First of all, great project. MoO2 was and is the best 4x scifi game for me. So I appreciate every attempt to create a new 'MoO'. Your vision: I would like to have some simple Multiplayer to the game. Not in a sense of balanced factions, only to play with one or two friends together to crush the computer controlled factions. Hot seat would be enough. This should be fairly simple to implement. Moons: Moons could participate to some degree to their planet. Allow a few buildings like 'Lunar Shipyard' or 'Lunar Research Lab', 'Lunar Defence Station' etc. Planets: Allow all celestial bodies to form a ringworld or a dyson sphere. This could also reduce micromanagement mid/late game. Leaders: Leaders as in 'MoO2' but with additional development possibilities like 'Master of Magic' or 'Age of Wonders' would be great. Technology: It would be cruical to have a well balanced tech tree. A Tier2 weapon should be better than a Tier1 weapon, generally should a higher tech give you some clear advantage. Also cruical are the special items like 'tractor beam', 'rangemaster unit' and so on, the way MoO2 implemented this was great. Star Map / Ship Ranges: You should be able to defend your borders. So the range of your combat ships should only allow to to attack border systems. So you have to establish a kind of bridgehead to attack the next inner systems. Planet / System development: Transport Ships could be able to tranport factories, research labs, missile bases, nearly everything. So no need to build everything on your newly created colony. You want to establish a well defended brigehead? No Problem, your transporter fleet with all the necessary installations will arrive one turn after your invasion fleet. regards Yrth
You have some really good ideas there and I could not help but respond. (Love 4Xs and Moo2 and I am fascinated by design as I have done it for boring business applications). Multiplayer would be nice but not a deal breaker if not present Moons, yes! let there be a role for moons in the game, it would certainly add to the immersion and realism Planets your suggestion on Ringworlds and dyson spheres being formed would be a personal put-off in my case. I don't care for what this would do to the game. Specifically, recall that in Moo2 an invasion fleet had the option to attack any single planet in a system or just park and blockade. This lent many choices to the player that are lacking in the 4x games made after Moo2. By creating a ringworld or dyson sphere you remove my ability to degrade a solar system in the manner of my choosing and limit my tactical options. Just my opinion, but I would not care for this. I also never understood the complaints about micro-management in Moo2. By late game, most of my planets were producing trade goods (no management at all) and my few industrial worlds were churning out ships. By renaming systems and using the same names game in game out it was easy for me to identify my industrial worlds and micro-managing was never an issue. Leaders do need to be enhanced, I suggested that they come with unique researchable techs as well as blueprints for normal tech. Your suggestion would be a nice bonus. Technology Yes balance is crucial!!!!!! Star map / ship ranges 100% totally agree! Planet/system development your suggestion is very intriguing, perhaps development should also be tied into total planetary population otherwise it would seem a bit awkward for a newly established colony to be fully exploited within one turn. Perhaps if you also were required to transport additional population along with the structures it would be effective.
