Too Homogeneous?

[Mikado]

OK my second observation from the You Tube footage out there is the fact that the buildings are too homogeneous.

This leads to a bit of immersion breaking imho as it does not break up enough of the view as our brains pick out the patterns so well.

Will further development address this so there is a lot more Proc Gen in the buildings to randomise appearance more?

It seems to be in the realms of some very capable developers already now and I am wondering if Anno 1800 will up it's game on this.

[Buntkreuz]

do you have an example video with timestamp so i can get a feeling on what you are talking about?
As i cant recall getting that feeling while playing at all.

[Mikado]

Just look at when you place industry and housing, it never really changes it's appearance to differ enough even on the upgrades. You don't need timestamps, zoom in close and you will see how homogeneous it all is like previous iterations of Anno there is just not enough variety to break it up for your brain not to notice. Keralis and Raptor's videos do show this in spades for example.

[Buntkreuz]

as said i had no problem with that simply because all buildings have variations and can be placed in several directions which mixes it up.
On top you never only have one level of citizens but many different, which also mixes the game up.
This was rather a problem in my eyes in older Annos where you could just upgrade all houses to max.
Now you cant.

[Mikado]

It was too obvious for my eyes even with rotation, it risks looking bland despite all the details which the models are incredibly strong on (hats off to the Devs there).

The presentation needs to be more broken up from what I have seen, look at Cities: Skylines and you can see this in action very well.

I do hope they focus more on this, it would make the game even more special in this respect and would feel more like an innovative step forward for the development.

[Karl]

Uh, if you're asking industry buildings to update in appearance that's not how it works in Anno. You just get new ones for the new population types you advanced to that look different and that fit the more advanced stuff. Like how you get especially large industries in later population classes that have all kinds of heavy machinery working and moving about, or electricity later on.

Housing, decoration and warehouses do update in looks though if you upgrade them, and they are very distinctly different. So not sure what you're talking about here.

[Mikado]

If you were to plonk down three industries of the same type together, side by side, they all look the same. That is an example for you.

They have the same building, the same advertising, the same detail. Pubs for example all look the same too.

The Fishing Boat buildings all are homogeneous. This is what I am discussing.

There is no variance just uniformity and this has been a bug bear for Anno for awhile. I would have thought they had sorted this by now and upped their game to Cities:Skylines standards for example.

The designs are very good, just not varied and you can pick this out with your eye easily.

It does not make for a good organic, immersive appearance even though the graphics are sharp it stands out like a sore thumb and I notice some You Tubers are trying different road formats just to try and break up the blandness.

[Buntkreuz]

As said for me its no problem at all, but i also dont build structures side by side but rather build my cities more organic and mixed, not placing the everything just the most efficient.
That it has too few models per structure didnt bother me then.
I mean sure, i ever like more variation, but it wasnt a thing that even could come close to the top 10 of problems i have with the game as of now.

[DeVeteran]

You are like 20 years late to complain about it. Anno games don't get their beauty from having 5 different types of pubs or 7 different types of factories.

Do other such games like Tropico or Settlers have AS MUCH variation as you are suggesting?

Also you do know artwork take time, no?

But please, tell me if you would buy additional skins for extra money. If you put your money where your mouth is, think Ubi will take your offer.

EDIT: And yes, if you min-max you are gonna see everything as bland... yet again, who is forcing you to min-max?

[Mikado]

Well if people are happy paying for the same content in a different skin then fair enough to you and your kind.

This (non-homogeneous structure placement) is a step forward to keep up with the times and I did mention Cities:Skylines as my example which you seemed to not read from my last post.

Either way it seems complacency is it then. Complaining too is a bit much I do keep it constructive and I would expect the same from others.

It is no use going on in this thread saying you are happy with it then pointing the finger back at my expectations.

I don't care about how fan boi you are I am interested in the facts which seem to be clear that this is a lacking feature where other similar games seem to do well in enriching the immersion.

Tropico 6 is very flexible with different designs and again I would expect this to be more and more a feature as the programming that goes into these games gets more sophisticated.

Either way please keep on point with my question, which seems to be a resounding 'Yes' it is homogeneous.

As for the graphics put into the structures etc, yes they are very high quality, but that is not my thread topic.

[DeVeteran]

Same content...

...please elaborate, otherwise gj on trolling and I am out.

Also, please tell how much should a CITY BUILDING game should innovate for your liking.

And you are comparing City Skylines a game with 4 years dev since release with TENS of DLCs worth 100-200 usd to a base game?

GG again

Also you haven't asnwered the question... you want different skins...

...does Tropico have different skins for everything? To not cause ANY of your ambigous... problems?

[Mikado]

Originally posted by DeVeteran:

Same content...

...please elaborate, otherwise gj on trolling and I am out.

Also, please tell how much should a CITY BUILDING game should innovate for your liking.

And you are comparing City Skylines a game with 4 years dev since release with TENS of DLCs worth 100-200 usd to a base game?

GG again

Also you haven't asnwered the question... you want different skins...

...does Tropico have different skins for everything? To not cause ANY of your ambigous... problems?

Give Ubisoft some credit at least this is not outside their realm of capability, I would expect them to step up to the plate.

It is so easy for you to dismiss my comments as trolling, that is a cop out for anyone who cannot fathom nor have anything useful and constructive to say. Who really is the Troll I wonder ehh?

Please carefully read my posts on this thread you sound confused and have entirely misunderstood what I am pointing out based on my observations of Anno 1800 on You Tube.

I have plenty of games of this genre to compare to this new iteration in the Anno series.

I would rather see this game soar than flounder and I hope the development enhances the creativity already demonstrated rather than take the 'easy' option.

[Buntkreuz]

he is kind of right though, "same content" for a game that changes so much compared to all previous Anno titles really sounds like trolling.
I assume though it rather comes from you only taking second hand information.
You watching youtube footage says nothing at all, so your words can only be taken serious to some degree. No offense, but it then sounds displaced saying "same content".

It is rather a matter of how important it is to have several skins per building of a type.
I mean yes, it would be somewhat cool to have 2-3 variations for frequently built structures (tavern or market for example), but at last, thats not the focus at all, nor is it important in any way for this game.
You comparing it to Cities Skylines says a lot though. Both games have a completely different focus and design.
Anno is not even really the same genre as Cities Skylines (management).
But most of it comes from Cities being open to modding and having a focus on visual appeal and representation.
You have a few hundred skins for each building because thats part of the games core concept, it isnt for Anno though.
And i might point out, its also wrong in case of Cities Skylines. Standard houses might have different skins but there arent different variations for other buildings such as police stations, schools, power related structures etc.
Only if a modder creates variations.
So that comparison is not only off but also not entirely correct on several degrees.

At last Anno is a City Building RTS, not a management game. Its not about building nice beautiful cities (although there are groups of people trying to do that ofcourse). Its focus are the mechanics of trade, expansion and resource production. Not whether you now have 3 times the same building in a settlement.

[DeVeteran]

@Mikado - I have plenty of games of this genre to compare to this new iteration in the Anno series.

You said that, can you also state those franchases?

State at least 3 different franchases that have changed A LOT between titles.

Anno DID changed. It kept the feeling of an Anno game, a city building sim, while giving you different challenges between game.

Anno 1404 - Historical setting with European / Middle Eastern civilizations, ground combat, your own castle decoration, walls, etc

Anno 2070 - Shacked the formula with Futuristic setthing, gave us underwater buildings, flying combat, polution and ecology, technology researching, energy, etc

Anno 2205 - revamped map mode, much more place to build, futuristic setting, different eco-systems, researching, but a bit more liniar, again energy, workforce, no more circles around buildings, but has an X radius depending on where you place them, etc.

Anno 1800 - combined 1404/2070 and 2205 map modes, workforce, electricity, museums with visitators, newspaper, etc

What I am getting at, is this: If you change TOO MUCH of the core of a game, it isn't a series game anymore. You can make an off-shot, but it won't be an Anno

Would I consider buying more skins? For buildings? If the art-work team comes with a revamp of everybuilding in the game sometime in the future, I might. But, will I, because the game only has 1 skin per building, enjoy the game less because of it? No. I will have a GREAT time with the game, if they will add something in the future, AWESOME! If not, my excitment for the game won't drop an inch.

[Mikado]

@Wooden King and @DeVeteran now your last two posts are better, thank you for your opinions.

I would disagree with some of your points and if i point them out we would be going round in circles which is not constructive for what I have focused on in this thread.

I will take on board the comments on balance and wait for the Open Beta.

I'll try not to keep my expectations too high (possibly unrealistic I guess) and therefore should not be too disappointed with the end product, hopefully elated!

I have enjoyed the previous Anno in the series and I will just have to wait and see what kind of DLC will be available for this one that may or may not be along the lines of what you have suggested.

So on wards and upwards. Who knows what extra 'polish' the Devs are going to be doing anyway, so I look forward to experiencing the end product.

[DeVeteran]

@Mikado - same, I sure do hope so that Anno 1800 is a bigger succes than 2205, because I really would like to see some good expansions / dlc brought to the table.

I, for one, love historical setting, and LOVE the victorian age. Seeing they made South America, I would kill for some Orient (Africa-Egypt-Middle Eastern), Asian (India)(China), Scandinavia (Arctic) regions, each with their own flavour... as well as adding some more perks and changes to gameplay.

If it also includes skins, something different from previous entries, EVEN better. Seeing in some Anno Union posts how hardish was for them to make the art and then apply it and so on, you have to give them some credit.

Anno's art now is something like World of Warcraft art. Is something that only the series can attaint. If the art devs will be given additional work to design new building skins, and they look great, I will support them.

Those that might say why aren't skins in base game, I give you this: Because you don't need the extra skins to enjoy at the max this game, as it is, and what it wishes to achiev. The extra skins would be just that... extra enjoyment. Which I won't say no to, but again, I already LOVE how this game looks. IF it can look even better, that is only for the art-team to decide (and ofc Ubi)

Seein though that they said no lootboxes or microtransactions, I guess that IF they will add new skins it will be in form of an expansion or DLC only skins, so pay 9 or 20 bucks for an overall of the skins in game (get 2-3 additional skins for each building).

Something that Starcraft 2 has done for quite some time now, and tbh, I actually enjoy it, bought every itiration of those skins because I love that game, it supports it, but also the skins look rad as well. And the devs should be rewarded.