Ambrosia Software Web Board: Who wants Ares to be ported to OS X? - Ambrosia Software Web Board

Just post and mybe we might get it ported, but maybe not, but we can try.

Edit: 500th post

This post has been edited by EVWeb: 23 September 2004 - 08:58 AM

It doesn't matter if we want it ported or not...the amount of work that it would require to port Ares would be better spent on a sequel, or another game. Unfortunately, Ambrosia has chosen the latter of these two options.

To put it in Ares terms, the odds of it getting ported are about the same as a Gaitori Fighter beating a Cantharan Gateship in playful one-on-one combat...

Give that man a coconut.

If all the Briefing Room is good for is pipe dream "Hey Ambrosia, bring back Ares!" topics, maybe it shouldn't be around anymore.

From what I can tell, this forum is mostly up as some sort of marker of how great Ares used to be...and still is. There's still a lot of great features to toy around with, but almost nobody has noticed them, and they generally aren't major enough to save the game "once and for all". Ares depends on new scenarios to live...and not many are being made nowdays.

Perhaps it'll take another massive topic about a brand new scenario to bring the Ares forums up again. Perhaps not. However, Ambrosia apparently sees something in this game, since they've kept up the forums when other games such as Avara have been "minimalized" down to the Net Games section.

I've found that every Ambrosia game that competes with EV dies, at one point or another. Take Harry, for instance. There were quite a few "Harry vs. EV" posts a few years ago. Harry is now all but dead. Ares went in and took Harry's place, and now it's in the slow process of dying...
Maybe EV just appeals to too many people for any games that could compete with it to live. Maybe those games just don't look quite as good as EV on the surface. But I'll tell ya...EV(N) may have great graphics and lots of great features, but Ares has a lot of features that EVN doesn't have. Harry has a lot of great battles, but not as many features as EVN, which itself has some pretty wimpy battles. (If you have the 'Valk or 'Bridge, you've won the game. The only thing to do is to get better versions of said ships, which can actually be challenging.) EVN is only better because the player can do many more things in it than you can do in Ares or Harry, and EVN does all of those things in a much better fashion than just about every other Elite-based space game does. Now, I admit that I like EV. A lot. However, I still know a good thing when I see one. I have registered copies of Harry, Ares, and EVN, and they're all quite entertaining. Overall, if I was forced to choose, I would probably say that I like Ares the most, at the moment. EVN has a lot of great features, but Ares just has that old-fashioned feel. Now, if it's EVO or EV versus Ares, then I have to say that Ares would lose...but it's still a good game.

I've got to stop rambling.

Actually, these boards still exist because Ambrosia has been so busy configuring the new boards, moving their headquarters, and a variety of other things that consolidating Ares hasn't really been at the top of the list for a long time.

Personally, the reason I haven't made any senarios, is because I can't play it anymore!!!

This is a problem for a lot of people I would think, and if they would port it or make an Ares 2, people would come back, but since you can't play it under OS 10.3 most of the regular people stopped playing( like me ). If they made an Ares 2 or a port to OS X I would buy it the second its out. I think other people would also buy it, but since its not in OS X, it died. Otherwise I think it would be going fine.

P.S. Like my avatar?

It isn't so much that Ambrosia doesn't want to port it over or make a sequel as it is that Nathan Lamont doesn't want to. From what I can tell, he doesn't care about the prospect of an Ares II, and it's very debatable if he cares about Ares X. The "You would make tons of money" argument doesn't apply here, because Ambrosia has no real choice. Even if they did, it would take too much work to port Ares to be worthwhile, as they could dedicate the amount of time that it would take to something a bit newer. Besides, let's admit it. There are maybe ten/twenty people, in total, that still play Ares. It died because it had to compete with EV, just as Ares II would compete with Ambrosia's flagship game product, EVN. I'm afraid that Ares just doesn't seem to have what it takes to topple EV...Ares is actually better than EV in some ways, but, admittedly, there aren't very many. Let's just face it...EV had a pretty significant edge in the beginning, and the gap between EV and Ares is just getting wider. EV keeps getting more popular, and Ares just keeps on fading away...I imagine that one of these days, Ares will just slip away into history without anyone noticing while EV gets bigger and better.

I'm rambling again. (Bob shuts up)

This post has been edited by Consul Bob: 24 September 2004 - 02:49 AM

There are quite many features where Ares is better than EVN, and it somehow just feels better than EVN. And I think that many people would buy a new version of Ares, if it would be ported to OS X and advertised properly.

PS.: Nice Advatar. I once tried to use the image at the main Ares site(You know, the 'low ammo need help' one. It was scaled too much to be readable anymore. )

bmac, on Sep 24 2004, 03:43 AM, said:

Yes, that's all nice and good, but what features off-hand can you think of? A few items that Ares practically had a patent on are now possible in Nova with a few well-planned clever tricks. I do agree that in many ways, Ares has a much smoother feel than EVN.

Where would these people come from? It would take quite a bit of advertisement indeed to convince people to get the sequel of a game that is known by the general public for being one of an "elite" few that died, was published by another company, was updated, and died again.

Of course, all of this is a moot point, since Ares X/II has to be made. And the odds of that ever happening are generally extremely low.

Firstly, Ambrosia isn't a production house - they make a couple of small goodies, but for the most part they're a distributor. They peddle things that other people make. Ambrosia wouldn't make Ares 2 - someone else would have to.

This is what it would take: Someone needs to talk to Nathan Lamont and either buy the rights to Ares off of him or get his consent on making a second game and figure out how much money he'd be making off of it.

You then have to assemble the hardware, software and know-how to develop the game. You need to cut up the old engine, find out what made it tick. You have to update the graphics, update the splash screens, create a new interface. You have to take the old musical score and re-work it into something that has the same feel but isn't identical. You have to re-work the aspects of gameplay, add levels of complexity and strategy that aren't there already.

For me this would mean a) learn how to program in C b) learn how to 3-D model c) Find musical talent d)Get approval for all of it.

Then, on top of all of this, you probably aren't going to get much money to make it, if any at all and you'd have to do it in the time you have between school and life and everything else.

If someone here actually wanted to do it you'd have to make a killer TC for the existing engine and take it from there. That's how EV:N was born.

Anyway, I've given thought to it, as I'd like to be a game developer myself, but it all seems a bit far fetched - depressingly.

This post has been edited by Shrout1: 24 September 2004 - 08:39 AM

Well I'm getting a pretty good idea of how C++ and Java works, although it will be a little before I can program of that calibure. I've also done graphics as most of you know, and I'd love to make the game if I could. As for the music, I'd need someone else to do the music, but that wouldn't be hard. Anyway, I might just try to see if I could port it or make a sequel.

EVWeb, on Sep 24 2004, 08:59 AM, said:

I'll say this upfront - if you don't know much C (or C++) recoding the engine will be impossible. Best bet, really, is to do a TC. A TC could take a year or better as is, depending on how much you put into it.

I'm not trying to discourage you, given that, but I just think it's a monumental undertaking.

This options have all been discussed before, and they dont grant that Ares 2/X would be made. It's still rather unlikely. And as always, I think we should do it. I myself could do some graphics, and I could do a little bit of programming.

Oh, and just some Ares things that EV lacks:

1. Better scripting abilities (i.e. things that happen when something else's done)
2. More Strategy- and Skill-oriented gameplay
3. Possibility to have actual fleets (6 ships are not a fleet)
4. More realistic (in EVN you can destroy a carrier in a viper with ease)
5. More control over your escorts
6. Ability to develop actual strategies (i.e. using multiple fleets at once, etc.)
7. Feeling of an in-system warfare, with planets being captured and re-captured
8. Much more possibilities for plug developers
9. More advanced weapons and device programming (i.e. onHit and onFire effects etc)
10. Very advanced briefing system (compared to EVN)
11. More variety for mission objectives

I was having a couple of plot ideas...

SA Did a race that encountered the Cantharan race and then was saved by the Ishiman. Perhaps the player could manage a race that has been isolated from the others - a superior race that sees the injustice which has been put against humanity when exploring. The race intervenes to assist humanity in its recovery and, at this point another, even more powerful race is introduced.

There could be some measure of cooperation between factions that were once warring and you could see new alliances form. It would be pretty neat to control the ships of a couple races. You could even create a "race" that is all the species and have facilities which produce only certain versions of their vessels.


A simple continuation of the plotline from Ares could work - the game starts off with an escort mission or something and the humans have to fight off new threats from old enemies. Further involvement of the Elejee and Obain could be a neat feature - there's even artwork out there for it already, assuming that the creators would comply

The game might also revolve around the plight of an enemy faction to re-take what the humans had captured, in the end you'd have an opening for a continued plotline where the humans make their final victory.


Anyway, there's a lot of different stuff that could be done. I did find, however, that the game was greatly lacking in balance - certain races vessels were simply too powerful, and since they cost the same a human player found themselves quickly on the defensive.

Also, in order to have an "epic" battle - as I tried to create in my "Obain" plug, there have to be enough planets in a system to fuel both armies. The taking of a planet, however, is damaging in more than one way. An enemy that loses a planet not only loses the ability to produce and launch from that location, but the player who took it gains that ability. In essence, it's an upward spiral. Taking a planet means you're stronger and can take more while the enemy grows weaker and cannot defend.

I don't know how this can be alleviated.

Anywho, my two cents.

This post has been edited by Shrout1: 24 September 2004 - 12:50 PM

bmac, on Sep 24 2004, 10:25 AM, said:

1: An extremely simple form of this is rather possible using invisible missions. Granted, it wouldn't compete with Ares, but it can still be done-simply.
2. About the most strategic I've ever gotten in Ares was in the last mission. Most of the missions can generally be solved by hurtling your command ship into the foe with or without fleet ships and blasting everything that comes at you while achieving any special mission goals that might exist.
3. Well-done missions can place you at the command of a fleet at any time. There are also easy alternatives to this. Take fighter bays, for instance...you can simply buy one of them and purchase a few fighters for several new ships. In EVN, unlike Ares, you can rearm your fighters.
4. Either you're the most amazing pilot that's ever lived, or that particular feat isn't possible.
Overall, I'd say that balance is getting gradually better with the updates.
5. I'll let you have this one.
6. As I have stated, strategic warfare in Ares is usually nullified by the "Phalanx" factor, in which the player learns that fifty ships attacking at one time is generally a bit more powerful than fifty ships coming in from all sides in groups of five.
7. In-system warfare can be potrayed to an extent in EVN, but not to the level that Ares takes. Although I can think of a few ways to make an almost Ares-style battle, it still wouldn't be the same...
8. It all depends on how you look at it. Both of them have a lot of potential, but Nova's potential is generally spread all around, whereas Ares really shines at creating battles and dogfights and such...
9. I must agree yet again.
10. Well, although I can think of a few ways for the briefing system to be much better, I would agree that it is generally superior to the Nova briefings.
11. Aye. Ares missions generally can have very much potential compared to the Nova missions.

As for a scenario, I actually did have an idea that would be based off of Greece, just as FoP was.

Ares X, however nice of an idea, is not likely to happen. Ambrosia is spending its time on other programs like RedLine, and doesn't think it will make enough profit from an Ares X. Now the actual programming is not all that terribly complicated to do, a sideline developer could port it, but then there is still the copyright from ambrosia to think of.

I would love to see a homeworld-style 3D Ares 2 come to life, but Ambrosia would hardly put out such a game. Partially because being a small company, it can't make the profits to produce such a game, and partially because nobody associated with ambrosia has the programming skills to make such a program.

/*Ares 2 Probability calculator

*/

using namespace std;

# include <iostream>;

int main()
{
char x;
cout<<"Enter game you want"<<endl;
cin>> x;

if (x==Ares2)
{
cout<<"Never Happen"<<endl;
}
else
{
cout<<"Will eventualy happen"<<endl;
}

return 0;
}

Just in case your wondering...
[damn spelling]

This post has been edited by Skyfox: 24 September 2004 - 06:15 PM

Skyfox, on Sep 24 2004, 05:14 PM, said:

Your if statement is wrong. It should be more like:

if((x==Ares2) || (x==CytheraX) || (x==EVMultiplayer) || (x==Ragnorak))

Another feature Ares has that EVN doesn't - multiplayer.
As for the porting, my Dad is a professional programer, and so if I don't know how to do it, my Dad will.

But really I wish they would port it, I think it would be great. I mean think about it, it may not be the biggest money bringer, but I know several people would love to see Ares ported. I mean just because its not EV doesn't mean its not a good game that's worth porting.

Anyway, I really wish Ares would be ported, and if I could I would port it myself.

EVWeb, on Sep 24 2004, 08:05 PM, said:

Ambrosia cannot port it...Nathan Lamont doesn't seem to particularly care about Ares X, and he programs Ares, so the odds of it happening are fairly low.

Now, I would like to see Ares II, even if it's under another name. You might try asking your father, EV...I'm all for it, as long as I can use it on my pathetically outdated computer, and as long as I can toss a few ideas here and there.

Hey, I know Nathan Lamont's email, and I helped beta test his new game, I might be able to get him to allow me to port it... I might not, but hey, its worth a shot.

EVWeb, on Sep 24 2004, 10:45 PM, said:

Best of luck - if you monitored how long it took Contraband to port EV:N to the PC you'll note that it's not something done in a day. While you're staying on the same platform you're going from the classic architecture to the unix-based system of OS-X and it's an entirely different beast.

This is how I think it would happen:

"Hi, I'm Joe Smith from ________ games. We made <insert title> and <insert title> and we're very interested in making a sequel to Ares. We'll pay for the legal rights and give you XX amount of the profits."

That's how you make Ares 2.

This post has been edited by Shrout1: 25 September 2004 - 12:50 AM

Quote

Try! It might be worth it.

We really need Ares II a whole lot more than we need a port..Ares can only continue for so long even with all of the features we have. Ares II, on the other hand...

I feel obligated to state that the Ares probability calculator shown above results in a compile error. Apparently Skyfox and Avatara aren't the ones who should be coding Ares II.