As I mentioned last week, this was a week I largely spent devoted to classes, and so I did. I pulled my fat out of the fire for one of the classes, perhaps the other. I still have a couple of tests this upcoming week to study for, so I'm not completely off the hook yet, but I hope to return to developing my game soon.

Another little distraction is that Borderlands came out. I haven't really been able to enjoy it much because of all these little pressures in my life preventing me from making any gaming time spent last week feel obligation free.

I hope I'm sure about this - coding all those little interface controls will consume a fair later half of a day, at least.

I put a lot of rumination into my game over this weekend. It's beginning to look like what I want to put together is going to be closer to X³: Reunion in that I want the players to have the control over a small number of powerful units (customizable mechs/vehicle) without having to be in control over them constantly. Like in X³, it would be a bit of a trade wars game with a vehicle piloting interface. A beginning player might start off piloting a single vehicle but, as they become a more accomplished player, eventually have several of vehicles operating under their control, even their own bases.

I don't like how X³ does it in that the game doesn't quite have very robust remote control mechanisms in some ways. You either give your units one order which they complete (you are not immediately informed when it has completed its task and is waiting for additional orders unless you are monitoring your possessions screen) or you give them Trade Software Mk3 and they become completely autonomous. I like a medium, where the player gives several orders in succession with the option of repeating those orders, like Space Empires V. This is my goal.

X³ is also wantonly demanding of the player's attention. You get kicked out of accelerated time mode at the drop of a hat, so you can't just leave it running. You can't alt-tab out of the game, or it will pause. Yet, if all vehicles are dutifully fulfilling your orders on autopilot, why do you even need to be there? X³ could be a great empire building game but it's held back by these problems.

X³ would also be a lot more significant if it were multiplayer, as my game is intended to be, because in a wholly single player game your space empire will impress no one but yourself. Yet, EVE Online has the same trouble in that you're not really able to control more than one unit (expensive multibox "solutions" aside). The trouble with that is that there's not really enough substance to controlling only an individual unit to keep the game interesting.

Simultaneously, I want to keep things relatively small scale. This is because I've played games like Mankind or your typical Trade Wars-style game, and they no longer have that sense of personal involvement. There's far too many units involved, it's just a whole lot of redundant bulk, and the players have no real sense of relating to them anymore. I want the players to be as intimately connected to their units as they would a squad member in X-Com.

What I'm hoping to push here will be a good medium. A game in which the personal involvement still feels poignant but simultaneously one that allows the player to build something truly epic. Something that doesn't get boring when you've mastered controlling just one unit because eventually you'll be in the position to control several.