Suggestions for further development

[Slavicist]

Hoi4 looks ever-more complete with its latest update. What are your thoughts as to where the next patches/DLCs should take HoI4? What is seriously lacking?

Here are a few ideas of mine:

* Supply system. A bit more complex supply system, which would have serious impacts and strategic interests in, say, controlling the Suez. Cutting off supply lines and using convoys to ferry resources from overseas territories, for instance.
* More prolonged war decisions and events. A country should feel the results of a protracted war. So far the recent changes when it comes to garrison requirements play a small part in that direction, but the consequences of fighting a war in which say, the Allies completely cut you off after years, should be felt by the economy. I actually think the game now reflects this fairly good with all the policies etc. but this could be a little more fleshed out as the player should after 5 years of war, even if winning, feel slowly the slogging pains of a protracted conflict instead of the feeling of an unstoppable superbadass.
* Free City of Danzig. This is only a minor change and one I do not understand why it hasn't been made....Danzig is almost like Luxembourg. There is almost literally no reason to exclude it entirely from the game. Maybe a few events and a little flavor could be added in there
* The League of Nations. Perhaps modelled to an extent by the Crisis in Victoria II, I think that the League should definitely be in the game. Not as something game-changing, but it would add a lot of historical flavor for the history buffs, and also add a lot of options for the alt history fans. Decide to change the course of history and give true meaning to the League? Maybe USA manages to fight through against the pacifist sentiments a bit earlier and fights the Soviets when they invade Finland (imagine the Soviets fighting the Americans while the Allies and Axis fight alongside). Want a Germany or Japan dedicated to building up the League of Nations? Release Manchuria, apologize, etc...I think this is more than enough material for a smaller DLC (not a huge one) or maybe even bigger if earlier start dates are considered an option.

What other ideas do you have? Representation of food? Dividing up "Supply equipment"? Maybe some geographical corrections, such as giving Rijeka (Fiume) to the Italians at the start of the game? A bit of (italo-centric) Holy See presence in the game?

One of the main things when it comes to border changes should be, I'd say, making Malmedy a state so that it can properly be annexed by Germany.

 

[KubiG37]

The supply system definitely. It’s way too easy to always have supplies anywhere. Distance doesn’t matter. And low supply in the middle of Burmese jungle? Just build some infrastructure and upgrade a port - voila, you have supply level of european city.

But personally I’d prefer some more time devoted to improving/fixing existing systems instead of adding new things. Especially the AI is very lacking in several regards - not that it plays terribly (that’s probably even intentional a bit) but all the blunders it is capable of - overcrowding your airfields, ignoring supply limits, launching “fire&forget” naval invasions without any further support by air/land units, not upgrading ships (and using them terribly), declaring suicidal wars for no reasons, even when already loosing...

New Content becomes quickly spoiled if you find as a player that you’re the only one using it.

 

[Slavicist]

The supply system definitely. It’s way too easy to always have supplies anywhere. Distance doesn’t matter. And low supply in the middle of Burmese jungle? Just build some infrastructure and upgrade a port - voila, you have supply level of european city.

But personally I’d prefer some more time devoted to improving/fixing existing systems instead of adding new things. Especially the AI is very lacking in several regards - not that it plays terribly (that’s probably even intentional a bit) but all the blunders it is capable of - overcrowding your airfields, ignoring supply limits, launching “fire&forget” naval invasions without any further support by air/land units, not upgrading ships (and using them terribly), declaring suicidal wars for no reasons, even when already loosing...

New Content becomes quickly spoiled if you find as a player that you’re the only one using it.

I agree fully and bugfixing and especially AI improvement (is it possible to program the AI so that it doesn't fall to a same trick every time? E.g. if the Germans withdraw from the front the French fall for it and get totally obliterated due to encirclement, make it so it doesn't fall for the same trick so easily, subsequently?) and that should definitely be a priority.

For instance, the button "add variant" is definitely redundant with most Infantry Equipment. It is relevant just for Armored Trucks and should therefore definitely be removed. Why the option to make variants if there are none? Are PdoX intending to perhaps add in the future gun and arty variants?

Another thing I am thinking is prisoners of war.

 

[AP Erebus]

2 things:

1. There is a suggestions sub-forum here
2. POW's will never be in the game, as per the forum rules

 

[KubiG37]

I agree fully and bugfixing and especially AI improvement (is it possible to program the AI so that it doesn't fall to a same trick every time? E.g. if the Germans withdraw from the front the French fall for it and get totally obliterated due to encirclement, make it so it doesn't fall for the same trick so easily, subsequently?) and that should definitely be a priority.

I remember this moment when I was still new to the game (and I believe I was playing Soviets for the first time), and my front line formed by 2 field marshals was widening and widenig until the two armies somehow separated, so there now was this large hole in the frontline, which I didn't notice at first...

And few days/weeks later I was like "Oh noo! How did this happen?" ,I thought I'm screwed. Dozens of unchecked division including tanks marching on Moscow, unopposoed, my reserves already depleted... But then I noticed how this entire german "bubble" is connected to the rest only by 2 tiny plain provinces, which happen to have just 1 division each guarding it. So I took the few tanks and planes I had left and cut this huge blob off.

I could immediately see the desperation of those AI units trying to fight back and "reconnect" , maybe half a million casualties for the AI. It never recovered from then on.
Later I tried in on purpose, and AI always fails for that, I just don't do it anymore, it's like cheating.

 

[Slavicist]

Hoi4 looks ever-more complete with its latest update. What are your thoughts as to where the next patches/DLCs should take HoI4? What is seriously lacking?

Here are a few ideas of mine:

* Supply system. A bit more complex supply system, which would have serious impacts and strategic interests in, say, controlling the Suez. Cutting off supply lines and using convoys to ferry resources from overseas territories, for instance.
* More prolonged war decisions and events. A country should feel the results of a protracted war. So far the recent changes when it comes to garrison requirements play a small part in that direction, but the consequences of fighting a war in which say, the Allies completely cut you off after years, should be felt by the economy. I actually think the game now reflects this fairly good with all the policies etc. but this could be a little more fleshed out as the player should after 5 years of war, even if winning, feel slowly the slogging pains of a protracted conflict instead of the feeling of an unstoppable superbadass.
* Free City of Danzig. This is only a minor change and one I do not understand why it hasn't been made....Danzig is almost like Luxembourg. There is almost literally no reason to exclude it entirely from the game. Maybe a few events and a little flavor could be added in there
* The League of Nations. Perhaps modelled to an extent by the Crisis in Victoria II, I think that the League should definitely be in the game. Not as something game-changing, but it would add a lot of historical flavor for the history buffs, and also add a lot of options for the alt history fans. Decide to change the course of history and give true meaning to the League? Maybe USA manages to fight through against the pacifist sentiments a bit earlier and fights the Soviets when they invade Finland (imagine the Soviets fighting the Americans while the Allies and Axis fight alongside). Want a Germany or Japan dedicated to building up the League of Nations? Release Manchuria, apologize, etc...I think this is more than enough material for a smaller DLC (not a huge one) or maybe even bigger if earlier start dates are considered an option.

What other ideas do you have? Representation of food? Dividing up "Supply equipment"? Maybe some geographical corrections, such as giving Rijeka (Fiume) to the Italians at the start of the game? A bit of (italo-centric) Holy See presence in the game?

One of the main things when it comes to border changes should be, I'd say, making Malmedy a state so that it can properly be annexed by Germany.

It's almost as if everything from this thread has been implemented.

Sorry for the Necro; I just want to express my satisfaction (Danzig and supply system).