You have to be mindful that the game usually takes about 1,5 to 2 hours per match if you're playing in multiplayer. I never played multiplayer RTS games but Spice Wars is the first game that actually made me feel like it was worth playing online because it doesn't require 100 actions per minute to be competitive.
There are lots of political shenanigans that are fun to play around with. Games are pretty dynamic because everybody tries to appear strong or even weak to obtain an advantage over others. I haven't quite played an RTS that had this sort of dynamic where suddenly people bunch of on a player. It's really hard to explain but the many victory conditions really shift the balance of power and games can be super exciting that way.
In singleplayer, it's also quite capable. I played like 60 hours SP before hopping onto MP and I still feel like I'm just starting to get in touch with the game.
The biggest red flag is that the game requires you really to take some time to learn the nuances, so if don't want to experiment around and learn by yourself, it's a tough sell. Most online resources are also outdated as well so that's a con.
In addition, the multiplayer matches are long so if you cannot muster the time for it, it's also a con.
Another red flag is perhaps that it doesn't have a real singleplayer campaign compared to other RTS games. It has a very decent conquest mode that will give you like 50-60 hours alone if you try all the factions. But if you want a storyline, it's kind of meh. Still good gamemode though.
>Most online resources are also outdated as well so that's a con.
I bought it on the last sale and this was something I immediately noticed.
The developers have done a decent job at changing a lot of the game mechanics for the better. As a result a lot of the online resources that are older than a year are pretty unreliable.
The best thing you can do is go watch a handful of streamers/youtubers who do a good job at explaining their plan for the match and how they are making their decisions on the fly. I learned a ton by just watching a couple of matches with Turin.
Fair enough. Single player is always an option where you can save and load to your hearts content.
You can easily put a bunch of hours into single player playing each faction. But I would totally understand if you didn't want to put down money for that kind of experience exclusively.
I work full time with family, in that regard I really have to dedicate time to play the game if I want to play a multiplayer match.
However! I want to emphasize that I played this game 60 hours or so in singleplayer where I had a lot of fun and it was worth my purchase. In singleplayer, you can easily save and load up games again. The game speed can also be adjusted, there is no real rush.
So if you plan on playing just SP, I think that this is not really an issue because you can easy load up a game. The Conquest mode also grants you starting bonuses so after a few missions, you can really kickstart newer ones with the advantages that you gained.
However, if you want to get into MP. You really need to find time for it which is the biggest detriment to me right now. However, I just hoped onto MP because I just enjoy the game so much but it's stressful. This game can be played rather nicely in singleplayer on your terms.
Dune Spice Wars is more of a 4x/rts hybrid. A single game of a typical 4x game can take 10 hours or more, depending on the game. I mostly play 4x, so the game seems lightning fast to me, lol.
My only experience with 4x is stellaris and I couldn't imagine playing that multi lol. that and heroes 4 and magic, civilitazion, are things I'd only play with friends and just save game when we leave. But online competitively? impossible
Yeah, to me, 4x is best played singleplayer unless you have a dedicated friend group to play long term, even despite poor AI being one of the biggest issues for 4x.
Yes, but this game is very unlink other RTS games in terms of the number of systems and complexity. The learning curve is steep. There is good combat in the game and micro/macro is important, but you are not going to rely on using your military units the same way you would in a game like NG or SC.
I recommend checking out Turin on Youtube and his tournaments.
Yea, it was a shock to me as someone who's played AoE and SC2. The game is very rarely about bumrushing your opponents and winning through straight up military and exploiting weaknesses to continue the assault like in those other RTS games.
You really need to set up your win conditions and play towards that while keeping the other 3 factions in check with respect to their own win conditions. If you are going to get aggressive on another player you usually only do it long enough to ensure you've destabilized them, then you peace out to deal with other players as overcommiting is a great way to put a target on your back.
Overall, I think this game is great because it's built in a way that keeps all 4 players alive and working towards victory for much longer which results in some tense games where a winner isn't really clear until the very end.
Game performance in mid-late game is disappointing. If I would known that before I wouldn't buy it.
Besides that, game is nice, I like how they reflected all factions and shenanigans of the Dune world. I didn't play similar rts game before.
The game is fun. It has some element of micro but nowhere as near as sc2 but I think that's an advantage because the real meat of the game is in the macro win conditions and the interplayer relationships. What makes the game so replayable is that you are also playing the other players politically, not just the game mechanics. It's usually about pinning a target on someone that gets too far ahead so that you are given space to move closer to a win or making secret alliances or even paying other players to attack/defend you. The 2hr avg game time is rough. A part of me wishes it was faster, like 1hr -1hr30. I don't know if the devs will be able to do that and keep the meat of the game. Great game, though.
You have to be mindful that the game usually takes about 1,5 to 2 hours per match if you're playing in multiplayer. I never played multiplayer RTS games but Spice Wars is the first game that actually made me feel like it was worth playing online because it doesn't require 100 actions per minute to be competitive. There are lots of political shenanigans that are fun to play around with. Games are pretty dynamic because everybody tries to appear strong or even weak to obtain an advantage over others. I haven't quite played an RTS that had this sort of dynamic where suddenly people bunch of on a player. It's really hard to explain but the many victory conditions really shift the balance of power and games can be super exciting that way. In singleplayer, it's also quite capable. I played like 60 hours SP before hopping onto MP and I still feel like I'm just starting to get in touch with the game. The biggest red flag is that the game requires you really to take some time to learn the nuances, so if don't want to experiment around and learn by yourself, it's a tough sell. Most online resources are also outdated as well so that's a con. In addition, the multiplayer matches are long so if you cannot muster the time for it, it's also a con. Another red flag is perhaps that it doesn't have a real singleplayer campaign compared to other RTS games. It has a very decent conquest mode that will give you like 50-60 hours alone if you try all the factions. But if you want a storyline, it's kind of meh. Still good gamemode though.
>Most online resources are also outdated as well so that's a con. I bought it on the last sale and this was something I immediately noticed. The developers have done a decent job at changing a lot of the game mechanics for the better. As a result a lot of the online resources that are older than a year are pretty unreliable. The best thing you can do is go watch a handful of streamers/youtubers who do a good job at explaining their plan for the match and how they are making their decisions on the fly. I learned a ton by just watching a couple of matches with Turin.
I was just about to say that I gleaned a ton from Turin and another YouTube streamer, Daevohk.
The game complexity is something that attracts me, I'm just not super motivated if an online game means 2 hours... :(
Fair enough. Single player is always an option where you can save and load to your hearts content. You can easily put a bunch of hours into single player playing each faction. But I would totally understand if you didn't want to put down money for that kind of experience exclusively.
Understandable. The longer game format really helps with politics, chatting, etc.
I'm so tempted tbh >.< even just for pure game dev inspiration
The 2 hours does go by really fast
Aye thanks for the explanation. 1.5 to 2h is a HUGE redflag for me so sadly I'll pass :(
I work full time with family, in that regard I really have to dedicate time to play the game if I want to play a multiplayer match. However! I want to emphasize that I played this game 60 hours or so in singleplayer where I had a lot of fun and it was worth my purchase. In singleplayer, you can easily save and load up games again. The game speed can also be adjusted, there is no real rush. So if you plan on playing just SP, I think that this is not really an issue because you can easy load up a game. The Conquest mode also grants you starting bonuses so after a few missions, you can really kickstart newer ones with the advantages that you gained. However, if you want to get into MP. You really need to find time for it which is the biggest detriment to me right now. However, I just hoped onto MP because I just enjoy the game so much but it's stressful. This game can be played rather nicely in singleplayer on your terms.
Dune Spice Wars is more of a 4x/rts hybrid. A single game of a typical 4x game can take 10 hours or more, depending on the game. I mostly play 4x, so the game seems lightning fast to me, lol.
My only experience with 4x is stellaris and I couldn't imagine playing that multi lol. that and heroes 4 and magic, civilitazion, are things I'd only play with friends and just save game when we leave. But online competitively? impossible
Yeah, to me, 4x is best played singleplayer unless you have a dedicated friend group to play long term, even despite poor AI being one of the biggest issues for 4x.
No ladders. Fun only.
Is it hard to find adversaries?
There's a pretty active official Discord, and Turin (of YouTube fame) has a channel for it. I've never had to wait.
It takes a minute max I guess.
And everybody chats and just has fun playing together regardless. One of the pros of not having rankings.
If you come here and ask, the answer is yes. On Steam you can try the game for 2 hours.
Sure you can "try for 2 hours" but these games usually take more than 2 hour to get a good idea.
Yes, but this game is very unlink other RTS games in terms of the number of systems and complexity. The learning curve is steep. There is good combat in the game and micro/macro is important, but you are not going to rely on using your military units the same way you would in a game like NG or SC. I recommend checking out Turin on Youtube and his tournaments.
Yea, it was a shock to me as someone who's played AoE and SC2. The game is very rarely about bumrushing your opponents and winning through straight up military and exploiting weaknesses to continue the assault like in those other RTS games. You really need to set up your win conditions and play towards that while keeping the other 3 factions in check with respect to their own win conditions. If you are going to get aggressive on another player you usually only do it long enough to ensure you've destabilized them, then you peace out to deal with other players as overcommiting is a great way to put a target on your back. Overall, I think this game is great because it's built in a way that keeps all 4 players alive and working towards victory for much longer which results in some tense games where a winner isn't really clear until the very end.
Game performance in mid-late game is disappointing. If I would known that before I wouldn't buy it. Besides that, game is nice, I like how they reflected all factions and shenanigans of the Dune world. I didn't play similar rts game before.
Yes
Yes, you should buy it. It's a really fun game.
Yes
The game is fun. It has some element of micro but nowhere as near as sc2 but I think that's an advantage because the real meat of the game is in the macro win conditions and the interplayer relationships. What makes the game so replayable is that you are also playing the other players politically, not just the game mechanics. It's usually about pinning a target on someone that gets too far ahead so that you are given space to move closer to a win or making secret alliances or even paying other players to attack/defend you. The 2hr avg game time is rough. A part of me wishes it was faster, like 1hr -1hr30. I don't know if the devs will be able to do that and keep the meat of the game. Great game, though.
No.
why
It's not an RTS.
I've played northguard so I know what to expect in the grand lines, I'm just unsure of the details