The true size of countries

[FOARP]

Remember how you could conquer Japan in 2 weeks in HOI3?

Now it's a slightly more challenging undertaking.

No, it really isn't. Japan wasn't easy to defeat because it was "small", Japan was easy to defeat because it has a long, open coastline with many potential landing grounds and the AI typically did a very bad job of defending.

Moreover, you seem to be under the misimpression that:

1) Travel time is determined by on-map distance. It isn't. Instead there are separately-coded distance values between provinces in HOI2 and 3.

2) People in Europe/North America didn't learn about map distortion in geography in school. We did.

3) There is some way of presenting the map without distortion without using a globe. There isn't.

 

[Porkman]

3) There is some way of presenting the map without distortion without using a globe. There isn't.

I think we're all just pro globe.

Hell, xcom had a globe in 1995.

 

[FOARP]

I think we're all just pro globe.

Hell, xcom had a globe in 1995.

Well, exactly - I've made the same point myself when this has come up. And I'm 100% in favour of having a globe and do not agree with the people who think that it would make things difficult to see (you never have to look at both sides of the world simultaneously) or make the map hard to navigate (Google maps is easy to navigate).

However, there's no way of implementing a globe in HOI4 at this stage. It might be something they do in HOI5, but I strongly suspect they won't do it then either because @Johan has said he doesn't favour it.

 

[Adonnus]

Most of Australia is wasteland with a small population. Japan would conquer Australia easy.

Wasteland is an overstatement. Even if they took the coasts Australian forces could just withdraw west of the Great Dividing Range. It wouldn't be impossible to supply them, the deserts were much further inland and an inland campaign by the Japanese would break their logistics most likely.

 

[CrasherZZ]

Instead there are separately-coded distance values between provinces in HOI2 and 3.

Good to know. I suspected that, and it makes total sense. So maybe the range of B29 is somewhat realistic in the game?

 

[zjohn4]

Well, exactly - I've made the same point myself when this has come up. And I'm 100% in favour of having a globe and do not agree with the people who think that it would make things difficult to see (you never have to look at both sides of the world simultaneously) or make the map hard to navigate (Google maps is easy to navigate).

Google Earth, you mean. Maps is still a 2D projection. With that said, have you seen the poles in Google Earth? looks silly because of the way it works, but really, shouldnt be an issue in a PDS game.



On a different note, in HOI3, China has high province density already, as much as Europe has, as does coastal Burma and Indochina, Japan, Phillipeans, much of Indonesia, Korea, coastal USA and (for some reason) northern Australia (around Darwin), so while it may appear smaller on the map than it is in reality, this does alleviate some of those issues.

Spoiler: Japan invading Australia

On the note of Japan invading Australia, this has been discussed numerous times and really it would be VERY difficult if the government doesnt give up. We(Aus) have a lot of coastline, but small population, BUT its not 100% true that all the population and all of the farmable land IS on the coast. Just look at Queensland (north-east state) and youll notice all that coastline, towns and (few)cities scattered all along it, and lots of farmland further in. Plenty of area for the army to fall back to and launch guerrilla attacks if needed

 

[Invader_Canuck]

I think we're all just pro globe.

Hell, xcom had a globe in 1995.

1994

 

[Flayer92]

The use of a globe for the next generation of Clauzewitz engine would be appreciated.

This sounds great until you've actually tried playing a game that uses one.

You are playing a game on a two dimensional screen. The curvature makes a total nuisance out of trying to examine anything taking place on the edges of the screen where the playing field is angled away from your point of view.

 

[TheDungen]

Well having a revolving globe under the screen would mean a projection centered on wherever we place the centre of the screen, that is how google earth function. It'd however draw quite a lot more graphics computing power, but like many others here I belive it to be a fair tradeof. Then again I might be partial since I have plenty of that.

... Like what?

Greenland is bigger than it looks. Noted.

I hope that was sarcasm... greenland is smaller than it looks, much smaller.

 

[adam_grif]

This sounds great until you've actually tried playing a game that uses one.

You are playing a game on a two dimensional screen. The curvature makes a total nuisance out of trying to examine anything taking place on the edges of the screen where the playing field is angled away from your point of view.

Depends on your level of zoom! Up close it will only be very gently curved.

 

[Flayer92]

Depends on your level of zoom! Up close it will only be very gently curved.

Try to imagine playing the Pacific Theater like this.

 

[General WVPM]

So Congo is as big as western Russia?
Also insert joke about Greenland shrinking due to heat.

 

[Opanashc]

So Congo is as big as western Russia?

At over 2.3 mil square km - just about.

 

[Porkman]

Try to imagine playing the Pacific Theater like this.

the pacific is why you need this. It's far too constrained right now.

 

[FOARP]

This sounds great until you've actually tried playing a game that uses one.

You are playing a game on a two dimensional screen. The curvature makes a total nuisance out of trying to examine anything taking place on the edges of the screen where the playing field is angled away from your point of view.

Just how often in HOI games are you zoomed out that far? Pretty much never in my case - doing so would mean, on a map centred on the UK, seeing the Azores on one side and the Urals on the other.

 

[Nasr]

Superpower 2 incorporated a globe quite effectively imo.

 

[Voigt]

Well, it should be commonly known that world maps we know are actually incorrect, to make navigation easier, atleast for salors back in the 16th century. The countries kept their shape, but got stretched and distorted. We in europe are actually way smaller than we might think.

This is the world map most of us if not all know it. It was created in 1596 to help sailors navigate.
"Picture of Mercator Projection"

I always wondered, isn't this just a North American thing? I don't remeber ever seeing this kind of map in school. (Germany)

 

[TheDungen]

I always wondered, isn't this just a North American thing? I don't remeber ever seeing this kind of map in school. (Germany)

Why would the US want this? They look way smaller than canada or russia while really they aren't that much smaller (about half the size if russia). Nah mercator is a very european thing.

 

[Voigt]

Interesting. I thought maybe it came from their history. I mean the USA were "founded by sailors", and that is why it would be more prominent.
But yeah I saw some videos that american use the mercator projection regualry, and I personally never saw it before. ^^

 

[frolix42]

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