest a sure, it will be the best game I've ever played.
Actually, in Alpha it already is the best I've seen!


If you have any questions, I'll try to answer them within limits of what I can tell you at this point. Remember, it's still in Alpha!

I am glad to hear this. Starwraith doesn't deserve to be put on the sidelines when he has almost carried this genre alone for the last few years. And this new title does sound great!