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Age of Pirates Q&A Questions HERE!

K

Keith

Guest
OK guys we can start putting in questions about Akella's Pirate sim...lets call it "Age of Pirates" But we can do a q&a with Alex <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/onya.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":onya" border="0" alt="onya.gif" />

When i get the Q&A back it will have some screenshots with it aswell!

Im sure there will be a few modding questions <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/smile.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":)" border="0" alt="smile.gif" />

Also I want to be pretty quickon this one, so you will only have till tomorrow for your questions....
 
Question: What is (in your opinion) the most significant difference between "Age of Pirates" and "Pirates of the Caribbean"?

Question: How many new islands/nations will be in this game, and will all the other nations be returning?

Question: Will the ships from POTC be returning, and how many new types can we expect.
 
Will be any kind of modding tools? <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/smile.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":)" border="0" alt="smile.gif" />

What will be able to be customized easily by the average player (as opposed to a modder)?

Are you going to have the character Beatrice Sharp as one of the main character skins?

In what era will this game take place?

How `open-ended` is this game?

You mention `multi-player` - via LAN or online server. Will the player also be able to play against the computer, or will this strictly be an online/multi?

Will you be needing betatesters??? <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/dev.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":d:" border="0" alt="dev.gif" /> <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/laugh.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="xD:" border="0" alt="laugh.gif" />

Thanks very much, Alex, for taking the time to answer our questions, we really appreciate it! <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/par-ty.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":cheers" border="0" alt="par-ty.gif" />
 
On top of the naval ship to ship deathmatch modes, will we be able to fight other players on foot useing the new fencing system that has been mentioned?

Will there be new, more interactive, gambling games to participate in at taverns? Any chance of gambling in taverns multi player? <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/laugh.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="xD:" border="0" alt="laugh.gif" />

Will we be able to asign standard crew members to different tasks?

Thats all I can think of. <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/mad.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":c" border="0" alt="mad.gif" />
 
Will the multiplayer also include `co-op`?

How will the town upgrading work? Will we be able to actually start our own settlements or such like that?

Is it going to be story driven, or will it be up to the player to create their own story?

And, on a final note, basically to add on to what Cat asked about Beatrice: Will we be able to create our character fully, as in have choice of face, clothes, hair, gender, etc.?
 
<img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/par-ty.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":cheers" border="0" alt="par-ty.gif" />
Will we be able to store extra captured or favorite ships in our own harbors similar to the newest Sea Dogs 2 MOD?

Will the inaccurate placing of the fore and aft sails (such as the mizzen sail on the Corvette) in relation to the wind direction be corrected?

Will the chance of running into enemy or even friendly or neutral ships in harbor be added?

I am sure the splendid graphics engine can handle it: Will minor storms and slightly larger waves than the norm be included in the battles? Actually manuevering your ships through the larger waves, yet not receiving the large damage from lightning would be enjoyable.

I tremendously enjoy physically sailing my little squadrons into different harbors: Will more harbors and difficult passages be added to the islands included on your new Caribbean map?

On the same note: In the Sea Dogs 2 MODS we now have the ability to easily swap flagships and crews. I often use this ability to move my ships in and out of harbor. Will this ability be included in Age of Pirates?

Will more than 4 ships be allowed in each squadron? (7 or 8 ships to fight against larger enemy battle fleets would be tremendously enjoyable)

Will the ability be included to force our own ships to remain in the line of battle ordered instead of milling around in a state of `semi-confusion`?

Thank you. Please do not consider these questions as any kind of criticism of the originals; I love my Sea Dogs and POC, especially in its current MOD form which without Akella and our great Modders, would have been impossible.
<img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/bookish.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":mm" border="0" alt="bookish.gif" /> <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/onya.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":onya" border="0" alt="onya.gif" />
 
Q: Will the Age of Pirates be almost `open-sourced`(like PotC)?

Q: Will it use Model Shader 3.0 or 2.0?

Q: In Sea Dogs you had to have a rank to control bigger ships ,will it be the same here?

Thanks <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/onya.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":onya" border="0" alt="onya.gif" />
 
<img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/par-ty.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":cheers" border="0" alt="par-ty.gif" />
Will a future `add-on` become available to Age of Pirates; for instance the original large archipelago of islands planned for Sea Dogs 2 before it became POC? I would gladly purchase such an `add-on` as would most other of your fans.

Will the ability to add our ships' names to the stern transoms be included this time around? A small detail to be sure, but something which can add tremendous character to the sim. Perhaps the Flagship name on the dinghy at the dock would also be nice?

Will the difference in graphics quality using your new engine be similar to the difference between Sea Dogs and POC?

Is PT Boats - Knights of the Sea using this same new graphics engine?

Will Akella now become the standard with which other ocean graphics modelers are graded which it deserves?
<img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/bookish.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":mm" border="0" alt="bookish.gif" /> <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/onya.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":onya" border="0" alt="onya.gif" /> <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/pirate2.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":p:" border="0" alt="pirate2.gif" /> <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/par-ty.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":cheers" border="0" alt="par-ty.gif" />
 
<!--`QuoteBegin-Keith`+--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Keith)</div><div class='quotemain'><!--QuoteEBegin-->OK guys we can start putting in questions about Akella's Pirate sim...lets call it "Age of Pirates"  But we can do a q&a with Alex  :onya  
[/quote]
Well, not with me actually. I'll just forward the questions to the guys who work on Age of Pirates. (because I work on other projects).

P.S. and for all you who worry about `single-player` mode - there WILL be one. Age of Pirates is the `single-player` game in the first place.
 
<!--`QuoteBegin-Alex` L.+--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Alex L.)</div><div class='quotemain'><!--QuoteEBegin--> I'll just forward the questions to the guys who work on Age of Pirates. (because I work on other projects).[/quote]Ah, but a man with connections is an important man, indeed! <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/icon_mrgreen1.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":cheeky" border="0" alt="icon_mrgreen1.gif" />

<!--`QuoteBegin-Alex` L.+--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Alex L.)</div><div class='quotemain'><!--QuoteEBegin-->P.S. and for all you who worry about `single-player` mode - there WILL be one. Age of Pirates is the `single-player` game in the first place.[/quote]WHEW, thank you! I'm not a console gamer (not XBox or PS2, anyhow), so Akella's upcoming console games are unfortunately out of my realm, but I've been SO looking forward to the WORTHY successor to Sea Dogs that it would have been a great disappointment to find out that (even tho multi sounds like fun) it was only going to be `multi-player`.

Thank you again, Alex. We can't say that enough! <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/onya.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":onya" border="0" alt="onya.gif" />
 
I think I will bring on the "historical" questions here. <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/bookish.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":mm" border="0" alt="bookish.gif" />

1.) Are you going to research the ships so they are more accurate than before? I understand that the Akella people actually make the ships for Pirates of the Burning Seas, will we see some of that kind of detail in ships?

2.) In ship types, I have yet to see any of these ship types n Akella games:
-Brigantine
-Snow
-Ketch
-Cutter
Will you include any of these?

3.) Will we try to be a little more historically accurate, like placing the game in the proper time period for the ship types and world around? For example, the Sloop would not be in considerable use until the 1670s, the Frigate not in considerable use until 1700, and the use of flintlock pistols and muskets until the 1660s and 1670s.

4.) Will we be having to deal with feeding and watering the crew? In other Akella games, you could sail and not touch land for supplies for a year or so, which would be unaccurate due to eventually you will eventually need to get fresh water and some fresh food eventually, that the men need to be able to go spend money they have earned on land and "enjoy" themselves. So is there going to be crew morale issues?

5.) Will there be aging of the character? I know that the Akella games gave unlimited life time it seemed, but for some (like those who play Sid Meier's Pirates!) it is a challenge to have aging. There should be a option available if aging should take place or not.

6.) Real pirate careers only lasted anywhere from a few months to about a decade at most. Will you demonstrait this in your game?

7.) Will we be able to become successful merchants like in other games, and become giants in trade like in Sea Dogs? Everyone remembers running coffee (or whatever it is) from point A to point B (what ever those two English Islands were, it has been such a long time since playing the game) and making enough money to build up a treasury to pay your crew with and to prepare a ship so you could go out and attack another ship.

8.) Will there be ship surrenders in this game? When a pirate fired a warning shot over his prey's bow, it sometimes convinced the prey to surrender, or if the prey is battered enough, he will surrender.

9.) Will we have the entire Caribbean to roam, or a fictional land like normal? It is good either way.

10.) Will we have a pirate "empire" like we had in the corner of the map in Sea Dogs, or willwe have just a couple of small lawless towns that pirates can dock in for minimal supplies (which is more accurate)? Also, I have not researched this, but if there was a true "black market" back then, that should be included too.

That is all I can think of for now, but that should make some people think.
 
I don't know if this has been touched on in another thread (on whether it would even be feasible as I know it wasn't in PotC..), but will it be possible to sail from one island to another without having to do it in Map Mode?
 
<!--`QuoteBegin-Captain` Ego+--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Captain Ego)</div><div class='quotemain'><!--QuoteEBegin-->I don't know if this has been touched on in another thread (on whether it would even be feasible as I know it wasn't in PotC..), but will it be possible to sail from one island to another without having to do it in Map Mode?[/quote]

Yeah I missed that in PoTC I tried and using gueswork headings always reached my destination but no island to see, when I switched to map mode I found myself next to it.

I hope they make it so you can actually sail somewhere if you are in the mood to, also ships should be encounterable lol when voyaging like this, like seeing the sails on the horizon at firs,. use your telescope to see if it's a good target and intercept it or not... would love that... <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/wink.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=";)" border="0" alt="wink.gif" />

PS. good to be back <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/smile.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":)" border="0" alt="smile.gif" />
 
First, thanks and kudos to the fine folks at Akella!

1. How much of an SDK, if any, will you provide?
2. Will you increase the speed of script execution?
3. Will we be able to write to properties, and not just read them? (Examples: ship impulse attributes--for heeling--, worldmap encounter positions; both can currently only be read). I assume all this needs a `one-line` fix to the code (to add the new value to the old, rather than overwrite) and a recompile of the DLLs...
4. Will the AI be improved?
5. Will more AI be done via scripts--and thus editable?
6. Will you allow arbitrary model loading at specific locators?
7. Heck, will you allow model loading at various _coordinates_, let alone locators?
8. And will you be able to add and animate geometry in sea mode, not just locations?
 
(heh, guess who's playing the game, and who's modding it!) <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/laugh.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="xD:" border="0" alt="laugh.gif" />

Good questions, Nathan! <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/onya.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":onya" border="0" alt="onya.gif" />
 
ROTFL. <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/laugh.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="xD:" border="0" alt="laugh.gif" />
(Did #2 give it away? <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/laugh.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="xD:" border="0" alt="laugh.gif" /> )

It's really funny; despite Morrowind's reputation for moddability, POTC actually has it pretty much `hands-down` beat on the code side*. It's just on the `adding-content` side that MW has the advantage.

*Not that I think Akella ought to rest on their laurels in that regard; unlocking the DLLs further and increasing script execution and power would be great, and needed for some stuff (i.e. worldmap) that's nearly unchangeable with scripts unless you make a new interface from scratch.

POTC is IMO, as far as I know _the_ most moddable game without an SDK (with the possible exception of Independence War 2, which _sorta_ has an SDK).
 
Well, a SDK would be nice! <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/yes.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":yes" border="0" alt="yes.gif" /> <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/par-ty.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":cheers" border="0" alt="par-ty.gif" /> (let us in, let us in!!!) <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/laugh.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="xD:" border="0" alt="laugh.gif" />
 
My main question is if the game will be a first person like POTC and as am Im guessing Swashbucklers probably will be or will it be more of a world strategy game like Tropico 2: Pirates Cove. It appears it will be more a strategy game from the descriptions so far, so Im wondering about how land and sea combat will be. I would be nice to have realtime high detail sea battles that include animations of pirates boarding and pirates fighting on deck. I was really surprised to see that SMPirates opted for the fast moving,overhead view sea battkes, with only deck battles confined to scripted cut scenes, as all the preview videos showed more of a slow, realistic type of animations. And so far no pirate game that I know of except Cutthroats has land battles, so I hope they have that if this game is a strategy game, as well as city fighing.

Im really curious to see screenshots. Somehow I get the feeling they havent done hardly anything and this thread is actually a suggestion thread rather than a question thread.
 
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