Our friends at Ironclad are experiencing first hand what it means to make a 4X game that has really good multiplayer.

Each time we do an update, users (almost exclusively hard core multiplayer users) come out and make posts decrying this or that change to the game.  To the casual visitor of the site, you'd think the sky had fallen "1.03 is ruined!" or "We need an emergency patch!" but when you actually look at the content of the post, it's always some trivial tweak that users believe has resulted in some fundamental game change. 

What it usually boils down to in these kinds of games is that players of a certain faction get very upset if their faction (or class in an MMO) is at a perceived disadvantage.

In an MMO, you have to take such concerns seriously. But in a strategy game, where most people are trying to play it single-player, it still needs to be looked at but also prioritized in with a lot of other variables.

A lot of people demanded that Galactic Civilizations have multiplayer.  One can imagine the amount of resources it would take dealing with users demanding absolute perfect (or at least what is perfect in the mind of an individual user) balance.

I would show you more on the Sins forums but right now someone is attacking the forums with a DOS attack (no doubt someone who lost a multiplayer game?) so they're currently down until we can block it.

We're looking into it but something or someone is currently flooding the Sins forum server which is bringing it to a crawl.

This forum is also available here: https://forums.stardock.com/forum/402 if you need to get into the forums while we sort it out.

Worth watching. Seriously.

http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/view/id/229

The new Dragon visual style from Stardock Design doesn't just look great, it's fast. For most users, Dragon makes Windows faster than the default look of either Windows XP and especially Windows Vista. On top of that, it has stunning animation on the Start menu at full 30fps. And did we mention it does this without slowing down your PC?  This is what happens when you develop a technology that integrates seamlessly into the native Windows display engine while taking advantage of advances in video drivers (both ATI and nVidia).

Designed by Stardock Design's Mike Bryant and Chaninja, Dragon delivers a complete visual make over to both Windows XP and Windows Vista users that is consistent, reliable, and beautiful.

Dragon on Windows Vista

Dragon on Windows XP

If you don't have WindowBlinds you can get it at http://www.windowblinds.net. You can download Dragon from WinCustomize.com.  Stardock Design also has a page at deviantART. If you have an account there, stop by and say hi!

I was reading a debate on global warming today and the smugness and arrogance of the human-produced global warming crowd always seems to try to try to bolster their argument by trying to make believing in global warming to be akin to believing in evolution.

To which I responded:

Kurt, there’s a lot more evidence supporting evolution than human produced global warming.

Global warming “theory” essentially argues that CO2 is a green house gas and it has been going up a lot since the industrial revolution. The recorded global average temperature has gone up since 1976. Therefore, humans are the cause. That's it. 

It’s a hypothesis at best. What makes global warming seem like a religion to us “deniers” is the venom and smugness of global warming zealots.

It comes across as a religion because of the reaction its believers have to those who “don’t believe”. Non-believers are considered heretics and insulted, patronized, and even physically assaulted at times. Sounds like the actions of a religions zealot.

A lot of us do know the facts. Have done the research. Are scientificaly oriented. And we aren’t convinced that humans are the cause. That doesn’t mean we can’t be convinced, but we don’t find the existing evidence compelling.

Worse, the typical “believer” has done little more “research” into the matter than watch Al Gore’s movie — as if that suddenly makes them an expert. And given how quickly the “believers” become smug and obnoxious on the issue tells me that their belief has more to do with emotional satisfaction — a trait of religion — than scientific merit.

Anyone notice some of the subtle improvements to JU this week? More coming next week.

Add your own in the comments area.

Have Windows Vista? Feeling a little adventurous? Try DeskScapes 2.0 Preview. It's free.

Stardock is pleased to announce that the DeskScapes 2.0 preview version is now available.  DeskScapes allows users of Windows Vista to have animated wallpapers on their desktop. It runs the Stardock created .DREAM format which can contain videos as animated wallpapers or dynamically generated content.

What makes DeskScapes special is that animated wallpapers can be run that use hardly any system resources (obviously this will depend on what animated wallpaper is chosen). It integrates seamlessly with the Windows Vista desktop background dialog so picking animated wallpapers is much the same as picking any other desktop wallpaper.

The Preview build comes with 3 DREAMs:

1. Watercolor. A dynamic dream that randomizes your desktop background.
2. Silent Hill. A brand-new video based dream.
3. Stardock Cube. A simple 3D cube dancing on the desktop

The goal of the preview version is to evaluate the variety of hardware configurations out there running Windows Vista in order to see how well different types of Dreams run.  The three included Dreams were especially chosen to check out 3 very different types of capabilities.

Stardock expects to release DeskScapes 2.0 later this month in time for Object Desktop 2008.

Get DeskScapes 2.0 Preview.

Sins of a Solar Empire v1.03 has been released! The new update adds dozens of new features to the game based on player feedback.

In the month since its release, Sins of a Solar Empire has sold nearly 200,000 copies worldwide (with revenue split pretty evenly between retail and Stardock's digital distribution system). It is also the highest rated PC game of 2008 thus far with Editor's Choice Awards from every major PC game publication and website.

The game blends real time game play with “4X”. With epic level scalability, multiplayer games that can be saved and restored, and fantastic visuals, Sins of a Solar Empire has become the highest rated and best selling new PC game of 2008.

The new version adds dozens of new features into the game including:

  • Many new game setup options such as fleet size, pirate options, income rate speeds, build speeds and more
  • Players can use the + and – keys in single player to control the game speed
  • Improved black market provides a more volatile market
  • Players who drop can now be placed by cunning computer AI players
  • Vastly improved computer AI
  • New difficulty level “Unfair” for really hard core players
  • Computer players will surrender
  • Improvements to Ironclad Online
  • Lots of tweaking and balancing based on feedback
  • MUCH more…

We have a lot more updates in the works. The primary purpose of v1.03 was to improve the computer AI and get it to replace dropped players. Once the demo is released, Ironclad and Stardock will be working on v1.04 with even more new features and enhancements.

To get the update: From within the game, press the "Download Updates" button on the main menu. Please note that v1.03 is not compatible with save games or replays from older versions.

Change Log: v1.03 update notes

The Stardock Design website has gotten a re-design. But what should the About page say?

I was thinking something like this:

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Stardock has long been a pioneer in developing first-to-market technology for the PC market.  It was the company that essentially created "skinning" technology on the PC with products such as WindowBlinds, DeskScapes, DirectSkin, DesktopX, IconPackager, ObjectBar, and more.  Through Stardock's technology, Windows users could, for the first time, completely customize the Windows experience.

To meet the growing demand for Windows customization content in the form of skins, themes, icons, and animated desktops, Stardock launched Stardock Design. Stardock Design brings together the world's top GUI design specialists and teams them up with some of the best artists in the world.

Leading corporations including ATI, nVidia, Microsoft, Touchstone Pictures, Goodyear, General Motors, Universal Studios, Nintendo, and countless others have already taken advantage of Stardock Design's attention to detail and technological innovation granting them an undeniable competitive advantage over others in their industry.

Today, Stardock Design leverages key partnerships with Dell, Toshiba, Hewlett Packard, Gatway, Alienware and more to deliver its cutting edge designs combined with its mature, reliable customization technologies to ensure their customers have a unique and compelling experience.

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What do you think?