American Revolution Scenario?

[unmerged(725)]

I think everyone at this forum can appreciate the need to attract the lucrative US market to EU to make the game a success.

But the notion that one of the scenarios to be presented in the US version of the game will be a 'Revolutionary War' scenario seems a bit of a waste. I know something similar was included in the BG, mind you.

Does anybody know anything more about the US scenarios to be included?

Assuming there is a Rev War scenario, it would probably only cover about 20 years of history, and would be very one-dimensional; okay, maybe France and/or Spain intervene... but there are really few possibilities.

Now I'm not saying you ought to sell the game to the US with say, the Great Northern War, or even the 30 Years War, since a lot of Americans who aren't familiar with European history might be put off by all the European scenarios...

But it is Europa Universalis, right?

IMHO, I think the gameplay value of that kind of scenario will be limited. If there has to be some NA content, maybe the American Revolutionary War 'mini-scenario,' should be expanded to include the Seven Years' War (1756), which produces some serious conflict in Europe and around the globe (NA, India). Let the British and the French rattle about in North America in the early part of the scenario. Then maybe, whoever is still around can deal with those rag-tag rebels...

Oh, but I guess if you want to play the Americans, go ahead.

But I wouldn't waste my time giving it a second go once I've done it.

Nelson

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Ey. Surly only looks out for one guy -- Surly.

 

[Johan]

The american release includes all scenarios from the european release too.

/Johan

 

[DubCat]

I can see why the US market won’t be as interested in the game as us Europeans. Maybe Americans needs something to relate to, and playing a European nation might not fulfil that requirement. I mean, how many Americans knows that Poland and Sweden once were “superpowers”? Not many, I guess. Thus, it would be smart to include a few scenarios that take place in North America and even let’s you play rebels.

The question is; does EU need to appeal the US market to be a successful game? I think not. Europe is a HUGE market.

I would presume, though, that anyone remotely interested in strategic games and history will jump at the chance to play a game as extensive and as historically correct as EU (well, for a GAME it is quite correct anyway). It actually tells the story of the colonization of North and South American, which should interest even the most sceptic yank.

There are quite a lot of good games that take place in different eras of the history of North American, but Europe with it’s countless conflicts, religious turmoil and political unrest, is in my opinion by far a more interesting scene for an epic historical game.

It is not my intention to make this a “Europe versus America” discussion, just wanted to point out that it is a game developed in Europe by Europeans and about the European history. Thus, it is not so strange that the game focuses on playing European nations.

It would be fun to play a scenario with North American rebels, though. I would love to teach them a lesson .

 

[unmerged(181)]

The EU is a big market. It has roughly the same population as the USA.

BTW, the American Revolution was not confined to the North American continent. There was fighting in the Caribbean and in India and perhaps elsewhere.

 

[unmerged(749)]

Re: Now I'm not saying you ought to sell the game to the US with say, the Great Northern War, or even the 30 Years War, since a lot of Americans who aren't familiar with European history might be put off by all the European scenarios...

I am an American and don't have the game yet, but have been slavering with anticipation since learning of it last week. I most certainly am interetsed in the 30 Years War, etc., and can't wait to play out such things as King Francis' invasion of Italy, Frederick's invasion of Silesia, and thwarting the rise of Muscovy. American gamers, at least, I think love this stuff.

 

[unmerged(577)]

Originally posted by Johan:
The american release includes all scenarios from the european release too.

/Johan

You guys rock! I look forward to playing EU any other game of the type that you develop.

 

[unmerged(746)]

Why would people complain about the inclusion of any scenario? If I am uninterested in it, I simply do not play it. I lose nothing by its inclusion as a game option. The fact remains, however, that some US customers are more likely to buy the game with the scenario included. That means more people playing the game, which benefits us all.

 

[DubCat]

Another thing that should interest the US customer is when, or rather if, the US declares independence. This is rather difficult though, because a lot of provinces have to revolt (10+) and they can only declare independence from the year 1750.

Doomdark's patch does however make it easier for the US to declare independence by only requiring Delaware and Manhattan to revolt and moving the date back to 1700.

To be honest, I think there were to few scenarios in the retail version. The more the merrier!

Doomdark’s patch can be found here: http://www.ludd.luth.se/~doomdark/EUproject.html

Remember that it is no official patch!

 

[unmerged(664)]

Well, I feel a little bit bad now as I took exception to an abridgement of Admiral Nelson's remarks re pandering to the US market that were featured in another thread. I still think that it makes little sense to rail against the inclusion of a North American scenario...it was after all, a fairly active place during the latter part of EU's covered time period. But (and this is without ever having seen/played the game) I would have to concur that a 20-year scenario doesn't seem like a very involving prospect, and that perhaps expanding the timeframe backward to cover most of the 18th century could perhaps lead to a fun exploration of the race to dominate the eastern part of the continent or at least explore how the 'French and Indian War' (as we colonials like to call it!) influenced American attitudes toward British military presence and resulting taxation.

So I still resist some of the rather mild US-bashing implied, but would like to see (almost conversely) an expanded North American scenario included at some point.

 

[Tex]

IMNSHO, judging by the aar's, it appears that quite a bit of enjoyment can be had from a 20 year campaign. It strikes me that those of the posters who have actually played the game (sure wish I could include myself in that group ) seem to spend hours upon hours just moving the game ahead a few years.
Yes! Finally a game that will take up more time than Civilization.
I'll never find my life once this game hits the US market.

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Never call a Texan a
'yank.' Yanks are those
people who live north
of the Red River

 

[unmerged(670)]

The American Revolution would make a great demo, though.

Rgds
Johan A

 

[unmerged(599)]

Originally posted by Admiral Nelson:
But the notion that one of the scenarios to be presented in the US version of the game will be a 'Revolutionary War' scenario seems a bit of a waste. I know something similar was included in the BG, mind you.

Yeah, this scenario doesn't have great drawing power to me. Perhaps it was easy to design and it was felt that there was a good cost to return ratio.

More interesting to me would be a scenario in which covert alien intervention in 1450 provides the North American Huron tribes with gunpowder and ocean-going hovercraft, making a west-to-east invasion possible. Native American war-whoops echoing across the Thames, the ring of tomahawks against pikes! Crazy Horse kicks butt!

Regards,
Maturin

 

[unmerged(834)]

Im an American, the funny thing is that I am more interested in English history than American history. That could be because I am of deep English origin. I may not be able to relate to the game when it come out that much, but of what ive read, I'm gonna love it!

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'Those who live for the moment, have no future.'
-Myself

Martin Luther has saved us all.

 

[Rio]

(sigh)

Ok, I think several things should be obvious.
ADDING something to the game that no one will HAVE to play if they do not want to seems like a no-brainer. Further, since it is the largest single language market for PC games it would be silly not to take the relatively small risk of including the scenario even if it only increased your sales to that market by a percentage point or two.

Perhaps not so obvious to people who are OUTSIDE the US, most of the historical strategy games sold in the US are NOT about wars in North America. The feelings Gunner has indicated above are exactly what I have written about earlier in another post elsewhere about the North American Market and EU. EU carries within its coding the seductive ability to allow any 'x' to the 'i' th generation to go back to whatever country was their ancestor's 'old country' (no matter where it was, when it was, or how many there were!) and do better! In the highly homogenized society we live in, sometimes these ethnic heritage strings are one of the few anchors of individualism available to us, and allow us to be better brothers to our friends in Europe and elsewhere who are, after all, still our relatives!

Also, I'm with Tex and Kurt. I think what I have read indicates 20 years is a lot depending on what the scenario is demanding... although I can easily see the scenario being twice that long. Further, US players may be interested in the related events across the globe that has been mentioned above. Rarely if ever has a game attempted to show the minor American rebellion as it related to the other problems besetting England's Empire around the spinning globe.

Still, Maturin's amusing comments aside (some interesting edits THERE), I think you will find most US gamers will acquire this game because they ARE more interested in European history, old chaps. If I recall, my post in the 'What country will I play first' thread was: Poland, then Sweden, Denmark and Portugal. In that order. I may get around to playing the American scenario, but I am not going to worry about it!
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Rio ~/|~

[This message has been edited by Rio (edited 03-02-2001).]