Google Earth Civ4

[Bogdanovist]

Anyone who's checked out the Google Earth program will know the interface is very simple but great way to navigate the globe. Just drag the globe around on any angle then zoom in and out with the mousewheel.

Now, looking at the screenshots for the zoomed out view in Civ4, we get a hint of curvyness, but IIRC you globe will still basically be flat, i.e. no going over the poles etc

I wonder how hard it would be to have the Civ 4 map on a true globe. A spherical map was done in Populous: The Beginning way back in the stone ages of 3D graphics, so it can't be that hard. Obviously sqaure tiles are the problem here, so the map would have to move to hexes or somthing else that copes with the spherical projection better. This is a pretty big change from previous versions and I'm sure many folks would have strong opinions on this either way.

But seriously, go play with Google Earth and try and tell me that's not the way you would want to be able to view your Civ 4 empire!

[H Tower]

IIRC, the CtP series had the capability of a globe map

[TimeTraveler]

Originally posted by H Tower
IIRC, the CtP series had the capability of a globe map

The call to power series allowed the player to choose a donut-shaped world to play on. ...which although interesting (and convenient if you dislike map edges) isn't exactly what many would call near-spherical.

Personally, I'd very much like to see a map where one could walk on the poles and such. Perhaps an "easy" mod could be a cube map (at least I'd personally choose a cube over the current layout), while some more in-depth programming could be made to make that map full of hexes. ...although it could leave the question of what to do with the occasional pentagon.

Also, the way in which resources are distributed, as well as if city radii are still in use, could play a significant role in the difficulty of determining those features on a 'sperical' map, especially near unusual places like pentagon tiles and cube corners. ...as in I've tried and found that evening out the areas of city radii near and away from such places is quite difficult.

[Adm.Naismith]

Originally posted by TimeTraveler
Personally, I'd very much like to see a map where one could walk on the poles and such. Perhaps an "easy" mod could be a cube map (at least I'd personally choose a cube over the current layout),

Yes, a cubic map could be a step into a real 3D world.

It should also help reshaping it in a globe form during the opening sequence - extreme zoom-out.
I suppose we can cope with 8 areas where three surfaces join, but I really don't have an idea of how to implement this.

To be frank, I saw so many "real globe Civ map" threads in 5 years I've dried my mind to any solution.

[Sabre2th]

Originally posted by TimeTraveler
although it could leave the question of what to do with the occasional pentagon

I don't see much of an issue with that. Pentagons don't create any serious problems that hexagons themselves don't already introduce. Personally, I'd love to see a hex/pent globe in Civ

[sophist]

Originally posted by Sabre2th


I don't see much of an issue with that. Pentagons don't create any serious problems that hexagons themselves don't already introduce. Personally, I'd love to see a hex/pent globe in Civ

There are two problems. One is that tiles are inconsistent. From some tiles, you'd be able to move in 6 directions, while in others, you could only move in 5. The other is that the symmetry is off. It's hard to think about your movement options being south, southwest, northwest, northeast, and southeast only, especially when other pentagonal tiles will have N, NE, SE, SW, and NW; E, SE, SW, NW, NE; and W, NW, NE, SE, and SW.

[LordShiva]

Yeah, I would *hate* to see a hex/pent map in Civ. Apart from what sophist mentioned, I wouldn't be able to move using the keyboard.

[TimeTraveler]

Originally posted by LordShiva
Yeah, I would *hate* to see a hex/pent map in Civ. Apart from what sophist mentioned, I wouldn't be able to move using the keyboard.

...then you probably wouldn't like my idea, either, because it involves nine possible directions to go, with movement requirement ratios of 5, 6, 4, 7, 8, 7, 4, 6, 5. Imagine an equilateral triangle broken into three kite-shaped sections.

If we are to continue using square tiles, I'd like to see diagonal moves require close to the square root of two times as many movement points as going horizontal/vertical.

*edits the following paragraph*
One think I may want to mention is I've been unable to figure out my keyboard enough to use it much when sending units from point A to point B. xP That mentality has gotten me to think less about the awkwardness of using the keyboard for unconventional directions.

[Xorbon]

Another way you could get a spherical world would be to go tileless. Of course, this would mean some major changes to the game, and you wouldn't be able to use a keyboard for movement at all. It would have to be all 'point-and-click' and 'go to' with the mouse.

[TimeTraveler]

Originally posted by Xorbon
Another way you could get a spherical world would be to go tileless. Of course, this would mean some major changes to the game, and you wouldn't be able to use a keyboard for movement at all. It would have to be all 'point-and-click' and 'go to' with the mouse.

How would one determine the borders of cities, terrain, and terrain improvements on a tile-less map?

[Sabre2th]

Originally posted by sophist


There are two problems. One is that tiles are inconsistent. From some tiles, you'd be able to move in 6 directions, while in others, you could only move in 5. The other is that the symmetry is off. It's hard to think about your movement options being south, southwest, northwest, northeast, and southeast only, especially when other pentagonal tiles will have N, NE, SE, SW, and NW; E, SE, SW, NW, NE; and W, NW, NE, SE, and SW.

It isn't inherently a problem to have directions that aren't NSEW or to have tiles that vary. A lot of people just don't like the idea

Problem meaning for coding or to the point where gameplay becomes impossible

[sophist]

Originally posted by Sabre2th

It isn't inherently a problem to have directions that aren't NSEW or to have tiles that vary. A lot of people just don't like the idea

"In theory, communism works."

[Sabre2th]

Originally posted by sophist

"In theory, communism works."

Not if you know anything about human nature

[sophist]

Exactly.

[Nikolai]

Originally posted by Sabre2th


Not if you know anything about human nature

So true...