Gameplay Duration & Victory Conditions

Can you give us some details on gameplay? For example:

  • How long with it take to ‘play out’ a game?
  • Are there victory conditions?

Keep up the good work! :slight_smile:

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We still have to balance the time, so we can`t answer the first question yet. It is very likely that we will provide different speed options for the player.
At this moment the game is a sandbox with no victory conditions. As a survival city builder the main goal is to survive the time spam of the game but other victory conditions may be added later.

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I think lots of people would love to see how this game evolves from neolithic age all way to roman, greece, egypt, persia or india. Time when they were at their peek, big, live cities.

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It would be fun to have a setting allowing for a “forever” game whereby there would simply be no victory condition. A fun way to allow your village to continue ad infinitum.

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@lotus253 I do think I read that ad infinitum play is planned as a default (following a notification that no more technological development is available).

Seeing as we’re on the topic, I had some thoughts on gameplay goals/victory, etc. I’m usually vary of pure sandbox games (Cities: Skylines is a case in point), as I much more easily lose interest without any goals. With survival aspects, that’s already better, so I liked Banished, but didn’t play it all that much as there is no tech progress in the game.

When it comes to Ancient Cities, I think I’ll be fine even without specific goals and victory conditions because (a) I love the setting, (b) so much depends on progress. Once enough expansions are in place, progressing through eras in the same locale (Ice Age, Neolithic Europe, Bronze Age Europe, for example) will give the gameplay lots of momentum; but before that, I would be very happy if even withing the same age there are several tecnological breakthrough moments that substantially change the gameplay and the strategies you employ (apart from the obvious one: transition from hunter-gatherer to sedentary society). Any thoughts and plans on that?

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After any victory condition is reached the game will let you keep playing in a stale technological world.
So you will can do this if you want.

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The obvious one: transition from hunter-gatherer to sedentary society will be the main key of the first release of the game. We think this have enough entity by itself, being probably the most important revolution in human history.
We plan to make that transition not that easy though :wink:

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Good! Thanks. Maybe just a couple more developments that are perhaps only a quarter as important, or less, but more than - look, my stone axe is now a bit sharper :wink:

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A possibility for different victory conditions could also be set via achievements. Then there would be “only” the main survival build up game and via achievements that can be reached, the player can set her/his own goals. I don’t know, maybe something like “Become a trade empire with a certain trade value” or “Conquer the Levante and be the only tribe/power left”. Things like that.

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Interestingly, both Meso and Neolithic peoples lived at the same time, in many places. It would be fun to bump into other groups more/less advanced.

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This would be especially interesting playing in the middle east, as this is where a lot of the knowledge of agriculture came from, therefore increasing the chances of you gaining an advantage over your neighbours, and vice versa.

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Hi there!

I asume that every “game” is an independient one and when you start a new one, all your effort made in others games will not affect you in any way but, assuming that we are going to play along centuries, is there any plan of allowing us to abandon one city/tribe and start a new one but in the same world?

I was thinking about something similar to Dwarf Fortress. It could be cool if you are tired of your tribe (or maybe you just lose or something like that), start with a new one and maybe discover the ruins of your old city! Or maybe your “old city” is still there and you can trade with their people or even conquer them.

I think that something like this will also give you a longer gameplay and a better repleyability.

Keep doing your best and thanks for this amazing proyect! Ánimo!

P.S.: Sorry for my english.

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@Ismaylive I like your idea, it bring more depth in the world you play
However, it will be hard to implement.
My problem is timeline. With a new game you start year 1 while your old game you were at year 200. How you manage the difference. And the more games you play the more complex it become (and complexity mean CPU :sweat_smile:).

Maybe a simplify version (like a “screenshot” every 50 years) could do the trick ? That way the year you discover your old village match approximatly with your old game without to much stress on the CPU.

Perhaps expansion pacts for sale on steam can transition the game to a different age?

DLC 1 - Egyptian Era / Roman
DLC 2 - Medeival

Etc etc…

That is planned if the game works well commercially and we can continue development.
But other Neolithic places and bronze age comes first.

It is possible to highlight the endgame with a societal decline. In the last turns/time hours before the finish line there could be trade stagnation, natural disasters escalating, and barbarian migrations.
Your city should be stacked with debuffs and expected to endure and outlast the timer.

That would make the endgame transition more apparent and also leave room for improvement post endgame. Instead of having maxed everything out and having only stagnation, a post endgame city will be able to clawback development and technology with the player having an open padded timeframe in which they can end the game themselves.