Could you please explain the "missing cards" comment? Did some cards get dumped or they simply haven't been implemented yet? And could you give use an estimation of about how much time will it take for the game to be released? We know you cant say for sure and noone will expect a perfect guess, but your opinion is better than any of the people who weren't invited in the beta. And last question: can you use Custom decks if playing local multiplayer? That is, if both you and your opponent play on the same iphone.
"This site may harm your computer" http://www.google.com/safebrowsing/diagnostic?site=http://pocketmoregames.com/&hl=en Either their site got hacked, or they are up to some shenanigans Anyways I wanted to check if the pocketpc version of O2 had multiplayer? Because I would really feel cheated if the iPhone version is lacking... I think most other existing/upcoming card games on iPhone have multiplayer, as this is the best feature.
Pavel will be sending me a proper ad hoc version of Orions 2 soon. I'll ask him if it's ok to post comments/screenshots of the game here, for your viewing pleasure
Wow! Great! At last, I can get rid of A**S**, then, and can also install it on my non-jailbroken iPad
I haven't run into any sudden crashes and other showstopper issues; that is, the game seems to be pretty much complete. I've run into some other stuff, however, which I'm just discussing with Pavel. Yes.
Yup, it's the gaming experience that is the most important with Orions, not the non-high-resolution graphics. You don't play chess apps on iOS because they look good, but because it's chess and would play it even with lousy graphics And Orions2 is far crisper on my iPhone4 (thanks to anti-aliasing and the 320*480 basic resolution) than the QVGA Orions stuff on my VGA Windows Mobile devices. That is, it's a definite step forward from the old WinMo version. Also with the new cards - of which there're tons, I haven't even had the time to read their description. The AI is also nice - now, it's much harder to beat than before and my old tricks (e.g., quick Satyr rush) don't work any more because of the balance changes. (Satyr's price, for example, has been increased.)
Downloading the ad hoc version now. Menneisyys, is it just me, or there's no casting/attacking sound? In fact, there's no sound effects in the game save for the theme song... Edit: NO FAST APP SWITCHING?! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! Ooohh boy. I knew they were a bit out of touch with the AppStore but no fast app switching? This doesn't bode well
True. I'm already sending Pavel an email with a few bugs I noticed, and I mentioned fast app switching just in case. I'm not familiar with their other games and I'm not sure if they have it.
I loved the draft implementation. But Jesus Christ Almighty, this NEEDS MULTIPLAYER. It BEGS for it. Why don't they understand this?!? This should be a priority. PRIORITY. Not a "maybe". Not a "we're looking into it". Not a "we might add it but not on version 1.0". Multiplayer is KEY in a competitive strategy game. Multiplayer helps create an entire community around the game, which helps promoting it. It gives the game longevity. Why don't they understand this?! Seriously. Give it Game Center multiplayer. And assynchronous multiplayer is a necessity, I don't care what anyone says. In the late game, moves take quite a bit more than 5-10 seconds, and games on a mobile platform should be built around a mobile lifestyle -- ie, people generally can't afford to, when out and about, to stay completely fixed to their cellphones for 10 minutes. Sure, I'll take real time multiplayer if they add that, and gladly! But for a turn based mobile strategy game, assynchronous IS the way to do it. With assynchronous you could even have multiple games going on -- think Uniwar, or Chess With Friends. It hurts me to think that Orions will probably never have multiplayer. This game could become 1000x what it was on the PPC platform, if only the developers listened to their customers.
I'm almost considering raising money on twitter to donate to MoreGames as a show of interest by the public. With 30k followers (and a website that generates 10k unique hits a day), I might be able to bring in triple digits. Maybe THEN they'll finally listen
I mentioned this before. Conlan Rios's implementation of Samurai does wonders with multi-player. You have the option of asking for 2, 3 or 4 player game with time limits on moves of 5 minutes, half hour, hour, 12 hours, 24 hours and three days. All it requires is a server to save positions, decks, scores, etc. He's got 3377 rated players already. Since Orions 2 is only two-player, the task is even easier. This could/should be easily done.
And we've all begged for it, too. But they are only "considering" it. Card games are about the competition and the multiplayer aspect. I don't understand how they can possibly overlook it. They are just coming across as lazy by refusing to see this as a priority. Were I in charge of Orions development, I'd drop the campaign mode entirely (does anyone ACTUALLY play the campaign? I did it twice, but never again, and I've been playing this game since it came out in 2008), focus on multiplayer (Game Center matchmaking, random matches, lobby, voice chat -- why so few games do voice chat? --, ranking, the works. If there's a game that should go the 9 yards, it's this one), and start the marketing efforts: Release pictures, details, reach out to Touch Arcade to cover it, make a video trailer showcasing the features of the game. Maybe even IAP expansions. Pricing is key, too. Orions will NEVER sell well at $5 -- not without a massive marketing campaign and a lite version, and even still it wouldn't be the hit it has the potential to be. They need to price it at $1.99, no higher than that. They don't seem to get that if your game is obscure, the way to get people interested is to give it a low price.
I think if the game had multi-player, it could go for $5, maybe even $6. You've got a hard core HUGE group of CCGamers who are potential buyers. Hopefully (and I think they are), the developers are reading this thread, which has exploded with interest in the last few days. No question there is huge potential here.
I would pay 10$ for any well implemented TCG without hesitating. Just as you said, with multiplayer implemented the Vance is doubled. Although without multiplayer, the game eventually turns out to be a sink player demo that eventually gets played less and less. With multiplayer you expand your player base and longevity exponentially.
Now that I think about it, I agree. With proper marketing and focus on multiplayer, sure, a $5-$6 price point is fair. It's a little more than what the average AppStore gamer likes to pay for their games, but with the proper marketing and reviews from fans, it'll convince a lot of people. And like it's been said so many times, the benefit from having multiplayer is that the fans will do the word-of-mouth advertisement so that they have more people to play against. Long story short: Marketing and multiplayer. Problem is, I'm afraid it'll have NEITHER, and still be priced at 5 bucks. I want to trust MoreGames, but truth be told -- they disappointed us with promised updates that never came. The burden is on them to win us back, honestly. I'm enjoying Orions 2 and I think it has lots of improvements on the original, but without multiplayer I fear they will again have disappointing sales.
There's no limit to how much I'd pay for the version of Orions I have in my mind -- Game Center assynchronous multiplayer with leaderboards, voice chat, etc. But MoreGames isn't in the business of making you and me happy -- they're in the business of making money. And there's only so much you can sell with a high price point. That's why games like Angry Birds and Cut the Rope made their company MILLIONS of dollars -- they make a killing on volume of sales. Look at the Top 25 list, it's no coincidence most of the games there cost a buck. The exception are the Gameloft titles (all priced at $5.99) that make into the list. Guess why they are popular? Marketing. Pavel has told me they are planning a promotional campaign to raise awareness of Orions 2. I've been talking about it on twitter and a few of my followers are fans and are eager to buy the game when it comes out. The NUMBER ONE question they all ask me? "Does it have multiplayer this time?"
Well, i'm glad that Pavel is looking into marketing the game. They deserve to make some mulla of this game and hopefully that will push them into keeping it updated.
