This game could be great if it didnt crash all the time

[Mowers]

Or is it just me?

I finally took the plunge thinking the issues would have been sorted out.

I sense that there is a great game in here somewhere (AI doesnt appear to be too bad) but with the huge number of bugs, questionable interface (trying to select stuff is painful) and blinding colour schemes I am at a loss to find it.

I hope you guys can address the bugs and get this game working properly.

Good luck

[Anthropoid]

Have you patched up to 1.06 yet? That helps quite a bit.

[AndrewKurtz]

Or is it just me?

I finally took the plunge thinking the issues would have been sorted out.

I sense that there is a great game in here somewhere (AI doesnt appear to be too bad) but with the huge number of bugs, questionable interface (trying to select stuff is painful) and blinding colour schemes I am at a loss to find it.

I hope you guys can address the bugs and get this game working properly.

Good luck

I'm sure the developer would appreciate more details:

* What bugs are you seeing? CTD? Others?
* What settings you are using (Wego, Army-by-Army etc).
* Are you playing with sounds/music on?
* What Anti-virus? Did you try turning it off?
* Did you turn off AI Logs?
* Obvious question as you said you expected you thought things would be worked out and so you obviously were waiting for patches, but I'll ask anyway...did you upgrade to 1.06a?
* Anything else you can think of that might be helpful, including steps to recreate a bug or a save file that crashes.

[Mowers]

Thanks for the responses.

I have the latest patch and I will see if I can narrow down
some of the problems I face, but they do appear to be quite random.

[AndrewKurtz]

Thanks for the responses.

I have the latest patch and I will see if I can narrow down
some of the problems I face, but they do appear to be quite random.

In the case of the random ones, even just your settings might help.

At a minimum, I'd make sure:

* Sound is off using the Configure Game tool
* Music is off using the Configure Game tool
* AI Log is off using the Configure Game tool

[Mowers]

I found how to turn the sound off.

Where do I turn off the AI log?

[AndrewKurtz]

I found how to turn the sound off.

Where do I turn off the AI log?

In the same Configure utility, you should see a checkbox called AI Logs.

Make sure you use this same utility to disable in game sound and music. It is under Start...AGEOD...World War One...Configur Game.

[Anthropoid]

Assuming it installed the same way as mine did, you should see the Game Configurator as an item under the Programs that popup from the Start menu on lower left in PC.

[calvinus]

Another trick is to disable the "AI Memory" check-box (Configure Game tool).
JMass discovered that his Avira Antivir was not "friend" of this game feature. I installed the Avira and experienced some of the crashes (not so frequent as reported by him) randomly got by JMass (our beloved modder! ). I also noticed how terribly noisy is this antivirus (compared to AVG), as I have too much frequent popups, update notifications, etc. etc. Awful! This, combined with other popup notifications for various updaters (i.e.: Google Updater) are game killers.

The sounds issue should be fixed, as reported by Motley (another one cursed by frequent crashes): I introduced the one-sound-effect-per-time constraint, because the multiple SFXs in background make the game crash on some PC configs + sound cards + codec drivers version.

So, waiting for this blessed beta-patch that is grabbing a lot of time (:cuit , I suggest you:

1) Disable sounds & musics
2) Disable AI Logs & AI Memory

Thanks for your patience,
Calvinus.

[Mowers]

Okay, I dont think I have crashed that change in the past five hours. So thats an improvement, and thanks for the help.

I am now coming up against some strange AI stuff in the campaign game and its now August 1916.

The AI has yet to move against a single German colony.

The AI in France doesnt seem capable of forming a solid line when it has plenty of troops.

The British AI hasn't shipped any troops to the mainland since 1914.

The AI seems to have lost all interest in attacking.

Does the AI ever use its navy?

And also, Not a single country has joined the war since the war started? Is that normal?

[Anthropoid]

Okay, I dont think I have crashed that change in the past five hours. So thats an improvement, and thanks for the help.

I am now coming up against some strange AI stuff in the campaign game and its now August 1916.

The AI has yet to move against a single German colony.

The AI in France doesnt seem capable of forming a solid line when it has plenty of troops.

The British AI hasn't shipped any troops to the mainland since 1914.

The AI seems to have lost all interest in attacking.

And also, Not a single country has joined the war since the war started? Is that normal?

Check the aggressiveness and diffficulty settings for the AI in the configurator. I have played a game up to mid-1916 with Aggress about half and Diff at 1 (easiest). Naturally I'm winning (as befits me playing a computer after all!) but the AI has GENERALLY been passive. I say generally because he does attack here and there, but usually not mass offensives on an entire front.

A lot of what happens in the game seems to depend on the Warplans adopted, the settings (I suspect the AI is much more aggressive in with all the complex movement options turned off, i.e., "WEGO" mode), diplomatic actions and Events.

For example, in my campaign, I'm playing CP. I adopted the plan that trashes the Schlieffein Plan, and instead never did declare war on Belgium. I've been working my way deeper and deeper into France right across their right flank in Longwy, and Montmedy. I also adopted the Diplomatic Poker (for Germany) and Concessions to Italy (for AH): this seems to pretty consistently bring Italy into the CP, so I've got Italy pushing into southern France too. Naturally, with me having taken such a different path to real history, the events that have unfolded have been very different from history.

I have noticed that GB seems to take its time to get deployed, even when you basically follow the historic options, but then they did in real life didn't they?

If you want to get more powers into the war, start sending Level 3 Ambassadors to them and send them on Missions!

[Mowers]

Some other issues:

The convert rail way button. Is it on or off? Who knows, its very unclear.

A front line marker would help, watching the screen in bright lurid green in diplomatic mode so that one can easily see the front line is not pleasant.

Diplomacy, I just dont get it, it seems extremely cumbersome and fiddly and I cant appear to place hordes of worthless diplomats. It appears to want alot of streamlining and re design.

[Mowers]

Check the aggressiveness and diffficulty settings for the AI in the configurator. I have played a game up to mid-1916 with Aggress about half and Diff at 1 (easiest). Naturally I'm winning (as befits me playing a computer after all!) but the AI has GENERALLY been passive. I say generally because he does attack here and there, but usually not mass offensives on an entire front.

I increased the aggressive and difficulty to medium high before I started.

I have noticed that GB seems to take its time to get deployed, even when you basically follow the historic options, but then they did in real life didn't they?

But its 1916. We havnt seen a British counter in 2 years....

If you want to get more powers into the war, start sending Level 3 Ambassadors to them and send them on Missions!

But why isnt the AI getting nations to join? Has anyone seen it get another country to join in the war?

I am not even using the diplomatic system - its so painful.
I can get ambassadors on station but then what? This seems to have little effect?
How does one then get to use ask audience? Most of the time its grayed out.
And what does that do?

Thanks!

[AndrewKurtz]

Okay, I dont think I have crashed that change in the past five hours. So thats an improvement, and thanks for the help.

Yeah! Based on the title, doesn't that make this game great

[calvinus]

Yeah! Based on the title, doesn't that make this game great

Andrew is a philosopher!

[calvinus]

I increased the aggressive and difficulty to medium high before I started.
But its 1916. We havnt seen a British counter in 2 years....

A general refactoring of (trench warfare) AI is scheduled, in order to help her in building a front line, allocating better reinforcements, and planning more carefully the offensives.

But why isnt the AI getting nations to join? Has anyone seen it get another country to join in the war?

Mmm... Indeed very strange. I fought several matches where the Dip. AI successfully got Rumania and Italy on her side, for example.

I am not even using the diplomatic system - its so painful.
I can get ambassadors on station but then what? This seems to have little effect?
How does one then get to use ask audience? Most of the time its grayed out.
And what does that do?

The "Ask Audience" is mandatory to perform a dip. mission. Dip. Missions are needed to put in effect your diplomats. So keeping them abroad is not enough... You have also to plan dip. missions (at a rate of max 1 per turn). Check the tooltip on the "Ask Audience" button to see what is the reason why you can't press it.

[Mowers]

Thanks again,

Thats good news. So you know that Dip AI does work and my one example could just be that...

I will try the ask audience button and see where I get. Thanks for the info.

[calvinus]

On the side of diplomacy I can say that yesterday I introduced some outsanding improvements:

- Diplomatic AI improved in order to avoid diplomatic moves & missions in nations where no diplomacy can be done (i.e.: Albania) or whose diplomatic level has already reached the maximum allowed threshold
- Human players cannot send anymore diplomats in surrendered nations
- Political and Diplomatic AI now ignores surrendered nations

[db99]

Some other issues:

The convert rail way button. Is it on or off? Who knows, its very unclear.

Would be really nice if you got a special 'convert railway' circle on the unit on the map instead of just the regular move circle when converting rail with a unit.

I'm talking about the rail, normal move, administrative move or naval move circles that appear on the sprites after you give a movement order.

[calvinus]

Ok, you mean a sprite dedicated to the normal move + rail conv. Job for Gilles!

[db99]

Ok, you mean a sprite dedicated to the normal move + rail conv. Job for Gilles!

Yes. Exactly. That way you could tell who's converting rail just looking at the map.

Rail move has the picture of a train so maybe the rail convert could just be a section of RR track or a single arrow over a RR track section.

I'm sure Gilles can come up with something appropriate I love the artwork in this game, the map is one of my all time favorites