A little nervous about 1.1

I'm humble enough to go down a difficulty level if it hands me my head, in fact I'd be thrilled to havethat happen because then I'd know the game will challenge me that much longer before I get good enough to take it on the highest settings. Do your worst, Brad! Er, best! Er, something!

best definently let him do his best i just beat the ai on tough with 10 species on a large galatic map concoring planets one by one and i need another challeng

The AI isnt getting more difficult accross the board.

The AI is actually getting easier at the lower difficulties. At tough I would expect it to be somewhat harder though. I think the biggest difference is going to come from the AI building faster ships (at least for those of us who carry on in a warlike fashion). I might have to drop down a level also, or I might be ready to step up to the challenge of the increased difficulty. I'll probably play a game at the level I'm currently playing (Painful) and see if it schools me or not.

I'm really encouraged by Brad's dev journals. I certainly hope that the AI kicks my butt on the higher difficulty levels, as it means that the game will have gained more replayability and longevity!

Bring it on!

Everyone gets on the bus.... the AI will be takin' us to school at least once due to being under-estimated...

The AI still gets easily crushed I think.

I'm looking forward to it. I need more challenge!

Hopefully they'll level out the difficulty changes a bit so that normal won't be impossible for those folks that were playing normal before though.

yeah but you're the almighty BRAD. I must have a learning disability because i struggle on normal a lot of the time

Just become a tech whore- er I mean BROKER. Tech BROKER.

yeah but your the almighty Brad. I must have a learning disability because i struggle on normal a lot a of the time

Yes The mighty Emperor Brad all aliens fear the sound of his name.

yeah but you're the almighty BRAD.

I'll second that. The Ai could very well still use a lot of improvement, but *Brad* saying the AI loses too easily would be like Emperor Palpatine saying Darth Vader isn't evil enough for his taste. In other words, it's all relative!

I must have a learning disability because i struggle on normal a lot of the time

Yeah, me too. I feel like I should put up a sign on my bedroom door that says "Caution: Slow Gamer".

I think people will find the lower levels a bit easier and more fun as the AI will make mistakes that can be capitalized on.  We'll be taking feedback and tweaking it. The new economic system (which won't look much different to most people but is significant under the covers) will need some play testing too.

How can you become a tech broker when all your trades are at a heavy disadvantage

I play on Suicidal, and I'd be thrilled if I had to go back down to Intelligent after the patch

EDIT: Be a tech whore by taking the 50% diplomacy custom racial ability and populist polital party -- and eventually getting Total Majesty tech (not hard). Also known as "Jedi" level diplomacy. I go 50% diplomacy, and 50% research.

I would almost prefer 50% diplomacy and 50% military production (I think you'd even get points left over), but the AIs don't like to buy my ships for a good enough profit (even when they are at war against a vastly superior opponent), which would make the "war profiteer" style too inneficient for the higher difficulties IMO. Most likely that's purposefully done, since the AI (prior 1.1 atleast) wouldn't know a well designed ship from a glass hammer.

Well, I wonder if I need to up the difficulty for my own games...I played a Power Duel with the Drengin on Cakewalk, but after I assaulted one planet (failed that one tho) they surrendered to me...

Maybe I should try Normal...for once.

I am really hoping that this is what will happen - people will be forced to drop a level or maybe even two.

I am of the opinion that the AI putting more value on ship speed will cause a lot of challenge for players who have become mechanised in their way of dealing with the game. People who put all guns on ships will see their paper tigers torn up before their eyes. People using fleets of tiny ships under majorly upgraded military starbases will watch with wonder as the AI zips straight past their protected space to take out their planets behind their influence or just comes in and destroys the offending base and then leisurely wanders round mopping up the fleeing 1/1/1 1/1/1 ships that were godly mere moments before!

This could be a lot of fun..... and I expect will generate a lot of OMG posts!

I've worked my way up to Painful. Really the only difference I notice is that the game is much more cut-throat in the early game, but once I've swallowed my first or second enemy empire the rest of it's pretty easy and falls back on the same strategy that I use for the other difficulty levels.

I'm excited for the patch. I'd love to see the AI find some way to come from behind (ie ally with 2-3 others and -try- to take you down). That would be sweet.

As near as I can tell, the easier settings are going to get easier and the harder settings are going to get harder. I rather like that spread as it addresses all of the gamers. Reading posts, it becomes clear that play ability is definately across the board.

I am not happy when you say the AI gets easily crushed, frogboy. I have a lot of feedback on the AI at the moment, but am waiting to see what 1.1 beta does as I don't want to write 10 pages of fixes that you already know about and have fixed in 1.1 beta.

Hows the ship design AI doing? I have good notes on designing ships if you are interested, AI ship design sems so weak most of the time 1/0 tiny hulls, man what a waste.

Oh yeah and no offense, but how do you lose on normal or below difficulty? Hell I never trade tech, never take +diplo bonuses, never use the good armor or evil weapons, never take ship combat bonuses, never take more than one military resources, never use influence starbases, never exploit the 2k bug and never build any galactic wonders and I'm jacking the AI up on maso.

Hell I never trade tech, never take +diplo bonuses, never use the good armor or evil weapons, never take ship combat bonuses, never take more than one military resources, never use influence starbases, never exploit the 2k bug and never build any galactic wonders and I'm jacking the AI up on maso.

Well, you must be doing SOMETHING right

Okay, I'm still playing on Normal. Getting massive diplomacy and tech trading is definitely the easiest way to win. I'm going to try wining using other method before I move up the difficulty. For me however, it is already challenging although I'm getting the hang of it.