Ask Paradox (almost) Anything Thread

[Shams]

Are you trolling us?

No - why should I?

Johan and I are in complete agreement - http://kotaku.com/5931092/you-might-...-not-a-console

RedRalph - Yes - more or less - they've got very little else in their portfolio besides mobile phones. Unlike Ericsson who does a lot of other things.

/s

[Svip]

No - why should I?

Because the tablet platform is a fad? Because who wants to play the depth of a Paradox game with a finger control? My fingers are fat! I want a mouse and keyboard!

The thing is; I fear that regardless the game will be less than your current line up.

Johan and I are in complete agreement - http://kotaku.com/5931092/you-might-...-not-a-console

Has Johan and you ever been wrong?

I want to be a previewer on these games. And do not worry, I will be fair despite my scepticism.

[nimrod123]

No - why should I?

Johan and I are in complete agreement - http://kotaku.com/5931092/you-might-...-not-a-console

RedRalph - Yes - more or less - they've got very little else in their portfolio besides mobile phones. Unlike Ericsson who does a lot of other things.

/s

i can see your point, just on thing, do remember the less precise action the better. that probably means vic, eu, and ck will work anywhere from alright to quite well, but games like hoi will flop (simply to much micro unit control)


EDIT:@Shams have you ever felt like this one these forums?


or (and this is for podcat )


also you guys are sending some people to gamescon arn't you? if so what new things do we find out? (not the actual annocments but just what there about)

[Davisx3m]

I for one might consider buying a Ipad when Pdox games arrive there!

[jaxx2009]

I for one might consider buying a Ipad when Pdox games arrive there!

Agreed!

[Woody Man]

I have fingers like a pianist and still have trouble with touch screen phones, so I must admit a little scepticism about bringing PDS games onto things like the iPad.

[RsBaby]

Can anyone help please? After a complete hard drive failure I am now on a new machine and trying to reinstall HOI2 + Iron Cross. I keep getting the phrase "please install the latest milestone" ??? What exactly does this mean ???? Thanks

[s1234567890m]

Can anyone help please? After a complete hard drive failure I am now on a new machine and trying to reinstall HOI2 + Iron Cross. I keep getting the phrase "please install the latest milestone" ??? What exactly does this mean ???? Thanks

This type of messages appear in case you are installing an expansion or an add-on, not having the required original\previous expansion installed, or you are installing in a different folder. This is most common for adding Hearts of Iron Armageddon to Doomsday expansions and it means that you have installed Armageddon in the wrong folder or not installed at all. The correct install path AFTER Armageddon is installed is, by default, C:Program FilesParadox InteractiveDoomsday.

ADVICE: Do read the game details on games page to know what is required for a particular game/expansion to be installed.

http://www.gamersgate.com/info/faq

[AndrewT]

Can anyone help please? After a complete hard drive failure I am now on a new machine and trying to reinstall HOI2 + Iron Cross. I keep getting the phrase "please install the latest milestone" ??? What exactly does this mean ???? Thanks

In future post this kind of issue in HoI3 Tech Support forum please, this thread is for general questions only.

[RsBaby]

And where do I find that?

[AndrewT]

And where do I find that?

It's right there under the main HoI3 forum, along with Bug Reports, User Mods and so on.

[jdrou]

In future post this kind of issue in HoI3 Tech Support forum please, this thread is for general questions only.

Actually it's an HoI2 issue.
And the GG advice is indeed the usual cause for this message.

[Castellon]

Well same advice applies, except for the HOI2 Tech support forum, which is here:
http://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/...2-Tech-Support

[unknownunknown]

When will we hear something about new Paradox owned studios and their creations?

[Shams]

Dear Svip,

You assume much - this fad you speak of - who says you can't a mouse and keyboard to it?

/s

[Svip]

Dear Svip,

You assume much - this fad you speak of - who says you can't a mouse and keyboard to it?

Then I ask; why make a tablet, if you are going to use a mouse and keyboard? Ever heard of a laptop?

I also wonder that some of your games actually require quite some power, not for graphics, but because the games are quite complicated simulation-wise (think about the Victoria 2 POPs as an example), something that regular CPUs in desktops and laptops can handle, but I doubt a tablet CPU can handle.

Most games on the iPad are usually very simply games (simulation- and game mechanic-wise), even if their graphics are advance. You also have to think about the amount of concentration that people are willing to place themselves in front of a tablet.

I find the iPad to be quite annoying to use for longer periods of time. Perhaps that is your intent (that we should play your games less), but at least without additional accessories, I can have a laptop screen standing up (along with a keyboard).

Seriously, what makes games for the iPad interesting is when they are made for the touch screen. Games not made for the platform, even if ported very well, are simply not as good as their console/desktop counterparts. Just look at Grand Theft Auto III for the iPad. It is more a gimmick than an actual game. Like a thing you buy if you are a crazy fan, much less for the actual enjoyment.

[Shams]

Then I ask; why make a tablet, if you are going to use a mouse and keyboard? Ever heard of a laptop?

I also wonder that some of your games actually require quite some power, not for graphics, but because the games are quite complicated simulation-wise (think about the Victoria 2 POPs as an example), something that regular CPUs in desktops and laptops can handle, but I doubt a tablet CPU can handle.

Most games on the iPad are usually very simply games (simulation- and game mechanic-wise), even if their graphics are advance. You also have to think about the amount of concentration that people are willing to place themselves in front of a tablet.

I find the iPad to be quite annoying to use for longer periods of time. Perhaps that is your intend (that we should play your games less), but at least without additional accessories, I can have a laptop screen standing up (along with a keyboard).

Let's not limit our view of the world. Think outside the box - I suggest you google the following topics.

• Netbook sales
• Tablet sales
• Tablet processing power development (especially projections)
• Steams hardware surveys
• and take a long hard look how the hardware requirements for PC games are changing (or lack thereof)

Long story short - tablets are the new PC's - what's powering the games is of little interest - in the end you're consuming PDX games on a screen - either on a tablet, a monitor, a tv or in a browser window at a internet café.

In 5 year's time you'll come home - start EU5 on your phone and play it on your monitor of choice - image being transferred wirelessly.

The one who can deliver solid gameplay will end up top - and the one focusing on hardware will fail.

/s

[Svip]

Let's not limit our view of the world. Think outside the box - I suggest you google the following topics.

I am not limiting our world view, I am just saying that the kind of games you make (PDS, not all the games you publish) are not made for these machines/platforms.

There has been a long history of how important input devices are. Why some genres have remained preferred for PCs compared to some for consoles. Ever played StarCraft for the PS1? Just sayin'.

• Netbook sales

Which have been barely significant the past two years. They were quite exciting when Asus released their Eee a few years back, but even since the tablet craze took off, no one has cared about Netbooks. I don't know why, maybe they were expecting them to be able to do more, installing Windows 7 on them was a mistake or some other reason. They are hardly a wise platform to bet your investment on (I actually don't think there are anyone focusing on Netbook-games).

• Tablet sales

Yeah, those are quite big. But what the sales numbers are not telling you, is what kind of consumer it is that are purchasing tablets. I am going to take a guess that most people buying tablets are not the kind of person with the desire to play an in-depth game like Hearts of Iron 3 or Crusader Kings 2.

• Tablet processing power development (especially projections)

Yes indeed. ARM are making significant process. And good for them. x86 sucks. And have sucked for two decades. If only we had gotten more interested in RISC or PowerPC, but that's what an Intel chip monopoly does, I guess.

But I also think that in the same time you are going to see x86 processor development. But I may give you that in five or ten years, you will have tablets that could easily power Victoria 2.

• Steams hardware surveys

Yes, how many of those are playing your games again?

• and take a long hard look how the hardware requirements for PC games are changing (or lack thereof)

I attribute that to programmers taking optimising serious for once. Which is incredible nice to see. Not since the 90s have game developers spend a lot of time to make the most out of a computer as developers had to in the late 80s and early 90s.

Long story short - tablets are the new PC's - what's powering the games is of little interest - in the end you're consuming PDX games on a screen - either on a tablet, a monitor, a tv or in a browser window at a internet café.

Screen is not important, input device is for a strategy game. I have tried Civilization: Revolutions for the PS3, and it has a more capable controller than a touch screen, and even that is disappointing to play. These systems always seem inadequate to a desktop.

In 5 year's time you'll come home - start EU5 on your phone and play it on your monitor of choice - image being transferred wirelessly.

I sincerely doubt that. Not only because I won't be playing games on my phone, but also because you won't have EU5 out by then.

The one who can deliver solid gameplay will end up top - and the one focusing on hardware will fail.

That is not untrue, but the wrong input device can limit the gameplay you can create. Designing interfaces are an important part of game creating. You obviously should know this, and I am just thinking; with how important that tooltips have become in PDS games, how are you going to cover that on a touch device?

I will not write off desktops and laptops so quickly. They will remain the preferred gaming station for those who play the kind of games that PDS develops.

I am also not comfortable with most tablets, especially the iPad and the Microsoft Surface, whose platform seems to be incredibly closed and much less free than their desktop/laptop counterparts. I will not buy either of these devices for political and ideological reasons alone.

Tablets and smartphones are a sad movement away from free software. Even Android is hardly as free as it should be.

[RedRalphWiggum]

I gotta say, I don't see myself switching to a tablet any time soon.

[Nikolai]

I use it for surfing, magazines and books and the occasional casual game. It's great for that, things you don't need a full pc for. But it sucks for writing( I have lost tons of posts on this pad!) and more complex manouvering. Mouse and keyboard is still superior in every single way.