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Why no 3000AD games?


Shingen
(@shingen)
Master Chief Registered
Joined: 15 years ago
Posts: 111
Topic starter  

Battlecruiser 3000AD, Battlecruiser Millennium, Universal Combat - ect

 

For a forum dedicated to the space-sim niche, I find it hard to fathom why there are no threads for 3000AD on here. Whatever individual opinions of the game(s), the series is still one of the very first tactical, open-ended, "free-form" space sims ever made.

 

Sure the game(s) was a niche product, sure the thing was buggy at times, and the developer was an ass, but those descriptions fit a fair amount of games listed on this forum.

 

Just curious.


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Cody
 Cody
(@cody)
Captain Registered
Joined: 7 years ago
Posts: 1953
 

There is this old thread - you might recognise its poster.

Oolite Naval Attaché


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XenonS
(@xenons)
Warrant Officer Registered
Joined: 7 years ago
Posts: 399
 

I played a lot Universal Combat years ago. Once you get to understand the key/menu commands and playing mechanics the game starts to rock...But I agree you need a lot of patience to get there. What's really a blame is that all the fps part on planets is broken: or there's nothing to do or the enemies are plain deadly, you can't play without cheating.

With a better AI and random mission also including the ground part, and a manual with less 3-letter acronyms, I think UC would have been a great game. The good: it was one of the first space games with real free roaming mode including real-time features for your ship and full 3D environment (except inside of the ships) and almost seamless transitions from space to planets. I remember that at that time players were utterly lost about what to do in the game creating so a lot of complaints and shitstorms in the forums... 🙂

 

I now have the last UC version with the best possible engine DX9+ (bought it some years ago; a lot better than the now free version), but there are just too many other interesting space games, so I won't bother soon to re-get involved with it.

 

XenonS


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KingHaggis
(@kinghaggis)
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Joined: 14 years ago
Posts: 143
 

Oh great, now Derek Smart will come here. Popcorn time!

 

I bought Universal Combat when it was first released because I really liked the original Battlecruiser 3000 (final edition, patched to v2.something). I liked BC a lot better than UC even though both games are essentially the same. I.m.o. BC just had more atmosphere than UC (space was black without those ugly nebula wallpapers, no silver horses and baboons roaming the surfaces and it just felt better and more polished). Though it apparently took the game a while to become this polished, most players had already given up on the game with all the drama surrounding it. But when it finally reached its more or less finished state, I actually enjoyed it!

 

UC I liked a lot less but with a bit of patience and imagination it had a few nice moments I suppose. Things I always hated about this game was that it could never leave you alone. You were always under constant attack even if you just wanted to roam the galaxy looking for some nice peaceful interaction with other ships. I have no problem being attacked once in a while but usually there should be a reason for it. In UC, you would start a game and within 5 minutes you would spontaneously be assaulted by either an enemy fleet closing in on you or by enemy marines boarding your ship. This would happen even if you remained stationary in your starting position in "safe space". It was just no fun, way too hectic i.m.o. Also, the first person mode on a planet surface was a bit of a joke. The marines in your squad would constantly moan like tennisplayers and when you look down to the ground, it looked as if you pulled the ground towards your face. Also, planet vehicles could drive straight through anything and there were 0 physics while driving. A vehicle would just glue to the ground while driving up a hill in a very awkward way. On board your Battlecruiser, there was a 10 second audio sample in the background that was on constant loop to make the bridge seem more alive. Hearing the same things repeated constantly was driving me crazy! No, for 90% of the time, it was just no fun.

 

But from time to time I look back at the old BC3000 game and enjoy some nice memories. Nothing like beaming to the surface of a moon and watching your deployed mining vehicle drive around there while you enjoy the canyons and starlit sky above you. You could even call up your big Battlecruiser from space to land on the surface in front of you. There was also the feeling you were part of something big. In your Battlecruiser, you actually had an entire crew to command and there was time involved when crewmembers traveled from station to station. If you  wanted to hop in a shuttle or fighter you could actually do that. But first you had to travel to the hangar. The realtime crew monitoring / duty roster was pretty awesome for its time. I also liked the fact you could call up a 2D surface map of an entire planet or moon complete with continents and seas and time zones. From there you could plot away missions and stuff like that.

 

The 3000AD forums were a bit scary. I behaved like a really good boy or I could kiss any support goodbye. Gamers who actually paid for the game were banned on a daily basis. Smart just couldn't take any form of critisicm, probably the number one reason most people hate his games instead of not liking it.

 

I never complain about graphics. I even think Shores of Hazeron is one of the best games ever. Gameplay and mechanics are what make a good game. But all Smart's games since BC3000 have been unfinished, unpolished, and lacking enjoyable gameplay i.m.o. Maybe there are people who enjoy it. To each their own. Peace  😎


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KingHaggis
(@kinghaggis)
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Joined: 14 years ago
Posts: 143
 

B.T.W., Shingen... that name rings a bell from the BC forums. If I remember correctly, there was an interesting love/hate relation ship between you and Smart 😀


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Pinback
(@pinback)
99 Star General Site Moderator
Joined: 7 years ago
Posts: 9066
 

Most people just give up at the first hurdle (me included) with theses games.


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Shingen
(@shingen)
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Joined: 15 years ago
Posts: 111
Topic starter  

I don't know. I've always liked this game. I got BC3K 1.0 way back in 1997, was active on comp.sys.imb.pc.games.space-sim Usenet, when the whole "Flamewar" took place. I remember that was pretty fun.  

 

I have only bought BC3K, BCM, and UC . I didn't bother with any of the "updates" as it was always the same game. But I figure, the guy has been developing this game since 1997, so there must be a fan base somewhere.

 

I also have the latest version of Universal Combat CE that is on Steam. It's a solid game. It doesn't crash as much as Skyrim does, and as long as you don't try any ground-based FPS, it's a solid space-sim.


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Shingen
(@shingen)
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Joined: 15 years ago
Posts: 111
Topic starter  

B.T.W., Shingen... that name rings a bell from the BC forums. If I remember correctly, there was an interesting love/hate relation ship between you and Smart 😀

Yeah, Derek and I go way back. I started a indie fleet back in 2001 when Derek was trying to get BCM to work as a MP game. There were some pretty fun times back then, but way too much politics. I also wrote some RP stories, that were kind of free-form, that other players participated in that turned out pretty good. 

 

Eventually the community imploded when the game failed to perform.

 

Oh well. 


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