The World is Round

Ideas for expansions and improvements to Defcon

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Svip
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The World is Round

Postby Svip » Mon Oct 09, 2006 2:40 pm

Before I start, I would like to note that till this day I have only played the demo version of the game through WINE, because I am still waiting to buy the game when the Linux version is released. This means that some I may suggest may already have ben suggested or is already present in the game itself.

First, the world is round, for that reason, any object which can fly would fly closer to the poles to fly longer distances. But if the distionation and point of origin is both on the other side of a pole, then flying over the pole would be the smartest way to fly across the pole.

Secondly, fleets and aircraft should also move faster closer to the poles, but only aircraft should have the possiblity to cross them.

For a more technical prospect, the best idea would be to make the system act like a globe, like those you see on atlas, instead just with tiles, but each corner of a tile would be a spot in a grid, which had its "distance" to the spots around it (at normal; four other spots). This means that the closer you get to each pole, the shorter the distance between horizontal spots.

Example:

Code: Select all

 |    |
-1----2-
 |    |
 |    |
-3----4-
 |    |

In this case, 1 would refer to 2 with the distance 1, and the distance to 3 with the distance 2.

Or more techincal written;

Code: Select all

1: (2: 1, 3: 2)
2: (1: 1, 4: 2)
3: (1: 2, 4: 2)
4: (2: 1, 3: 2)


Or in the gride again:

Code: Select all

 |     |
-+--1--+-
 |     |
 2     2
 |     |
-+--2--+-
 |     |


When a movable unit is moving, it should calculate its speed to its whereabouts, and of course the smooth over between spots. In fact, you could completely scrap the entire grid thing, and make zones up instead, which just include relatively speed factors to the equator (which we assume is "normal speed").

As for the pole "wrapping", just find out the grade of the object as oppossed to straight North or South. For instance, a nuke heading at 30 degrees West and crosses the pole, it would then wrap (90-30)*2 degrees west, as we assume that the entire world grid is based on the grid we usually find on a world atlas, which is based on degrees (as the world is round).

Should the baring be 0 (west or east), it would just wrap 180 degrees, which would simply be the other side.

Like I said, I am not aware if the game does it already or if it has already been suggested. But it would be super cool if it happened. And even if the the "target lines" which you select target would actually go the same "faster" route when selecting target (so your red line would wrap over the North pole for instance). :)
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GeneticFreak
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Postby GeneticFreak » Mon Oct 09, 2006 3:03 pm

This has been suggested before, and quickly bashed away by the fact that this is an RTS game with a map. It just happens that the map is a world map. Hell even Civilization doesn't have a round world :P
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Postby Svip » Mon Oct 09, 2006 3:13 pm

True, but in a game bassed on nuclear warfare, it would make sense though...

Alternatively though, it could be selected as a "mode".
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Postby GeneticFreak » Mon Oct 09, 2006 3:25 pm

Honestly I also think it would be cool, but the game have to be played in a 3D globe. Moving units at different speeds based on locations in a 2D map on an RTS sucks...
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Postby nameghino » Mon Oct 09, 2006 4:07 pm

GeneticFreak wrote:This has been suggested before, and quickly bashed away by the fact that this is an RTS game with a map. It just happens that the map is a world map. Hell even Civilization doesn't have a round world :P


AFAIK, Civilization 4 DOES have a round world =)
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Postby Svip » Mon Oct 09, 2006 5:36 pm

nameghino wrote:
GeneticFreak wrote:This has been suggested before, and quickly bashed away by the fact that this is an RTS game with a map. It just happens that the map is a world map. Hell even Civilization doesn't have a round world :P


AFAIK, Civilization 4 DOES have a round world =)


Ah yes, but like my proposal, that is just a simulation, it is impossible to make a round world with tiles.
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Postby dawnchorus » Mon Oct 09, 2006 7:33 pm

The world is spherical, not round!

http://forums.introversion.co.uk/defcon/viewtopic.php?t=2241

Hate to blow my own trumpet, but I did mention this (albeit in a different forum). units would need greater their East-West speed but not North-South, as the map is already "wrapped out". As I said, the lines at the top and bottom of the map actually represent single points in space, namely the poles, so at these extremes, units would be able to shoot from one end to the other in a fraction of a second. In other words, if a plane took off from Moscow and travelled north until it reached the North Pole (represented by a line here), it should be able to emerge from the pole at any longitude (say, over Montreal, for example) and release its payload. This can only be realisable by having the E-W speed increasing virtually exponentially as it approaches 90 degrees N/S.

It's a time/space thing!
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TheHappyFriar
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Re: The World is Round

Postby TheHappyFriar » Mon Oct 09, 2006 9:33 pm

Svip wrote:First, the world is round, for that reason, any object which can fly would fly closer to the poles to fly longer distances.


my monitor is flat. A flat world works real nice on my flat monitor.

If someone has a problem with the fact the Earth isn't round, & neigther is the area in Defcon, then you're not playing on earth. You're playing in an alternate reality in which the world is a cylinder & you'll fall off the world if you travel off the cylinder. Just pretend. People pretend they're a counter-terrorist in CS (and empty barrols explode, guns can be fires while running easily, killing hostiages as a terrorist is a bad thing...), you can pretend this. (seriously, i'm getting sick of "The world is round!". I'm glad people know this. Pythagoras must be pretty pissed off people still find astonishment in this ~2500 years after he said it. And, again, seriosly, this is a game. It's not google earth + missle command. And, again, it doesn't really matter if the earth is round or a cylinder: in this game it's a cylinder and everybody has to deal with that just like people have to deal with the fact the earth is round in real life.)
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Postby gazz07 » Tue Oct 10, 2006 12:13 am

The game plays just fine on a "flat" map. No need to change it.
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Postby Missile Command Kid » Tue Oct 10, 2006 12:54 am

gazz07 wrote:The game plays just fine on a "flat" map. No need to change it.


Well, missile arcs in the southern hemisphere aren't exactly fair... if I'm launching nukes from Lima to Johannesburg, there's no way in the world they should get intercepted by Europe.
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Postby yop » Tue Oct 10, 2006 2:04 am

NUKE EUROPE FIRST
ALLY WITH SOMEONE TO NUKE EUROPE
USE YOUR BOMBERS
USE YOUR SUBS
OR CEASEFIRE WITH EUROPE
YOU HAVE PLENTY OPTION TO DEAL WITH THE ARCS
AND YES I USED CAPS ON PURPOSE IN CASE YOU WERE WONDERING
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Postby gazz07 » Tue Oct 10, 2006 9:16 am

Missile Command Kid wrote:
gazz07 wrote:The game plays just fine on a "flat" map. No need to change it.


Well, missile arcs in the southern hemisphere aren't exactly fair... if I'm launching nukes from Lima to Johannesburg, there's no way in the world they should get intercepted by Europe.


Missile arcs are fair. Stop trying to play southern countries with the strategies you used for the northern ones. With more practice you'll figure it out. But its actually fair and balanced. All countries run into the problem of having nukes travel over other countries and getting shot down in certain situations. Its just not the southern ones. And there are many ways around the problem for both north and south countries.
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Postby GeneticFreak » Tue Oct 10, 2006 9:34 am

Image
Being south is good :)
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Postby LordSturm » Tue Oct 10, 2006 10:37 am

Annoyingly decides to post the lyrics to an relevantly irrelevant Bee Gees song. :P

Code: Select all

Bee Gees - World Lyrics

Now, I found, that the world is round
and of course it rains
everyday.
Living tomorrow, where in the world will I be
tomorrow?
How far am I able to see?
Or am I needed
here?

Now, I found, that the world is round
and
of course it rains everyday.
If I remember all of the
things I have done,
I'd remember all of the times
I've gone wrong.
Why do they keep me here?

Now, I found, that the world is round
and of course it
rains everyday

And Now, I found, that the world is
round
and of course it rains everyday

And Now, I
found, that the world is round
and of course it rains
everyday

And Now, I found, that the world is round
and of course it rains everyday
"Surely you didn't mean to press that button just then did you?"
"No, nor will i disarm the nukes."
"Oh well, I will have my Fighters shoot them down."
"Sure you will."
"Oh NOES, ITS BEEN PATCHED!!!"
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Postby Dr. Strangelove » Thu Oct 12, 2006 2:44 am

the bee gees are NEVER irrelevant.
How I learned to stop worrying and love The Bomb.

tired of your old music? tell me about it! ill find you something new, or my parents didn't name me for a truckers life!

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