284 replies to this topic

[AdmiralGT]

Nope, my 1 year old PC can only handle a game on Low Fidelity and that's playing it with No Sound as well. With sound it crawls after about 5 units.

Still, it's kinda fun, although I've found that it just seems to degenerate to who has the biggest navy. The Level 2 navy stuff is just super powerful.

[duke_Qa]

played 2vs2 on the net, 2 hours of game-time took like 5 hours of real-life time

replayed the game afterwards, it goes relatively smooth without fog of war on, and if you turn on the range of the units on the map you're asking for trouble. hopefully they'll add more icons for military units or show me a button for it. it was quite nice in the replay, but while playing there were no icons.

[Nemoricus]

This game is without a doubt going to be one of the most beautiful to grace our computers.

Who said war couldn't be pretty? This is pretty awesome.

When do you think the release is going to be?

From some stuff I found, I don't remember where, it seems that it'll be released in Europe on January 1, in the US sometime in January.

[ambershee]

Personally, I didn't think it was very visually compelling at all. I couldn't care less though, because it looks to me like a very playable game

[Calamity_Jones]

I think Dawn of War for sheer graphical pwn is still the standard, but when this bitch is out with hundreds of units ripping each other to part in realistic physics obeying battles of the epic scale... well...

Edited by Calamity_Jones, 09 December 2006 - 06:34 PM.

[Ash]

I think Dawn of War for sheer graphical pwn is still the standard, but when this bitch is out with hundreds of units ripping each other to part in realistic physics obeying battles of the epic scale... well...

Ya, DoW is without a doubt the most graphically-pleasing strategy game I've ever seen. And it runs flawlessly smoothly.

When do you think the release is going to be?

From some stuff I found, I don't remember where, it seems that it'll be released in Europe on January 1, in the US sometime in January.

GameSpot has it penned in as February 27th.

[Nemoricus]

Anyone here in the beta? Would you like to tell us what this game is like to play?

[Nemoricus]

Sorry to revive this old topic, but no other place exists to post this kind of information.

*assumes commander persona*

I have been watching the latest batlefield recordings from our new command software codenamed Supreme Commander. The following information is classified and your eyes only. Note that the software is still in beta and anything I say can be changed before it is released to all ACUs.

Stand by. Download in progress....

WARNING: The information you are about to view is classified. Input verification code.

PASSWORD:********

Access granted.

Resources

Mass and energy are the lifeblood of your economy. Running out of either is detrimental. Mass is only used for construction while energy also has to power weapons. Mass points come in only one type and mass extractors come in three tiers. They can be built at the tier or upgraded to it. Mass fabricators use excess energy to fabricate mass. They can only be built as Tier 1 and 3 versions. Energy is produced by powerplants, again, three tiers, and also only buildable at their tier. Hydrocarbon plants can be built at at a hydrocarbon deposit for additional energy.
Also, both resources can be obtained by reclaiming. One tactic I have seen commanders use is to partially reclaim their own factories for additional income.

Intelligence and time both qualify as resources in my view as they are crucial to any commander. Intelligence can be gathered with scout units. Land and air scout units exist at Tier 1. Spy planes can be constructed by a Tier 3 Air Factory. The advantage to these units is that they are mobile. Intilligence is also gathered by means of sonar buoys and radar stations. Both can be upgraded from Tier 1 versions to higher tiers and also can be directly built at those tiers. The sonar buoy gains weaponry and mobility in addition to extended range as it is upgraded. The Tier 3 radar is an Omni-sensor. It has an inner detection range calibrated to defeat stealth fields. Stealth fields are used to defeat radar systems. However, they do no good if your structures have already been seen. Do not confuse stealth with cloaking. Cloaked units can still be detected by radar but are invisible to line of sight. Stealthed units are hidden only to radar, with line of sight revealing them. Time is a critical resource as units take time to move, construction takes time, and intelligence can be become obsolete. Your ACU's display can show the ETA on construction and unit arrivals. Use this information to your benefit.

Factories

Factories come in three types: land, air, and naval. All are capable of building engineers as engineers are amphibious units. Factories can only be built at Tier 1 levels. They have to be upgraded to the higher tiers. Fortunately, engineers assigned to assist a factory will speed the upgrading progress. I might note that this upgrade process is very well detailed in your display. You can see the parts moving into new configurations. It is actually very cool to watch. Ahem, I digress.

Units

ACUs, sACUs, and engineers build your structures. Engineers can be built at all three tiers and can only build the structures up to their tier. Tier 3 engineers can also build experimentals. More information on experimental units is below. ACUs are your best initial engineers. They can be upgraded to have Tier 2 and 3 engineering suites which allow them to build the respective structures. Tier 3 engineering suites also allow them to build experimental units. ACUs can also be upgraded with tools to improve their resource output or improve their combat effectiveness. sACUs can be summoned by a Tier 3 Quantum Gate. Unfortunately, the software does not display a true summoning animation. Instead the unit appears to be built at the gate. Equally unfortunately, a glitch in the software allows commanders to assist the process of "construction" with engineers. Sadly, I do not know if this will be fixed before full scale use. sACUs are essentially Tier 3 engineers. They have the same building capabilities as them, but they, like your ACU, can be upgraded. The enhancements tend to be similar to those of your ACU. Needless to say, they do not include engineering suite upgrades except to improve build speed.

Land units are just that. Tier 1 includes a light assault bot, short range artillery, AA platform, a heavy assault unit, and a land scout. Tier 2 includes a heavier tank, mobile tactical missile launcher, and mobile flak units. Tier 3 includes the heaviest artillery piece and the siege assault bot. These units are the heaviest land units in your arsenal and will form the backbone of late battle groups.

Tier 1 naval units include a radar frigate and a submarine. The Aeon Illuminate has an attack boat for early naval AA. Tier 2 inlcudes an antisubmarine destroyer and a missile launching cruiser. Both ships have AA and anti-ship cababilities. Cruisers also launch tactical missiles. Tier 3 has the biggest ships in your fleet. Battleships, strategic missile submarines, and aircraft carriers are built here. The UEF is an exception. See experimentals. Both aircraft carriers and battleships have AA weaponry.

Air units will supplement the other two branches of your military. They require fuel and can run out if they fly too long. Refueling stations can be built at Tier 2 and are included in aircraft carriers and cruisers. Tier 1 has an air scout, interceptor, an attack bomber, and a light air transport. The air transport can carry Tier 1-3 land units. This model can not transport ACUs. They can be set up to ferry units to a rally point. Tier 2 has a gunship, torpedo bomber, and the heavy air transport. This heavier model includes: weaponry, increased capacity and armor, and the ability to transport ACUs. This is achieved at the expense of speed however. Tier 3 has the spy plane, air superiority figher, and strategic bomber. The UEF has a heavier gunship at this level.

Experimentals

These units are built by Tier 3 engineers, sACUs, and upgraded. ACUs.

Note: I can only report on those experimentals that I have actually seen in action.

UEF

Mavor: A massive, strategic artillery piece. This big gun is capable of putting many rounds in the air and sending them far. On the small test battlefields, I cannot be sure if the maximum range either is extremely far or nonexistant. The shells have enough power to destroy an ACU in one hit. If you see your enemy building this gun, take it out imeddiately. I suspect its true power will come out on the largest battlefields.

Atlantis: Submersible aircraft carrier. No further information is availble.

Fatboy: A mobile land factory, capable of producing all Tier 1 and 2 land units as well as Tier 3 engineers. It is also equipped with four triple barreled battleship cannon turrets and four machine gun like emplacements. Two of the machine gun emplacements fire at air targets. The other guns aim at ground targets. I am not sure if all of the guns are independently targeting. This unit has a long range and can produce an army quickly. It is also protectd by a shield However, few commanders seem to use its factory capabilities. Also, once its shield goes down, the unit soon follows.

Cybran

Monkeylord: A poweful spiderbot equipped with a large laser. No further information available.

Soul Ripper: A powerful gunship. This unit is slow for an air unit but carries massive firepower. An ACU caught off guard will be destroyed very quickly.

Scathis: Rapid fire mobile artillery. This six barreled artillery unit has a long range and and impressive rate of fire, putting a round up every two seconds. That is assuming that the commander can meet the power requirement of 30k per shot. It seems to lack real punch though and is horribly inaccurate.

Aeon

Galactic Colossus: An immense mech, equipped with an eye laser and tractor claws. This unit is, if you'll forgive the terminology, a meatshield. It can take a pounding, even several nukes won't destroy it. Once near the enemy, the eye laser and tractor claws will demolish the opposition. It lacks AA weaponry but it would require many aircraft to take it out.

Tempest: A submersible battleship, equipped with Tier 1 and 2 naval unit and Tier three engineer blueprints. I have not seen this unit used much, but it has long range for its single massive gun. It can also build a navy to support it, but I have not seen it used this way.

Tsar: Flying fortress. It is equpped with several AA weapons and a powerful laser weapon. It is a flying aircraft carrier. However, it lacks heavy armor and will go down quickly to AA fire. I have not seen enough to say more.

Base Defenses

All three sides have Tier 1 and 2 point defense, Tier 2 and 3 artillery emplacements, tactical and strategic missile defenses, Tier 1, 2, and 3 AA weapons, shields and Tier 1 and 2 torpedo launchers. Point defense is short range direct fire. Artillery requires no explanation. The range on Tier 3 artillery is so large that it can fire almost anywhere on the small battlefields I have seen. Tactical and strategic missile defenses defend against the respective missiles. Tactical emplacements need only to be set up while strategic defenses require the missiles they store to be manually built. They fire automatically at the incoming missiles. Both types can be built on water. The AA weapons also can be built on water. I would like to note that the sheer volume of rounds these weapons put out is incredible. However, they are not particularly accurate, but the volume will quickly take down aircraft. Large amounts will still get through, so be wary. Torpedo launchers are just that. Shields stop most weapons as long as they remain active. Strategic missiles will still get through however and the shields don't stop units. The UEF and Aeon Illuminate can build Tier 2 and 3 shields. The UEF can upgrade their Tier 2 shields to Tier 3. The Cybran can only build a Tier 2 shield but can upgrade it four times for more range and power.

Nukes

Where would the good commander be without his/her nukes? Nukes are built at a strategic missile silo and in the UEF's ACU backpack missile launcher. The ACU version is weaker and has a shorter range than the strategic version. Strategic missiles, should they get through, are devestating. The nukes you've seen in old simulations like Yuri's Revenge are nothing on these weapons. One will core a base. Multiple will destroy it entirely. Strategic missiles are manually constructed at the silo and only five may built in each silo. The silos, like the missile defense, can be assisted in constructing the missile. If you see your enemy building these weapons, build defenses and take out the silo. ACUs are also equipped with a nuclear device that goes off should they be destroyed. This will likely eliminate the attacking forces.

Impressions

This battlefield command software is very detailed. The full strategic zoom is very useful indeed. I already have Hit-Head-on-Ceiling Syndrome merely from using the software's replay feature. You can't go back. I also think that commanders familiar with the old Total Annhilation simulation will be very pleased with this new generation of combat command software.

It is very good looking. This software has one drawback. It requires tremendous processing power from cutting edge computers. I've experienced slowdowns with the replay feature, so I suspect that the replays are done from the actual command software. In civilian terms, my ACU has the equivalant of a dual core processor with 2.13 gigahertz each and 1 gigabyte of RAM.

This software will certainly kill lower-end computer systems. The graphics at all medium still resemble the preview shots, but at low it looks rather bad.

All in all, the designers are doing a good job with the software and I hope to get it when Supreme Commander is released for full scale use.

If you have further questions, ask and I will do my best to answer. Just know that I can only report on what I have actually seen.

*Transmission ends*

[narboza22]

This game looks awesome:)

[Soul]

I've seen lots of videos showing off the nukes in this game and man there fucking awsomely huge .

[Apollo]

Hehe, the commander unit alone already makes a fine nuke demo truck

[Nemoricus]

It sure does. The commander's nuke is just as powerful as one of the strategic missiles. You don't want this going off in your base. It's also liable to take out whatever just destroyed it.

[Calamity_Jones]

Just like TA, I can imagine many of the "classic strategies" working in Sup Com just fine

Loading your commander into a transport and flying him to your enemies... kills both commanders instantly

[AdmiralGT]

Just like TA, I can imagine many of the "classic strategies" working in Sup Com just fine

Loading your commander into a transport and flying him to your enemies... kills both commanders instantly

"Combombing" is the single most annoying tactic in SupCom. Even if the commander is in a transport he still gets the full nuke effect and completely obliterates an entire base and until the very late game, is completely unstopable. At least they removed the ability to move the Commander in a T1 transport so you have to tech up in order to com bomb but it's still ridiculously annoying on small maps (Sentry Point) where you can just walk into an opponents base and completely kill everything.

Still, Assassination mode sort of stops this since you lose when your commander dies, so you can't com-bomb without losing. Although, it's a shame really, since your commander is the best unit early on (builds faster than a T1 engineer and can easily kill T1 troops) but as soon as you tech up to T2 and T3, he's just a liability. I normally just send my Commander off somewhere and hide him otherwise if you don't pay attention he can be killed quite easily and destroy your entire base.

Overall, SupCom is a nice game, it's not as groundbreaking as it was initially made out to be, but it is still very impressive, and has some very nice features which really should become a staple of all RTS' (repeat queue's especially).

[Nemoricus]

Hmm...SupCom is supposed to be a very moddable game, so fixes to those issues could be worked out.

BTW, I'm pretty sure that there are only smaller maps in the beta. One can't be sure that the tactics that are superpowerful on a small map are still viable in larger maps.

[AdmiralGT]

The beta's smallest map is 5km x 5km, it's largest is 20km x 20km. The largest in the retail version will be 80km x 80km, and there are already some fan made beta maps of that size, and Com Bombing is still an issue.

We were just playing SupCom at a LAN today, and I was pretty much dead in the water, sitting behind my one nuke defence. I teleported my commander into his base and destroyed everything. While hilariously funny, it's still annoying that you can just be nuked out of existance with no way of stopping it.

[Soul]

I wish I could play this game, but my computer can't run it.

Those of you who do get it, plz make lots of movies so I can see it's greatness plz.

Edited by Forgotten_Soul, 07 February 2007 - 08:05 PM.

[Nemoricus]

MAJOR NEWS HERE!

Gas powered Games has released the Supreme Commander demo. Find it, download it, and begin the end of the Infinite War.

I'm personally going to wait until this weekend to download it.

[Ash]

Why wait? It's out on the 20th!

And yeah. You can grab it from Fileplanet or GamersHell. Chances are other sites will pick up on it and host it too over mirrors so you won't have to wait till the next epoch or pay.

[AdmiralGT]

I got my demo through torrenting. Far quicker...

http://thepiratebay...._commander_demo