Alpha Centauri 2

Community => Council Room => Topic started by: Buster's Uncle on June 17, 2025, 02:21:01 am

Title: Civilization 7
Post by: Buster's Uncle on June 17, 2025, 02:21:01 am

You know, we totally blew our window of opportunity to even try to draw any traffic off the latest version, what with the site not being up and all at the time, and little traction as our efforts when BE and then Civ6 came out gained, I probably would have bothered with a dedicated subforum with a 7 theme and logo if AC2 had been up at the time.  -Probably tried to find a volunteer to post the odd news article and generated a few 7 avatars and smilies myself, a pretty pro forma effort.

And it's really too late for all that, which is unlikely to have been worth much even under ideal conditions.


-But it bothers me to not even try, and that's where you come in.  I hereby call a meeting of The Commitee of Everyone Who Cares Enough to Even Post About It. 

Just a folder is next to zero effort, maybe 30 seconds for me in the Admin panel.  A nice logo would take me a couple hours if I was satisfied with the first draft, and a decent, if perfunctory, theme maybe as little as two days, the logo carrying most of the water on that looking good.

None of that is a big deal - I'm suddenly quite manic again, and a project would be fine to have.  If the theme comes out any good, that makes me happy.  -But it feels like I don't want to touch any of it with ten minutes of my worst enemy's time w/o a co-conspirator who'd commit to posting a few C7 news articles a week for a while and post to back my plays when I generated avatars and such goodies.  One guy posting content isn't nothing, but at least two having conversations is an order of magnitude better for making a folder live and look worth joining in.

-Thoughts?

Title: Re: Civilization 7
Post by: Buster's Uncle on June 17, 2025, 02:21:59 pm

-Incidentally, I took pity on Apolyton and made them a basic 7 folder back in March, knowing it wouldn't do much good -and it hasn't- if that helps make sense of how I contradict myself above.  It just seems wrong to not even try.

Title: Re: Civilization 7
Post by: Buster's Uncle on June 25, 2025, 12:18:01 am

Am I onto anything here?

Title: Re: Civilization 7
Post by: Buster's Uncle on June 25, 2025, 12:59:33 am

How about this?

Title: Re: Civilization 7
Post by: Buster's Uncle on June 25, 2025, 02:38:01 am

The letters on that last are sorta fat from the outline I put in for contrast to the landscape background.  Try this:

Title: Re: Civilization 7
Post by: Buster's Uncle on June 25, 2025, 02:39:48 am

The "C" just isn't an order of magnitude as good-n-iconic as Atlas on the last one.  But that's what we've got to work with...

Title: Re: Civilization 7
Post by: Buster's Uncle on June 25, 2025, 05:08:47 pm

I think I might be onto something with the ivory background and the border resized from actual Firaxis art - but maybe I really, really need to figure out what font they were using in that same art, and use that for the whole thing.

Title: Re: Civilization 7
Post by: Geo on June 25, 2025, 05:11:39 pm

I actually haven't bought CiVII, so can't really comment on the suitability of those banner proposals.

Title: Re: Civilization 7
Post by: Buster's Uncle on June 25, 2025, 05:25:52 pm

The main criterion is whether it looks good and you can read it at a casual glance - nailing the style would be gravy, witness the CivII theme banner.

Title: Re: Civilization 7
Post by: Buster's Uncle on June 25, 2025, 06:05:02 pm

...And I'm not entirely sure I'm not overthinking it after the very first try w/ landscape background, save that I didn't need to leave the space between words...

Title: Re: Civilization 7
Post by: bvanevery on July 08, 2025, 02:51:47 pm

I don't have the head space for trying to attract Civ VII players.  I gave up on Firaxis after Civ IV.  Which in hindsight, turned out to be peak Civ.  The designer Soren Johnson went on to help found Mohawk Games.  They have the reputation of having made some improvements in the 4X genre, and of having some degree of AI competence.  I intend to play Old World at some point, but I keep kicking that can down the road.  I'm sure you can relate to other project pressures.

Anyways, I gave up on Firaxis many years ago.  Their current players are the wrong players.  It is possible, simply because they have such a large critical mass, that some can be converted to the cause of SMAC.  I'm not saying it's devoid of opportunity.  But I sure as heck won't be the one trying to leverage whatever excuse it is, as an opportunity.  I consider VII to be a complete waste of time.

I'm becoming more protective of my 4X time, having endured the endurance of Emperor of the Fading Suns recently.  Actually beating it was on my bucket list, I did do that.  But beating it efficiently, I'm probably letting that one go.

There are other games, like Galactic Civilizations III, that I've never beaten despite putting 1000+ hours into them.  That one, I always could beat it.  I won every battle, because the AI is stupid.  But why would I bother to beat it?  It was just busywork.  I'm interested in GC4 mainly to see how much they've improved over 3.  And that they gave me 3 for free, on some Epic Store promotion, so I don't mind giving them some money for 4.  Even if it turns out to be a total fail.

Anyways I think SMAC belongs in the category of 4X that's actually good.  And should be somewhat careful about the company it keeps.  Sure, lure people in with your Mimic tactics.  But I see that only as the predator of the chest, nothing heartfelt.  Well, unless you're seeking to feel the victim's heartbeat... you could get me started on Delicious In Dungeon...

It's like arguing Star Trek. Capiche?

Title: Re: Civilization 7
Post by: Buster's Uncle on July 08, 2025, 04:00:25 pm

I guess all that's true - but I'd still probably be motivated enough to try if it wasn't just me trying.

-Still should draw Our Kind of People and all that - and, y'know, the Shiny New Thing ought to have more potential than a very old game that was a commercial flop in the first place, whatever their relative merits.

Now, we are a SMACX forum, and -thought this out thoroughly in the runup to Beyond Earth a long time ago amidst a big BE push- We Aways Will Be.  It's there in the name, which isn't changing.

Title: Re: Civilization 7
Post by: Geo on July 08, 2025, 05:15:50 pm

Quote from: Buster's Uncle on July 08, 2025, 04:00:25 pm

Now, we are a SMACX forum, and -thought this out thoroughly in the runup to Beyond Earth a long time ago amidst a big BE push- We Aways Will Be.  It's there in the name, which isn't changing.

I always thought at some point you'd change the forum name to Good Ol' Games... oh, wait, that one's already taken. ;cute

Title: Re: Civilization 7
Post by: Buster's Uncle on July 08, 2025, 05:44:08 pm

Bad man!

Title: Re: Civilization 7
Post by: Buster's Uncle on July 27, 2025, 04:12:02 pm

I finally found the Chrome letter function in GIMP again, and this may well be good enough, based on Firaxis promo/packaging art.

-I'm guessing that if I substitute this logo in the Civ6 theme, that'll make a good enough 7 theme, and no harm in making a 7 folder w/ its own theme, even though it'll sit empty for a long time.  Not a big job and all...

What say the peanut gallery?

Title: Re: Civilization 7
Post by: Buster's Uncle on July 27, 2025, 08:28:34 pm

I've made that 7 subforum, and this is not a particularly slow day on the boards for a Sunday, but I really doubt the theme will take long even so...

Title: Re: Civilization 7
Post by: Buster's Uncle on July 27, 2025, 11:34:18 pm

Okay.

It's set up and ready for some love --- which is up to YOU, the members, to make something of it.

P.S. Please?

(https://alphacentauri2.info/Themes/Civ7/images/thumbnail.gif)

Title: Re: Civilization 7
Post by: Metaliturtle on July 28, 2025, 04:12:33 am

I've got some high hopes for Civ 7... they're not being met but they're higher than Bob Marley.

Title: Re: Civilization 7
Post by: Buster's Uncle on July 28, 2025, 01:45:10 pm

Be like Gamera, my pipelz; his big heart been showing the new folder considerable love.  That's how you do it.

Title: Re: Civilization 7
Post by: Metaliturtle on July 28, 2025, 05:26:59 pm

Super tired today, caught some kind of stomach bug, maybe I'll play later, who knows.

Title: Re: Civilization 7
Post by: Buster's Uncle on July 29, 2025, 03:29:00 am

The more I look at that 7 logo, the better I'm liking it.  That Firaxis shaded background really does some subtle thing that really works.

Title: Re: Civilization 7
Post by: Protok St on August 10, 2025, 07:05:00 pm

Quote from: Buster's Uncle on June 25, 2025, 12:18:01 am

Am I onto anything here?

I like that ALPHA  ;morgan;

Title: Re: Civilization 7
Post by: Buster's Uncle on August 15, 2025, 01:32:38 am

I've tweaked several things, last few days, to make Civ7 more unique - the thumbnail up the page is updated...

Title: Re: Civilization 7
Post by: Metaliturtle on August 16, 2025, 04:04:38 am

Quote from: Buster's Uncle on August 15, 2025, 01:32:38 am

I've tweaked several things, last few days, to make Civ7 more unique - the thumbnail up the page is updated...

Good stuff Buncleman

Title: Re: Civilization 7
Post by: Buster's Uncle on August 16, 2025, 04:09:48 am

I'm pretty happy with it, yes...