While awaiting a response to an earlier post detailing events in a test of the main game, I thought I would look at the basic tutorial in order to ensure that I was fully aware of all aspects and commands. This is the observational feedback, which again I hope will be helpful in the further development of the game.
The tutorial claims that the user interface is both simple and intuitive. I'm afraid that I do not find either of these to be the case, sorry. Please don't blame the messenger for the message.
The tutorial should be a safe and clear place for a new player to explore the game but it hardly helps when the very first instruction invites the player to press the return key to go forward and the enter (sic) key to move back in the tutorial. It's very hard to see how this sort of thing gets through testing. It's the backspace key that should have been specified of course.
The new text when exiting a game is difficult to see being yellow on a somewhat yellow background.
Large F2 view. Could not select one of the units at all by left clicking. After using the alternative F2 view and returning, the unit could be selected with difficulty, the hotspot for selection being confined to a very narrow line along the edge of the rectangle.
Once the orders had been issued the infantry battalion, perhaps because it ended up in square formation (which could easily be the case, this being the last command that a beginner would encounter when moving from left to right through the formations), failed to move at all.
When the formation was changed, the unit box continued to show no orders (it has been given the support order as dictated by the tutorial), although eventually the unit began to move. However, when it did so only the front section advanced, leaving the rest well behind, as shown by a screenshot.
The main unit then inexplicably and immediately "caught up" but as the sequence of three screenshots show, the big element became confused inside the main body of the unit and as the camera moved towards the unit, it progressively disappeared from view altogether.
Worse, one of the three artillery icons moved in the correct direction, however the remaining two not only moved off at right angles to the south but did so in large jumps, rather than normal movement. They continued on this route for a long distance until they encountered the lake, in which they promptly went for a swim.
Artillery stayed together on a re-test of this but completely ignored the road.
All the animation failed again with the units sliding along. This seems to occur very frequently.
A patch of mist was observed North East of the objective town that disappears when the camera moves closer???
I think that the disappearing and misbehaving units in this case is largely due to a problem with the representation of the graphics rather than the internal engine’s calculation of where the unit is actually located. Unfortunately, the effect is much the same in preventing a rational interaction with the game.
I will continue testing and report the results in the forum and trust that someone will get back to me with some answers, including the earlier post from some days ago.