Greetings from Thailand

[mahks]

Hello all; I am a Canadian living Thailand. I spend most of my time coding, reading, eating and cycling.I've been developing an on-line space 4X game for a little over 5 years. Been play testing with a small group for the last few years and it is running smoothly, so I decided to open it up to a wider group last September. And ran up against a huge problem that I had not foreseen. I assumed that with all the forums & gamers out there I would get a few dozen play testers in no time. Nope! Only a few have responded to my posts on dozens of forums.I think the main problem is the graphics, I have no artistic ability, so the game is lacking in that department. I am assuming it is that first impression that is killing the response. Those that do get past the visual hurdle, seem to be impressed with the game (assuming 4X is a genre they have interest in)The other hurdle is, it is heavily strategic. I don't mean RTS I mean the planning, intelligence, logistics, manoeuvre and diplomacy type of strategy. (chess-like strategy rather than shoot-em up)If anyone has ideas about how to get a few play testers for a game of this kind, please tell me.

[Cody]

Welcome to SSC, mahks.

[Pinback]

Welcome to the forums Mahks. It does seem to be a bit of a problem getting people to test games, do you have a blog or a web site if not then it may be the best way to get some attention although you have to actively keep it up to date.You are more than welcome to start a thread here if you wish other than that the only other suggestion I have you tried posting on Space sector [url]http://www.spacesector.com/blog/[/url] and [url]http://www.spacegamejunkie.com/[/url] if you have not done already.

[sscadmin]

Hi Mahks, welcome to SSC. If you need any assistance with forum space or whatever I will try to help out. Yes, Pinback is right. Being active in communities and getting the word out there helps a lot with building that interest that you will need to support your efforts. How do you like Thailand? I have been thinking about taking a vacation there?

[mahks]

How do you like Thailand?I like it a lot. Thailand is tied with Malaysia for my "best place to live" award. But that is me. Would you like it? Yes, if you like :- Hot climate- Spicy food- Friendly people- Low costs (if you are from a "rich" country and live modestly) What you have to put up with :- Other tourists- If you go to tourist places, all the problems associated- Traffic, if you are unused to Asian "rules of the road", be careful. Some would say there are no rules, but there are. The fact that foreigners say "there are none" is an indication of the problem (within the foreigners mind).- Switching from rat-race to Ahhhhhh

[Cody]

Traffic, if you are unused to Asian "rules of the road", be careful. <grins> Having been to India and Pakistan a couple of times, I know what you mean.

[mahks]

You are more than welcome to start a thread here if you wish. Will post my thread, but where? The game could be classed as an Indie, On-line, Strategic 4X Space game. Which is the best forum for such?

[mahks]

Posted my game overview here : [url]http://spacesimcentral.com/ssc/topic/4127-starlords3k-an-on-line-strategic-4x-space-game/?p=45683[/url]

[Pinback]

Will post my thread, but where? The game could be classed as an Indie, On-line, Strategic 4X Space game. Which is the best forum for such? Depends if you intend to sell the game, if you are doing it as a free game then you are in the right forum.

[mahks]

No commercial intent. This is my hobby. A game free from the influence of profit motivation means it can be as politically incorrect as I want

[Hot4Darmat]

Welcome here Mahks. I'm new here too. I'm assuming you know about Solar War, too. Excellent game. Minimal graphics, but a nice challenging research tree type strategy game, aimed at the armchair generals of the future. I thoroughly enjoyed it but the difficulty got steep there.