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 Status of the PDS universe
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| Glacialis |
Posted on 27-12-2005 14:34
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 Posts: 368 Joined: September 02 2005 |
I am glad to see that the NGCS projects are developing well. There are a great many concepts that look like they're going to be a ton of fun to play and watch. I am however curious as to the state of the existing PDS universe. I have only seen development on the new settings, unless I have mistaken topics applicable to PDS as well as the new settings. So, where does PDS stand? I see that the poll is in favor of prioritizing the PDS universe, but that doesn't mean that I'm not just misinterpreting the threads I see here.  Around this time of year spare time drops drastically, and I must admit that I have not had the time to leisurely peruse these discussions as I once did. Perhaps in a few weeks! Edited by Glacialis on 27-12-2005 17:31 |
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| Inert |
Posted on 27-12-2005 16:19
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 Posts: 388 Joined: September 08 2005 |
From what I can gather, it seems PDS is becoming more of a hassle to update, and the more that it is pushed forward, the less new players are able to understand the gameplay mechanics. The NGCS portions were supposedly replacing PDS as a new direction, or a "start-over" of PDS. That is what I thought, but apparently there is something else going on. It is all very confusing.  |
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| TelQuessir |
Posted on 28-12-2005 00:30
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 Posts: 2598 Joined: August 30 2005 |
Basically, PDS's objective has been achieved after two years, delivering a authentic sci-fi tactical naval combat simulator that remains more or less accessible to the RTS fans without the complexity of more advanced games of military strategy like Harpoon and Combat Mission. With a working base of hyper-advanced "sci-fi" technology, PDS's successor in the form of NGCS can be rapidly constructed in under 25% of the time taken to bring PDS to completion (2 years). I'll post an overview of PDS and a more or less complete credits list shortly. As aforementioned, taking PDS to version eight might be a counterproductive move, but note that there is nothing stopping independent development if the community deems that PDS takes higher priority than NGCS. I believe the implication here is obvious. Edited by TelQuessir on 28-12-2005 00:37 |
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| Glacialis |
Posted on 28-12-2005 14:02
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Posts: 368 Joined: September 02 2005 |
I guess my confusion lies with the terms NGCS and PDS being treated as separate entities. NGCS is a new way of doing things, not a universe in and of itself. It is the NGCS system implementing the PDS universe that I am most interested in, something that I would not call PDS 8.0 but NGCS-PDS 1.0. Likely a misunderstanding of terms, I would like clarification so that I can decide how to allocate my time. I have less time than ever, and little interest in NGCS-Earth and NGCS-Gundam. |
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| TelQuessir |
Posted on 28-12-2005 23:35
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Posts: 2598 Joined: August 30 2005 |
If NGCS were a new universe in itself then there would not be a prototype based entirely on PDS technology and ships, would it. With reference to your current level of forum activity (not on this site) I believe I don't have to tell you exactly what to do. If and when you have found greener pastures and decide to go for that, do me a favour and get out of here. I have no interest for inefficient split-attention methods of operation - "desire to help" spread out over several different mods at once is obviously a piss poor modus operandi for a contributor - but a valid one for a fan of HW2 mods. Make your choice. Your statement of "little interest" is moot given the fact that I have received absolutely zero formal queries from yourself. Don't write essays and don't say "perhaps in a few weeks". I know better. Just what is so difficult about phrasing all the above queries in a 1, 2, 3 fashion? It's a given fact that idiots too rapidly take up that rather effective method of presentation for information handling after they see its practicability. The items that I am writing and developing will be released if and only where there is a suitable support system to facilitate their proliferation. This includes anything on PDS, which at the present pace will be withheld until perfected or I see the aforementioned support system present in discussion on this site. If spoonfeeding should be the desired modus operandi for NGCS development then I believe I have provided ample opportunity to suggest that. This chunk of text was written in 6 minutes flat. You can have one for the state of the PDS universe like I posted above. If this thread deserves it. |
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| notadeadhorse |
Posted on 29-12-2005 06:54
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 Posts: 66 Joined: October 02 2005 |
So does this mean PDS goes out the window? No more upgrades? No more new ships? No Deliverance II? No Falchion? No more weapons upgrades? Is this the furthest that the mod is ever going to go? I for one don't think it'd be fair to have brought it all this way and then just let it die. The community, the developers, everyone needs to put more into this. I'd offer more than just constructive criticism myself, but most of the modding tools are beyond incomprehensible to me. |
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| TelQuessir |
Posted on 29-12-2005 07:06
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Posts: 2598 Joined: August 30 2005 |
While not very concise, the latest frontpage update will give some hints as to what I have planned. A PDS 8.0 will require NGCS-like functionality in order to transition to the next level of technology. While certain key PDS contributors are the cornerstone of progressive development, people are not computers and don't work 24/7. Whether or not NGCS will be a base for retrofitting PDS v7 into v8 depends on the community's interests as well. Right now the main bulk of said interest points towards NGCS-PDS, and that is where I will go. There is also interest to stabilise PDS at a certain "definitive" version in order to let an analytical mindset to build up - ie, fluff/doctrine/tactical concept generation before executing another major overhaul of the battlespace and its component systems. This phase is yet to prove complete. Edited by TelQuessir on 29-12-2005 07:08 |
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| yasotay |
Posted on 29-12-2005 22:00
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 Posts: 637 Joined: September 09 2005 |
"PDS is presently "frozen" at version 7..." I find "presently" to be the important word here. That taken with how Tel wrote the rest of the message on the front page and his comments directly above, would tell you that while PDS is not the main effort at this point there is nothing that indicates definitively that PDS is at the end. Even if Tel' has elected to move on to other projects this remains the best mod for HW2 to date. It has been a fantastic effort. I think that the "PDS Purist" out their ought to realize that Tel' is allowing PDS to stabilize. Something I agree needs time to happen. While it does so he continues to work on other branch efforts that can be brought back to PDS in the future if he so desires. Frankly as one of the long time PDS team members I agree completely with Tel's position. Sometimes you have to walk away from a project in order to allow yourself an opportunity to see what else can be done. It would be useless to push if the one person with the vision elects to completely end the project because it has become a burden. If you want to see a PDS 8.0 at some point I would recommend to all of the team that you continue to support the efforts of the NGCS work with the same enthusiasm that you have shown for PDS. |
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| notadeadhorse |
Posted on 31-12-2005 10:26
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Posts: 66 Joined: October 02 2005 |
If I'm reading this right, then that means any and all independant work such as the Trigati in the past, and other user-contributed content is still free to be uploaded to the site while the advancement of the PDS core and most of the major workings of the mod stay on hold? So does this mean we'll still be getting work from outsiders contributed to the current standing v7? I do hope the community doesn't abandon work on the mod just because the main runners are taking a break. |
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