Why play SEIV instead of SEV?

My favorite SEV features so far:

- Scaling hull sizes with tech research
- The design layouts on the ships, stations and units. I really like those!
- Insane amounts of research levels! (some are useless though)
- Real time space combat is cool sometimes (try playing tactical turn based combat with 100 ship fleets)
- I and my opponent can flee in a battle.
- More eye candy
- upgradeable mounts
- The modding possibilities are way better than SEIV and they include AI scripting.
- Real time Ground combat.
- You can obtain global bonuses though cultural research.
- Bigger sectors and hex maps.

That's all I can come up with for now.

Some of the reasons you want still play SE:IV include generally better AI, fewer bugs, more shipsets/mods, nostalgia, and perhaps a better UI.

For me there are some features in SE:V that makes doing anything else other than my old SE:IV PBW turns a challenge.

-----

Space Empires Depot | SE:V Balance Mod

SE:V will offer a lot more than SE:IV eventually.

Even if you are a IV expert the new game has a learning curve associated with the new way of doing things and the new balances (or imbalances for that matter).

One of the areas that I'll likely always prefer in SE IV over V is the main system view. I really don't like the way the SE V's 3D view has been implemented, while I think SE IV's 2D view does its job perfectly and has a much better feeling to it. There's also the matter of the awkward UI in SE V, but that might get fixed eventually.

Other than that I expect SE V to become superior to IV in all areas, eventually.

Well for me the main reason is I don't have to have autosave every turn on to not lose a few turns on the inevitable lock up. That and the already mentioned AI.

There still are a few of us dinosaur herders around who don't own hardware that can run SE V.

I may be able to change that sometime this month, but I don't have a schedule for it, and the deal could still fall through.

Even after I can buy and run SE V, I expect to continue playing SE IV as well, because I have two games on Play-By-Web that aren't anywhere near finishing.

"Good morning, Pooh Bear," said Eeyore gloomily. "If it /is/ a good morning," he said. "Which I doubt," said he.

One of the reasons I never moved beyond the demo of SE:IV was the research screen. I liked being able to divide research points with greater ease than "pick up to four, points get spread evenly."

Of course, you can queue up to 12 research (or intel) projects at a time, and the "divide points evenly" tick box is easy to uncheck.

SpaceEmpires.net | Space Empires Wiki

Given stock mechanics, NOT dividing your points is always better.

Finishing one tech today and the second tech tomorrow provides more benefit than having both 50% finished today, and both completed tomorrow.

In SE5, this means visiting the research screen almost EVERY turn to set a new tech area to 100% as the old one completes.

---

I fixed that in GGmod, with the help of Ekolis, via research breakthroughs.
The research facilities all provide 10% of normal points, but each turn your percent completion is the chance that you will get the next level.

(If you're 25% done, you have a 1 in 4 chance each turn)
This makes it worth it to put 1% in every tech area, plus a few more points in the ones you want faster.
Why? Because having one tech 50% done gives you a 50/50 chance of getting half the points for free. But if you have fifty tech areas all 1% done, the breakthrough gives you a whopping 99% free.

This also makes research somewhat unpredictable. You never know what techs you will get quickly or which ones will stump your scientists, so you have to be flexible.

And best of all, you can set and forget while still being maximally competitive!

Both of the PBW SEIV games I mentioned finished, but one spawned a rematch that is still going strong.

I'm finding that I'm spending more time playing SEV than SEIV, but I don't feel I have enough experience with SEV to attempt multiplayer yet. I've also got one single player SEIV game that I play sometimes when I don't feel up to dealing with SEV's more cumbersome UI. Since I'm more familiar with SEIV's UI, I can do more turns per play session in SEIV.

-----
"Good morning, Pooh Bear," said Eeyore gloomily. "If it /is/ a good morning," he said. "Which I doubt," said he.

I forgot to mention another reason to continue playing SEIV. There are still popular mods that I haven't tried yet. Mods come out faster for both games than I can keep up with.

-----
"Good morning, Pooh Bear," said Eeyore gloomily. "If it /is/ a good morning," he said. "Which I doubt," said he.

I tried the demos for both SE IV and SE V and decided to buy SE IV at this time. There were 3 reasons. First, the main system view; second, the GUI; and third, and most important, SE V made my laptop run a LOT hotter than SE IV.

Because you current computer doesn't run SEV!
http://www.shrapnelcommunity.com/threads/showflat.php?Cat=&Number=572775&page=0&view=collapsed&sb=5&o=&fpart=1

In SE4 I don't have to deal with
Large check bubbles that make every menu a pointlessly long scrolling adventure
A time wasting and largely inconsequential slot system
A seperate menu just to name my ship
a seperate menu just to see how many supplies a design has
A 3d map that isn't really 3d so all it does it get in the way
a 2 step resource display
a system map that when zoomed to see what hexes wastes 50% of my screen space with empty starfield
pointless "unlimited" tech areas
my quadrant map on the wrong side
an across the board poorly designed UI
excessively slow AI processing times
this is just stuff I noticed in 3 turns of playing^ I bet i could have a good 50 major complaints by the time I am done with this game

In se5 I dont have to deal with
a poor diplomacy system
a sadly limited research screen
a lack of right click menu

if only Aaron could make an SEV with an SEIV interface and right click controls.

Space Empires Wiki