In both GalCiv III and in the Epic release of GalCiv IV (GC4Epic) we were very generous with how much the player could “see”. On turn 1, you could see several solar systems away. Go ahead and see for yourself.
When I began designing GalCiv IV: Supernova, I wanted to emphasize the exploration aspect of the game, which was something I loved in GalCiv II. After all, exploration is one of the key elements in 4X games.
So how much can you see? Well, I figured the player should be able to see most of the solar system but not all the way out to Pluto. In both GalCiv IV: Supernova and Star Control: Origins I added a 9th planet called Artemis, and since we haven’t discovered a new 9th planet (sorry Pluto) then I figure our sensor range shouldn’t quite make it out that far.
Decreasing sensor range at the start has a lot of benefits throughout the game. It makes those upgrades to sensors a lot more interesting and it makes the exploration a lot more interesting. I can’t wait to see what people think.
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Galactic Civilizations IV: Supernova Dev JournalsDev Journal #56 - Ship TypesDev Journal #55 - Ship ClassesDev Journal #54 - Warlords PreviewDev Journal #53 - Abilities & the IntueriDev Journal #52 - Moving PeopleDev Journal #51 - Citizens in AlienGPTDev Journal #50 - Terran TacticsDev Journal #49 - Children of AltariaDev Journal #48 - Survivors of ElementalDev Journal #47 - The Exiles of IconiaDev Journal #46 - Expanding the Drengin EmpireDev Journal #45 - The Torians' New ToysDev Journal #44 - New Improvements for the Arcean RepublicDev Journal #43 - Diplomacy & SurrenderDev Journal #42 - Spotlight on the Yor SingularityDev Journal #41 - Managing a Large GameDev Journal #40 - Return of the KorathDev Journal #39 - Fleet Management ToolsDev Journal #38 - UI Updates in the v2.2 Ethnology UpdateDev Journal #37 - New Biomes in the v2.2 Ethnology UpdateDev Journal #36 - v2.2 PreviewDev Journal #35 - The Juggernaut of CultureDev Journal #34 - v2.1 Genesis UpdateDev Journal #33 - Mod ManagerDev Journal #32 - It's the Little Things...Dev Journal #31 - The AI Strikes Back!Dev Journal #30 - Ability VisibilityDev Journal #29 - What’s New in SupernovaDev Journal #28 - Replacing the Tech Victory in 4XDev Journal #27 - LocalizationDev Journal #26 - The Animals of AIDev Journal #25 - A Galaxy for EveryoneDev Journal #24 - AIs Drinking Coffee on PlanetsDev Journal #23 - A Weekend of PolishingDev Journal #22 - Improving the Ship Design ScreenDev Journal #21 - What to do about Space Bugs in BattleDev Journal #20 - How people use AlienGPTDev Journal #19 - Culture is your Civilization's CharacterDev Journal #18 - Should there be a campaign?Dev Journal #17 - How much should you see?Dev Journal #16 - The importance of onboardingDev Journal #15 - Thinking about planetsDev Journal #14 - How many turns should that thing take?Dev Journal #13 - GPTDev Journal #12 - Humanoids?Dev Journal #11 - The AI Elephant in the RoomDev Journal #10 - Little New ThingsDev Journal #9 - The FAQDev Journal #8 - The Supernova CrisisDev Journal #7 - What's New in SupernovaDev Journal #6 - Technology and Ideology ChangesDev Journal #5 - The Planets are LiarsDev Journal #4 - Event UpdatesDev Journal #3 - Battle Viewer And Ship Behavior ImprovementsDev Journal #2 - Updating VisualsDev Journal #1 - The 2023 plan
Galactic Civilizations IV: Supernova Dev Journals
Dev Journal #56 - Ship Types
Dev Journal #55 - Ship Classes
Dev Journal #54 - Warlords Preview
Dev Journal #53 - Abilities & the Intueri
Dev Journal #52 - Moving People
Dev Journal #51 - Citizens in AlienGPT
Dev Journal #50 - Terran Tactics
Dev Journal #49 - Children of Altaria
Dev Journal #48 - Survivors of Elemental
Dev Journal #47 - The Exiles of Iconia
Dev Journal #46 - Expanding the Drengin Empire
Dev Journal #45 - The Torians' New Toys
Dev Journal #44 - New Improvements for the Arcean Republic
Dev Journal #43 - Diplomacy & Surrender
Dev Journal #42 - Spotlight on the Yor Singularity
Dev Journal #41 - Managing a Large Game
Dev Journal #40 - Return of the Korath
Dev Journal #39 - Fleet Management Tools
Dev Journal #38 - UI Updates in the v2.2 Ethnology Update
Dev Journal #37 - New Biomes in the v2.2 Ethnology Update
Dev Journal #36 - v2.2 Preview
Dev Journal #35 - The Juggernaut of Culture
Dev Journal #34 - v2.1 Genesis Update
Dev Journal #33 - Mod Manager
Dev Journal #32 - It's the Little Things...
Dev Journal #31 - The AI Strikes Back!
Dev Journal #30 - Ability Visibility
Dev Journal #29 - What’s New in Supernova
Dev Journal #28 - Replacing the Tech Victory in 4X
Dev Journal #27 - Localization
Dev Journal #26 - The Animals of AI
Dev Journal #25 - A Galaxy for Everyone
Dev Journal #24 - AIs Drinking Coffee on Planets
Dev Journal #23 - A Weekend of Polishing
Dev Journal #22 - Improving the Ship Design Screen
Dev Journal #21 - What to do about Space Bugs in Battle
Dev Journal #20 - How people use AlienGPT
Dev Journal #19 - Culture is your Civilization's Character
Dev Journal #18 - Should there be a campaign?
Dev Journal #17 - How much should you see?
Dev Journal #16 - The importance of onboarding
Dev Journal #15 - Thinking about planets
Dev Journal #14 - How many turns should that thing take?
Dev Journal #13 - GPT
Dev Journal #12 - Humanoids?
Dev Journal #11 - The AI Elephant in the Room
Dev Journal #10 - Little New Things
Dev Journal #9 - The FAQ
Dev Journal #8 - The Supernova Crisis
Dev Journal #7 - What's New in Supernova
Dev Journal #6 - Technology and Ideology Changes
Dev Journal #5 - The Planets are Liars
Dev Journal #4 - Event Updates
Dev Journal #3 - Battle Viewer And Ship Behavior Improvements
Dev Journal #2 - Updating Visuals
Dev Journal #1 - The 2023 plan
In GC4 I never really needed sensors. Now those modules actually have an important use. I consider this a great change for both military and exploitation aspects of the game.
Your exploration ships should have a longer range than the movement points of pirates / space monsters / sentinels. I do not want to lose my ships if I explore carefully.
I liked this change a lot, it does make exploration more meaningful.
I like this; it makes exploration riskier until you have good sensors, which is a nice feel. It also up-values the cartographer(? 3 probes + cheap no CD telescope) perk hugely, making the telescope power useful for longer.
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