I'm playing this game on PC and so far I'm having a lot of fun with it. It's a good game.
Over the years I've played a lot of indie games that were about the same level as Qvadriga - good casual games with interesting settings where you could see a lot of potential, but they faded into oblivion because the developer considered their work to be done and never took them past version 1. Qvadriga if left alone would be one of the better of those types of games, but it can be much more... it can really turn into something great if you stay with it. Please keep making this game deeper and maybe release a sequel at some point. I really want to see a non-traditional sport game developed seriously, and the various Roman sports are the best candidates for that.
Anyway, here are some suggestions I have:
- 1. As I wrote in another thread, I think you should do away with the idea of 'beating' the game, where you beat Epic mode and so on. It reduces replayability and pushes the player into optimal winning strategies (getting an Auriga to 10 wins then playing a lame, conservative style after that so that he doesn't die), which aren't fun to actually play. Instead, switch to a yearly system where you've got categories like Auriga of the Year, most wins, most money won, and so on. You can still win, but also want to work to stay on top. Make it more like Starters Orders or OOTP if you've ever played them.
2. I think you guys use level scaling, right? That is, if I get better then my opponents also get better no matter where I race? If so, please get rid of it. That's kind of a lazy way to create a challenge and takes away the feeling that I'm actually improving. I don't know why this concept has hung on in game development for so long... if I'm racing in a crap place with a low reward and want to use my best team, then I should be much better than everyone else. If you follow my other suggestions, people won't run top teams in crap races - not because the AI teams are magically pumped up, but because Aurigas are aging and chariots degrade and it is not an efficient use of resources to use top men and equipment in low-reward contests. Just like real life.
3. Right now, the AI 'teams' are this amorphous mass that have 6 or 7 leaders. In practice I don't really care who I'm racing against - it means nothing to me. In fact the only thing I look at is how long the other teams Chariot wheels are, and if their Auriga is wearing a helmet or not (they're the only qualities that I can readily identify). Instead, have the AI teams actually exist as entities and play the game in the same way I do. Let me view their chariots and Aurigas. Have them go bankrupt and replaced by a new team if they're bad enough. Have a promotion/relegation system so that the best AI teams are competing in the best forums and the challenge is organic and you're a part of this big game world.
4. Aurigas... there's a lot of potential there. Have a pool of say 300 of them that AI teams as well as you can sign. IRL Roman teams competed for the services of the best Aurigas. Have it be so here, too. Have Aurigas age, where their ability to lacerate, wreck, and take punishment is reduced but their ability to corner goes up as they compete in more and more races. Have Aurigas retire. Have famous Aurigas get you a bonus if they appear in races. Have famous Aurigas be more prima donna-ish, like demanding a cut of their winnings or occasionally ignoring your instructions to do something that they think is better (and who knows, their decision might be right...). Be more specific about their injuries. Give us the ability to get some 14 year old trainee for free and develop him into a champion. Keep more detailed stats on them.
5. Ratings - basically everything is rated from 1 to 3 right now. That's too broad I think... make it from 1 to 100. With a broader scale, you can have chariots and horses slowly degrade over time, which I think is needed and as they would IRL.
6. Random pre-race events - A couple of them could be removed. 'Stubborn Horses' comes to mind. When I get that event, I know it is hopeless and I just write off that race and concentrate on finishing. I personally like the events that affect everyone, of if they affect individuals, keep it mild.