Idea for multiplayer option

[Sava]

How about in setting up a MP game (if it ever comes out) that there could be a "realistic communication" flag. This would only allow players to send private messages to each other through realistic routes. So there could be a scout that gets dispatched (in ancient times) who carries a message. Then it would take x number of turns to reach the other player. Also, the message could be intercepted by another players spies. It would add a realistic and interesting twist to the importance of intellegence and communication. I also think a player should be able to impersonate another player and possibly send a false message.

Feel free to add ideas or to comment on this idea. Maybe Firaxis is reading!! And since MP is still in development, our ideas might actually make it to the game if they are good enough.

[Messer Niccolò]

Ouch!
How much realism do you want to add to this game?

Even if i definitely think that this could be a good idea!

[Be Quicker]

I think that having messengers taking multiple turns to brind some message from A to B would be a bad idea, because that would take FAR to long. But it would be cool indeed if the other options/consequences of having a messagenger would exists. i.e. intercepting messengers then would be equivalent to prevent/distort/twist communication between two civilizations. Or indeed send a war threat to a Civ that seems to come from somebody else. It then should also be possible that it is found out who was impersonating or something...

[drake]

Its a neat concept

But would only work if outside chat programs were disabled somehow during a game......

I mean, people are going to chat on icq or aol during the game if they want to pass sensitive information...there'd be no reason to use a messenger which could be intercepted.....

Nice idea though, very creative......but probably not realistic or worthwhile.

[Jason Beaudoin]

This idea has a lot of merit. I like it, but like Be Quicker said, it would be tedius. An alternative would be to make the messages instant, but through your foreign afairs advisor. The message could still be intercepted, and if it was, your secretary of defence would spring up and say: "We've intercepted a message President Beaudoin"; then give you the message. Depending on how much one spends on espionage would determine the success factor.

THAT, would be amazing!

[Sava]

Originally posted by Be Quicker
I think that having messengers taking multiple turns to brind some message from A to B would be a bad idea, because that would take FAR to long. But it would be cool indeed if the other options/consequences of having a messagenger would exists. i.e. intercepting messengers then would be equivalent to prevent/distort/twist communication between two civilizations. Or indeed send a war threat to a Civ that seems to come from somebody else. It then should also be possible that it is found out who was impersonating or something...

I just threw the x number of turns thing in there for effect, not really a must. The main idea is that communication should only be as reliable as your infrastructure allows. Again, I think that this could be an option at MP game creation for people that want more realism. By making it a toggled option, people who want it could have it, and people who don't want it don't have to play with it.


Beaudoin's idea about instant but interceptable is more along the lines of what I'm thinking of.

Is Beaudoin pronounced "bo-doyn" or is it "bo-do-in"?

[Sabre2th]

I like the realism, but it would be too slow.

[Solver]

Good idea, at least for the realism. Though it really might get too slow somtimes. In single player though, would be good as well.

[Mister Pleasant]

You could fake declarations of war in Space Empires IV and it was one of the very unballancing features of the game. Trust me, it is a bad idea.

[Sirotnikov]

I like this very much.

Most of the real politics, wars, commerce what ever, are based on information and communication technology.

This technology, and spying on it is what set the result of world wars, and sets economic results and further.

I say that intelligence should be as a major art of civ as trade.

And this certainly helps!

[Christantine The Great]

I don't think so. That would be like saying you have to do the following X turns of orders for a galleon ahead of time because it doesn't have radio...

[Jonny]

I think I agree with Christantine The Great here. I would prefer gameplay over historical accuracy, and many others proabably to as well. There's not really a way to turn outside chat programs off anyways, and many people would use that to bypass this rule.

Now, I'm not saying that it is a terrible rule, just that if it is implemented, make it be an optional rule.

[Sarxis]

Its not a bad idea, but maybe a little too much to deal with in terms of CIV.

Besides, I would think that too many players would just resort to out of game communications anyhow, if your system was implemented.