Announcement is out:
http://www.battlefront.com/community/announcement.php?f=&a=657
http://www.battlefront.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=326&Itemid=558
Says release will be "late summer". Sounds good.
Now, the interesting part is this:
The info puts emphasis on the new pre-made maps, very large maps that scenario designers are expected to reuse (as in parts of them) instead of rolling their own.
I feel ambivalent about this. I would have much preferred to give the user more editing power, either using more powerful tools like cut and paste of terrain or via map im/export to get in real word data, or something you do in your own editor, or Panzer Command's editor.
I realize that this is a further step in keeping customers in the confinement of what a module represents. I don't have a problem with this at all since map making hasn't been made impossible and I sure want BFC to earn more money to make more games.
It just irks me that BFC moves more and more away from being a universally useful tool that has a useful vehicle and unit database and can be used to interchange data such as maps with other games or programs. It's a further lock in.
I am also afraid that sooner or later the amount of new material available to customers isn't enough to make them keep paying. Right now BFC seems to do OK with what presumably are maps done with a lot of sweat of beta testers and other people who provide this to BFC for a free copy of the game. I see nothing wrong with the latter part, it is just that these scissors can close and put the game in a bad situation. If or when free labor for map making the hard way becomes unavailable in the future you can't easily switch back to outsiders casually making maps. Because no time has been invested in editing tools.
http://www.battlefront.com/community/announcement.php?f=&a=657
http://www.battlefront.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=326&Itemid=558
Says release will be "late summer". Sounds good.
Now, the interesting part is this:
The info puts emphasis on the new pre-made maps, very large maps that scenario designers are expected to reuse (as in parts of them) instead of rolling their own.
I feel ambivalent about this. I would have much preferred to give the user more editing power, either using more powerful tools like cut and paste of terrain or via map im/export to get in real word data, or something you do in your own editor, or Panzer Command's editor.
I realize that this is a further step in keeping customers in the confinement of what a module represents. I don't have a problem with this at all since map making hasn't been made impossible and I sure want BFC to earn more money to make more games.
It just irks me that BFC moves more and more away from being a universally useful tool that has a useful vehicle and unit database and can be used to interchange data such as maps with other games or programs. It's a further lock in.
I am also afraid that sooner or later the amount of new material available to customers isn't enough to make them keep paying. Right now BFC seems to do OK with what presumably are maps done with a lot of sweat of beta testers and other people who provide this to BFC for a free copy of the game. I see nothing wrong with the latter part, it is just that these scissors can close and put the game in a bad situation. If or when free labor for map making the hard way becomes unavailable in the future you can't easily switch back to outsiders casually making maps. Because no time has been invested in editing tools.
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