A way to speed up early multiplayer game

For what's not in 'Top Priority Game Design'. Post your ideas, visions, suggestions for the game, rules, modifications, etc.

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LienRag
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A way to speed up early multiplayer game

#1 Post by LienRag »

I played a long time ago "play-by-mail Go" and since one move per two days (iirc the delay before not answering was consider a "pass" move) was a bit slow, there was the option to script moves : when a player sent a move, he had the possibility to send with it the expected answer of his opponent; and for each of these expected answers, the move that the sending player would play.

Of course if the player receiving the move played something else than one of the expected answers, the "expected sequence" was ignored, but otherwise (which happens quite often in Go, as some moves are forcing the opponent's answer, sometimes up to quite long sequences) it sped up the game a lot.

Exact replication of this mechanism is hard to do in FreeOrion, but in a similar manner, couldn't there be a no-waiting period in the early game, for as long as player interaction is impossible ?

I mean, it's possible to calculate how long would two scouts (or other ships) take to get close enough for one to see the other, and let all players play freely "against the system" for this number of turns.

When there are random events involved (like Monster movement or hatching) I guess it should be possible to pre-calculate a certain number of random numbers attached to each player and use them one after the other independently for each player.

Of course this would be only for the start of the game, before interactions between players could really affect the game universe, but it would still speed up games, especially on large galaxies.

Ophiuchus
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Re: A way to speed up early multiplayer game

#2 Post by Ophiuchus »

What would work is something like advance up to 5 turns, if no breaking event happens (e.g. fleets come into a certain parameter, certain building is build).

Or having something like a tradeoff - e.g. you get some extra influence points for each turn you preadvance, so you accept that you play a bit suboptimal in exchange for speeding up the game (e.g. so you batch your re-decisions).

All this would work better with better "pre-programming" options. E.g. the current flux hull needs to be re-ordered each turn in order to keep the stealth bonus - so either the hull effect needs to change or one needs the option to set waypoints in flight orders.

Another preprogramming would be something like "adopt policy when there are enough points available". But this is all a huge UI effort. So probably wont happen in the next year(s).
Any code or patches in anything posted here is released under the CC and GPL licences in use for the FO project.

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Oberlus
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Re: A way to speed up early multiplayer game

#3 Post by Oberlus »

Ophiuchus wrote: Sun Jun 06, 2021 9:46 am What would work is something like advance up to 5 turns, if no breaking event happens (e.g. fleets come into a certain parameter, certain building is build).
o01eg has that in mind: viewtopic.php?p=102883#p102883

Making a list of such events (in that other thread, not in this one about this crazy idea).

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