GrogHeads Forum

Digital Gaming => Ally/Opponent Finder => Dominions III LFG and Strategy Discussion => Topic started by: parone on June 18, 2013, 01:13:34 PM

Title: Dominions4
Post by: parone on June 18, 2013, 01:13:34 PM
Edi, lord of all things dominions, pointed out that illwinter has made the announcement that Dominions4 is almost certainly going to become a reality!

you can go to illwinter.com to confirm this, though the official post will not tell you much more than this.  still, something fun to look forward to! :D
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: gp1628 on July 09, 2013, 11:17:20 AM
Official post updated with more info
http://www.illwinter.com/dom4/index.html
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Martok on July 09, 2013, 11:36:28 AM
Giggity!  The features list makes me want to squee. 

Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Steelgrave on July 09, 2013, 01:17:07 PM
Quote from: Martok on July 09, 2013, 11:36:28 AM
Giggity!  The features list makes me want to squee.

I soooo nearly posted a YouTube from "Deliverance" here, but good taste won out....

Damn, but I'm disappointed in myself!
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: JasonPratt on July 09, 2013, 01:24:15 PM
Quote from: Martok on July 09, 2013, 11:36:28 AM
Giggity!  The features list makes me want to squee.

The features list makes me laugh and laugh and laugh for personal reasons.  8)
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Faux on July 09, 2013, 01:29:01 PM
An august release date really surprised me. I was even prepared for a 2014 release. There seems to be lots of small usability tweaks which is pretty much exactly what I want from a sequel at this point.
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Huw the Poo on July 09, 2013, 01:36:51 PM
August!  Wow.  I was just thinking, this morning, that I don't care how long it will take to arrive because I've only just got into Dom3 and it will serve for years.

Not sure I'll even be in a position to buy it in August.  If anyone else is in the same boat, we'll have to have Dom3 and Dom4 games running concurrently.
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: parone on July 09, 2013, 01:38:22 PM
I hear you Huw.  I would say im maybe half way to understanding Dom3, so I have mixed feelings about Dom4
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: TheCommandTent on July 09, 2013, 02:06:35 PM
This is great news.  I now can strongly resist the call for Dominions 3 and wait for #4.   ;D
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Huw the Poo on July 09, 2013, 03:18:47 PM
Quote from: parone on July 09, 2013, 01:38:22 PM
I hear you Huw.  I would say im maybe half way to understanding Dom3, so I have mixed feelings about Dom4

Unless pretty much everyone here jumps on 4 straight away, I'll be in no hurry to upgrade at all.  It's a guaranteed buy at some point of course, but I'm perfectly happy with 3 at the moment. :)
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Faux on July 09, 2013, 03:43:24 PM
Quote from: Huw the Poo on July 09, 2013, 03:18:47 PM
Quote from: parone on July 09, 2013, 01:38:22 PM
I hear you Huw.  I would say im maybe half way to understanding Dom3, so I have mixed feelings about Dom4

Unless pretty much everyone here jumps on 4 straight away, I'll be in no hurry to upgrade at all.  It's a guaranteed buy at some point of course, but I'm perfectly happy with 3 at the moment. :)

I'm quite sure once Dom 4 releases Dom 3 will be pretty much obsolete. The UI improvements alone make switching over a no-brainer.
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Yskonyn on July 09, 2013, 04:04:59 PM
I think, seeing the features list, that going to Dom 4 will be an instant upgrade for many.
I am looking forward to it!
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Yskonyn on July 09, 2013, 04:11:35 PM
Holy Pretender! Teamplay with One Pretender and other players playing as your Disciples?!!

  Jason, wanna team up in a game when it gets released?? Awesomeness!
Magic upped to over 800 spells... 75 nations over 3 era's.... *drool*
This will be even more of a life's work to get to know the nitty gritty about the game!

Oh and Huw, from looking at the screenies. It just seems an expanded and upgraded Dom 3. Not an entirely different game. So you're just going to have to upgrade once it hits the streets, as are you, Parone! ;)
It will be the new cool kid on the block everyone likes. But instead of a toddler he's now in puberty.
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: parone on July 09, 2013, 04:55:51 PM
Ysk, you know im gonna buy it the day it comes out. 
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: JasonPratt on July 09, 2013, 05:36:06 PM
I paid $70 for Dom2 (which was in effect an upgraded version of Dom1), and I paid $70 for Dom3 (which was in effect an upgraded version of Dom2).

I have no doubt I'll end up buying Dom4, but probably not out of the gate.
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: parone on July 09, 2013, 06:23:47 PM
wow.  aren't they a lot cheaper on desura(like, $5)????
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: JasonPratt on July 09, 2013, 06:51:23 PM
Quote from: parone on July 09, 2013, 06:23:47 PM
wow.  aren't they a lot cheaper on desura(like, $5)????

Dom1 and 2 might be, but I bought Dom2 (and Dom3) back when they were first released through Shrapnel. And Dom3 has never been $5, has it?--I've seen it down in the $7 range when Gamersgate has a supersale, but it's usually $30. (Or is it now $5 with Dom4 on the way?)
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: parone on July 09, 2013, 07:07:43 PM
no, I meant I and II.  cheapest I have ever seen III, I think was like $15 on desura.

I paid like $60 I think.  but in $/hr of enjoyment, it's probably the cheapest game I have ever bought :)
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Yskonyn on July 10, 2013, 01:45:01 AM
Quote from: JasonPratt on July 09, 2013, 05:36:06 PM
I have no doubt I'll end up buying Dom4, but probably not out of the gate.

Booooo!
Well then you might miss out on the most awesome alliance !
I mean, I might have to ally with Huw and Parone in the mean time, their influence might then, in turn, affect my ability to ally with you later on, you see? ;) ;)
We all know Huw's effect on people and Parone seems to be a rather cutthroat individual too.
Lol! (Kidding guys)
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Huw the Poo on July 10, 2013, 01:56:18 AM
 :o

...Tell me what you mean, so I can decide whether to be outraged!
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: undercovergeek on July 10, 2013, 02:52:39 AM
That sounds like the clang of a gauntlet been thrown
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Yskonyn on July 10, 2013, 04:39:26 AM
Caelum greets all with an icy smile!
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: parone on July 10, 2013, 05:02:13 AM
why are you just kidding?  am I supposed to be offended by the term 'cutthroat'? 

i'm flattered!
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Yskonyn on July 10, 2013, 06:02:27 AM
Yarrr!  ;D
So we're going to be joining up when Dom 4 hits?  :-*
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: JasonPratt on July 10, 2013, 07:59:30 AM
While I appreciate the attempts at building a team structure into the game, I don't recall seeing real diplomatic options still. I much prefer a dynamically evolving geopolitical game.

Still after all the... um... comments about alliances being UTTERLY COMPLETELY FOREIGN TO THE WHOLE INTENT OF THE GAME (which I grant has a lot in favor of it as a point), I had to laugh when I saw the designers build in some kind of alliance code.
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Faux on July 10, 2013, 08:58:19 AM
Quote from: JasonPratt on July 10, 2013, 07:59:30 AM
While I appreciate the attempts at building a team structure into the game, I don't recall seeing real diplomatic options still. I much prefer a dynamically evolving geopolitical game.

Still after all the... um... comments about alliances being UTTERLY COMPLETELY FOREIGN TO THE WHOLE INTENT OF THE GAME (which I grant has a lot in favor of it as a point), I had to laugh when I saw the designers build in some kind of alliance code.

Teamplay mechanics like this are great but I still think there should be no actual ingame diplomacy mechanics. Everything should be up to players. Single player might benefit from some kind of hardcoded diplomacy but then again it would be a single player exclusive feature which is silly.
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Nefaro on July 10, 2013, 10:57:19 AM
I think the backgrounds behind the leader units, in that first screenshot, need to be more opaque.  Hopefully you can adjust how much you can see through those because the see-through effect is usually just visually annoying IMO.

Minor complaint, I suppose.  Insta-buy!
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: parone on July 10, 2013, 01:36:10 PM
I don't think anyone ever said in-game alliances are wrong/unfair.

I DO think pre-game or game long alliances put other players at a major and unforeseen disadvantage, so I think a case can be made to say that's not particularly fair to other players.

as far as team play in Dom4, I must say, I am curious but pretty darn skeptical.   idea sounds great, and I have A LOT of faith(haha, faith-get it?) in the Devs, but I don't know...
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Yskonyn on July 10, 2013, 02:51:59 PM
One thing I must admit I was wondering about Dom4:

There was never a hint of it coming, even stronger I still remember a discussion about it on the Shrapnel forums where the debs then explicitly told the community that there was no intent at that time to go for Dom4.

Now that they are free of Shrapnel, suddenly rather quickly Dom4 gets shown...
Now I hope they had already been working on Dom 4 secretly and it's not just a quick upgrade to generate some cash.
A year or two making a new game seems short.

But it'll probably be fine. Right?
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Huw the Poo on July 10, 2013, 04:06:12 PM
Quote from: parone on July 10, 2013, 01:36:10 PM
I don't think anyone ever said in-game alliances are wrong/unfair.

I DO think pre-game or game long alliances put other players at a major and unforeseen disadvantage, so I think a case can be made to say that's not particularly fair to other players.

as far as team play in Dom4, I must say, I am curious but pretty darn skeptical.   idea sounds great, and I have A LOT of faith(haha, faith-get it?) in the Devs, but I don't know...

I agree 100% with this.  I've always said that one or two early-game alliances to get a territorial foothold are fine, but large blocs lasting the whole game are not what it's all about, in my opinion.

I'd never ask anyone to play in a way they don't want to, but I will try to avoid those situations if at all possible.
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Faux on July 10, 2013, 11:19:42 PM
Quote from: Yskonyn on July 10, 2013, 02:51:59 PM
One thing I must admit I was wondering about Dom4:

There was never a hint of it coming, even stronger I still remember a discussion about it on the Shrapnel forums where the debs then explicitly told the community that there was no intent at that time to go for Dom4.

Now that they are free of Shrapnel, suddenly rather quickly Dom4 gets shown...
Now I hope they had already been working on Dom 4 secretly and it's not just a quick upgrade to generate some cash.
A year or two making a new game seems short.

But it'll probably be fine. Right?

I very much doubt they make Dominions games for money. Both of the devs have a full-time job and they develop Dominions in their free time.
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: parone on July 11, 2013, 05:16:07 AM
I think you are right Faux.  it seems to be a labor of love.

that said, Ysk is right, it really did come out of nowhere.  he may be on track that they were waiting for separation from Shrapnel, which seemed to be  an unhappy union.

or, the fact that they don't do it for $$$ may have something to do with it.  no need to hype it up if the goal isn't to sell as many units as possible...
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Martok on July 11, 2013, 05:22:43 AM
As far as the game's possible price point is concerned, I'm willing to bet Dom 4 will be much more in the range of most people's wallets at release.  The devs aren't shackled to Shrapnel anymore. 

Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Wingedflamez on July 11, 2013, 06:18:00 AM
I am hoping that the price point is a little softer. I played the demo for a while, and finally bought it when it went to desura because the price dropped. I just couldn't bring my self to pay 70 dollars for it. I love the game and am glad I have it, I just can't spend that kind of money on games, I don't even spend that much on AAA titles in series that I have been playing for years.
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Faux on July 12, 2013, 02:13:02 PM
The game is now available for preordering at -15% discount for 21,24 euromoneys. Don't know what that makes it in American dollars. The release date is set to be 31st of August.

Seems quite reasonable.

Edit: forgot to mention it's only on Desura: http://www.desura.com/games/dominions-4-thrones-of-ascensions
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: JasonPratt on July 12, 2013, 02:19:00 PM
Cool, that's like, what, $9? How cheap is pagan euromoney right now? ;)
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Martok on July 13, 2013, 03:34:53 AM
Quote from: Faux on July 12, 2013, 02:13:02 PM
The game is now available for preordering at -15% discount for 21,24 euromoneys. Don't know what that makes it in American dollars. The release date is set to be 31st of August.

Seems quite reasonable.

Edit: forgot to mention it's only on Desura: http://www.desura.com/games/dominions-4-thrones-of-ascensions
That's $29.74 here across the pond (in between the St. Lawrence and Rio Grande).  ;) 

Not a bad price, I'd say.  At the very least, it's a far better cry than $70.00! 

Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Yskonyn on July 13, 2013, 04:12:20 AM
Instant preorder here, but one thing: this Desura crap doesnt need another application to be installed like Steam does it??
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Huw the Poo on July 13, 2013, 05:06:52 AM
Nope.  Desura has its own client just like Steam, but you can buy games through the website and then download DRM-free files.
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Yskonyn on July 13, 2013, 05:11:26 AM
Good! Preordering. Thanks, Huw
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: gp1628 on July 13, 2013, 10:40:50 AM
I damn well hope that Dom4 gets on Steam. Otherwise that price is likely to bite Illwinter in the ass.
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Nefaro on July 14, 2013, 07:29:13 PM
Quote from: parone on July 10, 2013, 01:36:10 PM
I don't think anyone ever said in-game alliances are wrong/unfair.

I DO think pre-game or game long alliances put other players at a major and unforeseen disadvantage, so I think a case can be made to say that's not particularly fair to other players.

as far as team play in Dom4, I must say, I am curious but pretty darn skeptical.   idea sounds great, and I have A LOT of faith(haha, faith-get it?) in the Devs, but I don't know...

I think pre-game alliances are more preferable to any made in-game.  The latter can do much to alter the balance of things whereas starting off in even teams can regulate that quite a bit. 

It's a good way to go about it IMO.
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Nefaro on July 14, 2013, 07:30:55 PM
Quote from: Yskonyn on July 13, 2013, 04:12:20 AM
Instant preorder here, but one thing: this Desura crap doesnt need another application to be installed like Steam does it??

As Huw says.. you can download a DRM-free installer file from their website (in your browser) when logged in and browsing your games.  There is also the option of installing their Steam-like client and d/l'ing it through there if you want, but it's not required.

The best of both worlds, and the way it should be.  ;)
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Nefaro on July 14, 2013, 07:32:56 PM
Quote from: gp1628 on July 13, 2013, 10:40:50 AM
I damn well hope that Dom4 gets on Steam. Otherwise that price is likely to bite Illwinter in the ass.

Huh?

They've obviously done well since ditching Shrapnel and slapping a $30 price tag on Dominions 3.  If it's working, why fix it?
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: gp1628 on July 15, 2013, 08:20:06 AM
Actually they havent done that well with the change.
Their other game "Conquest of Elysium 3" has sold more copies than all the Dom's put together. Mostly because it is on Steam.
And both Desura and GamersGate have done very little to promote Dom3. The forums suck, customer support sucks, press releases to gaming sites are non-existent. The only thing either of them have done "for" Dom3 is have some decent sales.

So like I said, I hope Dom4 gets on Steam. For Illwinters sake.
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Huw the Poo on July 15, 2013, 08:57:46 AM
Well, things might change at Desura with the recent acquisition.  But yeah, you're right, as much as I dislike Steam it can only be good for Illwinter.  I really hope Dom4 makes it there.
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Faux on July 15, 2013, 02:26:34 PM
Quote from: gp1628 on July 15, 2013, 08:20:06 AM
Actually they havent done that well with the change.
Their other game "Conquest of Elysium 3" has sold more copies than all the Dom's put together. Mostly because it is on Steam.
And both Desura and GamersGate have done very little to promote Dom3. The forums suck, customer support sucks, press releases to gaming sites are non-existent. The only thing either of them have done "for" Dom3 is have some decent sales.

So like I said, I hope Dom4 gets on Steam. For Illwinters sake.

Did CoE3 get directly taken into Steam or was it greenlighted?
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Faux on July 15, 2013, 02:33:16 PM
Here are some beta previews:

http://thurot.com/2013/07/13/dominions-4/
http://www.matchstickeyes.com/2013/07/15/whats-new-in-dominions-4-thrones-of-ascension/

Things are looking very promising.
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Nefaro on July 15, 2013, 03:49:02 PM
Quote from: gp1628 on July 15, 2013, 08:20:06 AM
Actually they havent done that well with the change.
Their other game "Conquest of Elysium 3" has sold more copies than all the Dom's put together. Mostly because it is on Steam.
And both Desura and GamersGate have done very little to promote Dom3. The forums suck, customer support sucks, press releases to gaming sites are non-existent. The only thing either of them have done "for" Dom3 is have some decent sales.

So like I said, I hope Dom4 gets on Steam. For Illwinters sake.

I can see your point in that Steam would give it more sales because the Steam user base is so large.

But Steam doesn't go out and pay for advertising on other sites, for games they host.  Why would you expect Gamersgate and Desura to do it?  The only reason Steam will pick up more sales is because everybody & their grandmother uses it and they would see it briefly listed on the front page.  So, yeah, it would only be good for sales.

I believe COE3 was greenlighted wasn't it?  Because the Steam crew would've rejected Dom3 on sight, before they implemented their indie Greenlight feature. 
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Huw the Poo on July 15, 2013, 03:52:29 PM
I'm about 95% certain that CoE3 did not have to go through Greenlight.

And if the people at Valve were the hardcore gamers they'd have us believe, they'd have instantly recognised Dom3 and brought it straight in.
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: parone on July 15, 2013, 03:58:41 PM
I don't know where you found those reviews faux, but they are great.  big thanks for posting :D
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Yskonyn on July 15, 2013, 04:16:43 PM
Wow thanks for sharing those links! Looking very sharp! Anticipation is rising!!
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Nefaro on July 15, 2013, 09:36:11 PM
Quote from: Huw the Poo on July 15, 2013, 03:52:29 PM
I'm about 95% certain that CoE3 did not have to go through Greenlight.

And if the people at Valve were the hardcore gamers they'd have us believe, they'd have instantly recognised Dom3 and brought it straight in.

Perhaps COE3 didn't but they've also loosened up since Greenlight came about, too.  I recall a couple indie developers being openly frustrated about being turned down by Steam a few years ago, with the reasoning that their titles' style "didn't fit into their portfolio" or some such.  Which was pretty much First-Person Shooters and basic RTSes.  Thankfully they loosened up a bit, or I don't think they would've even brought COE3 on-board.

It still sounds like a challenge to get indie turn-based strategy titles approved by Steam without going through Greenlight and that may well be the issue with getting the Dominions series in. 

I'd still prefer to get it from Desura, since I can have both a client install and a DRM-free installer version I can burn to a disk for safe-keeping. 
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Huw the Poo on July 16, 2013, 01:53:28 AM
Quote from: Nefaro on July 15, 2013, 09:36:11 PM
I'd still prefer to get it from Desura, since I can have both a client install and a DRM-free installer version I can burn to a disk for safe-keeping. 

Yep.  Desura may be lacking in some areas, but it certainly shows Steam who's boss in this regard.
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Yskonyn on July 18, 2013, 04:30:50 PM
Man, I feel like a teenager. Its been a long time since I have been spamming a game's homepage to look for new info every day.
But the Dom 4 site is getting it!
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: gp1628 on July 20, 2013, 06:28:14 PM
I have auto-routines that email me any changes to the home pages and progress pages for all of Illwinters games. Plus one that continually watches for new Illwinter games showing up on Steam.
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Nefaro on August 29, 2013, 04:19:52 PM
So.. I wonder if/when we'll get a pre-release beta to check out. 

Since the Dom4 release has been delayed, there must've been some annoying bug(s) in there.   :-[
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: happyfungi on September 02, 2013, 12:27:04 PM
beta is available on desura now.
Title: Re: Dominions4
Post by: Yskonyn on September 02, 2013, 01:10:37 PM
W00T