RTS Planetary Annihilation: Titans Released

[Johannes]

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/659943965/planetary-annihilation-a-next-generation-rts

Pretty obvious from the name where it draws influences, it'll be basically a TA-like but with featuring a full planet(s) plus moons and asteroids around it.

Obvious worry is, how will the interface work, and if they can balance it so that you actually get to satisfactorily use this off-world stuff without a match taking hours and hours.

And it'll have no SP campaign by default, only as a stretch goal after initial 900k. Which is actually good, it's a guarantee they're concentrating on the main thing.

Here's some more info on it - first link is a more general preview, second has more specific questions on gameplay focus, interface, etc.:
http://www.pcgamer.com/previews/pla...view-when-strategy-worlds-collide-with-moons/
http://www.pcgamer.com/2012/08/15/planetary-annihilation-interview/

Mavor describes how being able to occupy and maneuver other planets can create unusual tactics throughout a game of Planetary Annihilation, and sets up and endgame that sounds unlike anything else you’ve seen in an RTS. Initially, other planetoids are simply a new area to build bases and extract resources, and perhaps give local support to troops fighting on a nearby planet. For instance, you can station troops on a moon orbiting your starting planet, then use that moon to do orbital drops behind enemy lines.
Later, however, when you can afford to build the enormous, city-sized engine arrays capable of moving that moon, you can send it across the solar system into position near another planet. Now it operates like a gigantic carrier and gun battery, a Death Star that really is a moon.
As players explore the solar system, they can occupy new territory, but Mavor sees the endgame reversing that process.
“I’m picturing games that end where basically two-thirds or three-quarters of the way through the game, [the starting] planet’s out of it. Your playfield just shrunk, because you guys have chucked enough rocks down at the thing that you can’t really do anything with it anymore. Now your playfield has shrunk and you’re forced to engage each other.”

With multiple planets being involved, how are you going to handle transiting between planets? Is there going to be any kind of a fleet game, a space game, that governs how people pass between worlds?
Mavor: The short answer is, I want to not have too much in the way of that space battle stuff. I want it to be… I’m launching a rocket from this planet to that planet, and when that rocket is in flight, you’re not doing a whole lot with it. You’re not dealing with it. It’s more like a transport mechanism. And the reason for that is, I think space battles, space armadas and stuff like that, require a completely different kind of interface and a completely different way of handling it. I want the combat to be mostly ground-based. We will have satellites, a satellite layer around the worlds, where there can be some space stuff that happens.

 

[Malakal]

Looks like Team Fortress: RTS edition ie like shit. Other than the atrocious art style I like what I am reading.

 

[Johannes]

One of these questionaire things on Reddit
http://www.reddit.com/r/gaming/comments/y9yqy/uber_entertainment_presents_planetary/

Let's see...

Question:
How micro intensive is this? I play Starcraft II and it gives me a really good fix for the ability to manage many things at once and I would love a game where I can tackle more production + battles on a larger scale.
Answer:
I am anti-micro and more about production. Ever play TA? Like that.

TA has more micro than almost any other RTS, ffs... Linebombing, radar targeting, dodging projectiles, etc etc
Of course economy is most important but so it is in most any RTS.

 

[Brinko]

So while it doesn't have a campaign mode, does it have a bot match for practice modes? If it doesn't I'm not backing it.

 

[Endemic]

TA has more micro than almost any other RTS, ffs... Linebombing, radar targeting, dodging projectiles, etc etc
Of course economy is most important but so it is in most any RTS.

Radar targeting... didn't you build a targeting facility? Line-bombing (the constant stream of bombs) is basically an exploit, and dodging projectiles never really happened much when everyone just spammed the AA units and stealth fighters in multiplayer :p

 

[Ashery]

TA has more micro than almost any other RTS, ffs... Linebombing, radar targeting, dodging projectiles, etc etc
Of course economy is most important but so it is in most any RTS.

Radar targeting... didn't you build a targeting facility? Line-bombing (the constant stream of bombs) is basically an exploit, and dodging projectiles never really happened much when everyone just spammed the AA units and stealth fighters in multiplayer :p

Targeting facilities are T3 and require 1k+ power/sec during operation.

It's certainly not the most micro intensive game out there, but it's far from being "anti-micro." For an example of the latter, look at the Kohan series (With the exception of some undead companies in K:KoW).

 

[Endemic]

Targeting facilities are T3 and require 1k+ power/sec during operation.

It's certainly not the most micro intensive game out there, but it's far from being "anti-micro." For an example of the latter, look at the Kohan series (With the exception of some undead companies in K:KoW).

Yeah, but it's a lot better than Starcraft. Forged Alliance is mostly anti-micro, assuming you're not playing someone like TAG_Rock who wipes you out at the 8 minute mark with T1 units

 

[sgc_meltdown]

I require a video of magnificently swooping aircraft doing dynamic missile dodging flight movements before I will believe this inspired by TA business

 

[Humanity has risen!]

They seem to be big 360 fans, judging by all the 360s that can be seen in the video. With that cutesy look, I am skeptical that this will remain computer-only.

 

[Johannes]

TA has more micro than almost any other RTS, ffs... Linebombing, radar targeting, dodging projectiles, etc etc
Of course economy is most important but so it is in most any RTS.

Radar targeting... didn't you build a targeting facility? Line-bombing (the constant stream of bombs) is basically an exploit, and dodging projectiles never really happened much when everyone just spammed the AA units and stealth fighters in multiplayer :p

Targeting facilities are T3 and require 1k+ power/sec during operation.

It's certainly not the most micro intensive game out there, but it's far from being "anti-micro." For an example of the latter, look at the Kohan series (With the exception of some undead companies in K:KoW).

Well, most of the micro demands come from that you have your economy and therefore army and attention spread out throughout a much bigger area than in other RTS's. And that you still have to give them attention to do well.
Sure, in SC:BW the difference between good and bad micro is more dead obvious, while in TA it's still equally hard to micro perfectly, it doesn't rape you as badly to be a bit careless.

And yeah, microing hawks (at least when you have to do something else in the game too, or want multiple packs) is a bitch, now that Endemic mentioned them. Also avoiding hits by being behind wrecks, nanolathing... And most importantly just keeping a good formation at all times to maximize your firepower.

 

[Johannes]

They seem to be big 360 fans, judging by all the 360s that can be seen in the video. With that cutesy look, I am skeptical that this will remain computer-only.

You really think they'd be so stupid to want a complex RTS on a gamepad? Nobody's really done that in the past decade and for good reason, this game is really hard to design an interface to start with. Just because you noticed an Xbawks in the video, I don't think that tells anything... Their previous game seems PC-only too.

So while it doesn't have a campaign mode, does it have a bot match for practice modes? If it doesn't I'm not backing it.

It has.

 

[Humanity has risen!]

Supreme Commander has been ported to 360.

Also, it's not just one 360, it's a lot of them.

 

[Angthoron]

Remember kids: it's cool to kill shit and blow shit up, as long as it's KEWTSIE!

 

[Destroid]

I enjoyed TA (though not as much as it's contemporaries) and Supreme Commander/FA, I would certainly give this a play.

 

[Johannes]

Supreme Commander has been ported to 360.

Oh right, forgot about that. IIRC the performance was atrocious, plus the obvious UI issues - unless it sold really well I think these guys (those who were involved with that) learned their lesson there. Or one can hope at least, someone asked it on the Reddit questionaire and answer was "not likely" - which isn't quite absolute enough but...

 

[Endemic]

Supcom 2 was made for 360 as well.

 

[Phelot]

The style looks retarded. Yeah that's right, that's what it boils down to for me. This ain't no TA!

 

[skuphundaku]

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects...nihilation-a-next-generation-rts/posts/289765

LAN support and no DRM. This is beginning to look promising. Also, almost $300k raised in a little over one day.

 

[commie]

One of these questionaire things on Reddit
http://www.reddit.com/r/gaming/comments/y9yqy/uber_entertainment_presents_planetary/

Let's see...

Question:
How micro intensive is this? I play Starcraft II and it gives me a really good fix for the ability to manage many things at once and I would love a game where I can tackle more production + battles on a larger scale.
Answer:
I am anti-micro and more about production. Ever play TA? Like that.

TA has more micro than almost any other RTS, ffs... Linebombing, radar targeting, dodging projectiles, etc etc
Of course economy is most important but so it is in most any RTS.

If you need to micromanage that shit you're doing it wrong. Apart from setting up patrol routes and working out a coherent overlapping defensive line, you just need to keep the units churning out and clicking where you want them to go and what to shoot at just like every other game. You want to give an example of micromanagement try the early C&C games where you had to babysit every unit to make sure it went where you wanted it to or that it fired on the right thing and not wandered off anywhere. Or the newer limited unit RTS games like Men of War where you have to take care of each individual unit, equip them etc. Look at Sup Com, you can micromanage each unit if you want, but you can just set them up to do whatever and leave them to it. That's what the guy is talking about, this broader hands off style rather than worrying about each unit, looking after experience, upgrades etc.

God, I'm tired of people ranting without understand what the concepts mean. Besides, the core devs worked in Cavedog with TA and went on to Sup Com so I trust they know what they are talking about.

Oh and fuck you all who don't like the art style. I think it's great, has a timeless basic quality like Sup Com and TA so it never really looks dated. In fact it doesn't look much different from Sup Com and people don't have trouble with that, so what's the problem? Oh right, one has to find something to fucking whine about on the Codex. Oh ok, I'll give that the planet graphic itself is a bit too cartoony, but the units themselves look fine.

Anyway thanks OP for the heads up on this, will probably back it before it closes as I love the TA/Sup Com games.

 

[Johannes]

One of these questionaire things on Reddit
http://www.reddit.com/r/gaming/comments/y9yqy/uber_entertainment_presents_planetary/

Let's see...

Question:
How micro intensive is this? I play Starcraft II and it gives me a really good fix for the ability to manage many things at once and I would love a game where I can tackle more production + battles on a larger scale.
Answer:
I am anti-micro and more about production. Ever play TA? Like that.

TA has more micro than almost any other RTS, ffs... Linebombing, radar targeting, dodging projectiles, etc etc
Of course economy is most important but so it is in most any RTS.

If you need to micromanage that shit you're doing it wrong. Apart from setting up patrol routes and working out a coherent overlapping defensive line, you just need to keep the units churning out and clicking where you want them to go and what to shoot at just like every other game. You want to give an example of micromanagement try the early C&C games where you had to babysit every unit to make sure it went where you wanted it to or that it fired on the right thing and not wandered off anywhere. Or the newer limited unit RTS games like Men of War where you have to take care of each individual unit, equip them etc. Look at Sup Com, you can micromanage each unit if you want, but you can just set them up to do whatever and leave them to it. That's what the guy is talking about, this broader hands off style rather than worrying about each unit, looking after experience, upgrades etc.

God, I'm tired of people ranting without understand what the concepts mean. Besides, the core devs worked in Cavedog with TA and went on to Sup Com so I trust they know what they are talking about.

Oh and fuck you all who don't like the art style. I think it's great, has a timeless basic quality like Sup Com and TA so it never really looks dated. In fact it doesn't look much different from Sup Com and people don't have trouble with that, so what's the problem? Oh right, one has to find something to fucking whine about on the Codex. Oh ok, I'll give that the planet graphic itself is a bit too cartoony, but the units themselves look fine.

Anyway thanks OP for the heads up on this, will probably back it before it closes as I love the TA/Sup Com games.

No, the difference here is that I'm 1actually good at TA unlike you. So I have the attention to micro on a closer level and understand that it's a necessary thing to do so if I want to win against an equal opponent.

Yes they worked on the original but it's a fact that none of the dev team was very good at the game at least back in the day.

SupCom apparently did reduce the microing possibilities from TA, which is often cited as the reason many TA players don't like it, myself I haven't bothered to try it.
Also saying a game emphasises macro does not mean that it's "easier" to play mechanically. Managing economy can be just as demanding on your senses and fingers as handling armies.



Though the beginners advice in pretty much any RTS I've played more (AoE, SC:BW, TA...), is always to focus on unit production first at the cost of carefully microing them, so in that sense you are right. But it's nothing unique to TA.

 

[potatojohn]

 

[The Vault Dweller]

A RTS with a unique and appropriate premise that has a greater concentration on macro then micro? I'm sold. I often play RTS competitively and I've noticed in all of them that I have much better macro then the average player, but barely better micro.

Sincerely,
The Vault Dweller

 

[Malakal]

I would love to play a rts game with some actual STRATEGY involved and not just rt. Tactics? Happen, usually replaced by micro but they do happen. Strategy? Never.

 

[Destroid]

Their business guy looks so dodgy, Hawaiian shirt? Really?

 

[skuphundaku]

Initial funding goal reached: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/659943965/planetary-annihilation-a-next-generation-rts
Onwards to the stretch goals now!

Right now, Kicktraq is estimating that the project is going to reach $1,867,219 http://www.kicktraq.com/projects/659943965/planetary-annihilation-a-next-generation-rts/