Movement and combat animations in multiplayer

[2K Greg]

I have good news for multiplayer fans!

Today I am proud to tell you that animations in multiplayer will be added in an upcoming (free) patch to Civilization V. You guys have been asking about this one for ages, and we’ve been working hard getting it to a point where we are sure we’ll be able to do it in a way that we’re happy with. That point has been reached.

Combat and movement animations will be separate options. In our internal testing we have found that it’s best with movement animations on and combat animations off, providing a nice balance between keeping the game looking pretty but also moving forward at a good pace. However, those of you who want to see all of the combat animations will indeed get your wish as well!

We don’t have any sort of ETA for this patch yet, but I can tell you it won’t be for at least a few months. We have many other improvements in the works that I’ll be talking about as its release grows closer, but I wanted to get this one bit of news out to you guys as soon as we were sure!

[jpbar81]

Sweet! Thanks for the news, Greg!

Also, nice new avatar.

(First.)

[Buller]

Fantastic news, thanks a million

[stethnorun]

Best news I've heard in a few months (yeah, I don't have much of a life )

[CanuckSoldier]

That's great to hear Greg.

CS

[Mega-Dolphin]

That's great news! Not that I will play multiplayer much, but for those who were all whining, they will get what they wanted. Also, hooray for long-term support. You don't see many games getting patches or content, especially for features as large as multiplayer animations, after more than a year after release.

[Foolman]

Good to hear, though I don't play mulyiplayer. The thing I want to hear is when new DLC is coming out, I want to give you money! Please make more content!

[Pouakai]

I won't use these, but I'm glad they're out so people can finally stop whining that they're not in! Nonetheless, I'm hoping for this patch to be big, with more content that means I can pay for something

[brxbrx]

That's really great. I'm glad to have been wrong about this.
Congrats to those who wanted MP animations

[Jazzterisk]

I don't play MP but that's good to hear. I definitely never thought this would be implemented.

On another thought, I wonder if the OP is the same 2KGreg who posted about the last patch those many eons ago? I'm sure he's moved on after all this time so I bet it's someone new with the same name.

[Artifex]

(free)

Sad that this needed to be said. Sign of the times.

Thanks for the info.

[stethnorun]

Sad that this needed to be said. Sign of the times.

Thanks for the info.

I think he meant "not to be confused with the expansion...which I will announce here soon as well"

[istry555]

Awesome! Hopefully MP AI interactions are also being looked at at some point? Then my MP will be complete.

[anandus]

Another patch is very good news.
It's good to see that Firaxis hasn't abandoned Civ5 yet! (Something most people thought was the case, due to X-Com and the lack of any news about any DLC)

To 2K Greg: I know it's probably impossible to answer this, but is there any form of 'additional content' (DLC/Expansion/Whatever) to be expected in the future (months or years), no need for specifics, a 'Civ5 isn't dead yet' will suffice :P

[JimMac99]

Thanks for the news Greg, the MP options you describe seems good.

(I have had 3 copies of Civ V in my Amazon basket since release date which I placed for family members, waiting for MP to be sorted. Looks like it will soon be time to place the order. )

[lietkynes]

PBEM/Pitboss ?

[Yaca]

I'm really happy to hear that you're still working on the game, as I spend most of my time playing multiplayer this is extremely good news. I'm abit dissapointed that it's going to take so long, but still, I'm very happy!

[anandus]

Pitboss ?

Has already been announced, will be somewhere in a few months

[Oor-tael]

This is excellent news ! Thanks a lot to Firaxis for working on this much requested option for multiplayer !

[mandead]

Cool beans, brosef.

[metalhawk]

So glad to hear you guys are still at it, after the silence since August (for the most part). I'll be glad to see MP animations options.

Can I put my 0.02 in for MP mods/scenarios? Please?

You know how much longevity that gave Civ IV???

Thanks again!

[The Mad Russian]

They still have a long way to go to fix this game. Honestly, wasting all this amount of time on just MP animations when they could be doing something MUCH more useful to the game makes me sick.

[stethnorun]

They still have a long way to go to fix this game. Honestly, wasting all this amount of time on just MP animations when they could be doing something MUCH more useful to the game makes me sick.

Well then I wish for much more illness for you in the future Honestly, the hyperbole is amusing, keep going.

[Aethrwolf]

But, but, what are we going to read for amusement here now that the MP animation fanatics are going to lose their biggest reason for being here? Yes, I know they are going to continue complaining about it taking so long right up until it shows up, but those posts will lack some of the "flavor" they had when they where assuming that they were being ignored.

[SVPM]

I think he meant "not to be confused with the expansion...which I will announce here soon as well"

Exactly my thought when I read this. Maybe my hope clouds my judgement though... Haven't played for months, but maybe an expansion would be worth it.

First time in my life I would hesitate to buy an expansion pack or game from civ franchise.

[tomofnnh]

I wana see my nukes go off in MP !!!!!!!!

Cant wait!

[mandead]

Please add a way to turn auto-save off completely (I don't use it in any strategy games) and add a lock for multi-player saved games. I hate hosting a saved game for my friend to join via Steam (having played it before we saved) and then a couple of random people filling up slots and I have to repeatedly kick them out.

If this feature exists and I've just missed it, please tell me. :O

[civdiss]

Thank you 2K Greg! I like the fact you are going to include a separate option for movement animations, exactly what we were asking over here. How about a TURN-BASED option ? Is this on the works too? Any info greatly appreciated.

@ mandead yes there is a quick workaround, create a private game by ticking the appropriate box and then invite your friend using the in game Steam invitation system

[Ragna]

Amaizing news! Today is a big day for Civ fans around the world!

To 2K Greg: Could you add an option in single player to show only the combat animations which the player units are involve?

It is quite boring to watch combat animations between AI units. In big maps the turns are endless.

Thanks 2K!

[SamBC]

They still have a long way to go to fix this game. Honestly, wasting all this amount of time on just MP animations when they could be doing something MUCH more useful to the game makes me sick.

How do you figure that's all they've been doing? If it were, it would have to be either incompetent programmers diving down blind alleys, or like 0.1 FTE of staff working on it.

[2K Greg]

To 2K Greg: Could you add an option in single player to show only the combat animations which the player units are involve?
It is quite boring to watch combat animations between AI units. In big maps the turns are endless.

I'll make sure the team is aware of this request. It's certainly an option I would probably use!

They still have a long way to go to fix this game. Honestly, wasting all this amount of time on just MP animations when they could be doing something MUCH more useful to the game makes me sick.

Oh trust me, we've been working on far more than just this one feature all this time

To 2K Greg: I know it's probably impossible to answer this, but is there any form of 'additional content' (DLC/Expansion/Whatever) to be expected in the future (months or years), no need for specifics, a 'Civ5 isn't dead yet' will suffice :P

Well, letting you know that we're still working on patches should show that it isn't dead yet!

Sweet! Thanks for the news, Greg!

Also, nice new avatar.

Thanks! My objective was to make it as terrible as possible. My wife says it looks like something her grandmother would make when she discovered the "layer blending options" in Photoshop for the first time.

[tviceman]

great news! being able to see other player's unit movements is a vital part of the game's strategy!

[Artifex]

My wife says it looks like something her grandmother would make when she discovered the "layer blending options" in Photoshop for the first time.

Hah, my own reaction was "Oh look, someone discovered photoshop" But it is not terrible. Somewhat reminiscent of a portrait scooby-doo would walk past.

[jpbar81]

Somewhat reminiscent of a portrait scooby-doo would walk past.

lmao .......

[Pouakai]

Oh trust me, we've been working on far more than just this one feature all this time

Ooh, Exciting. How soon will it be before we'll be able to hear any more of the additions in the patch?

[G1_Shockwave]

Thank you sooooooooooo much!

[SlickSlicer]

(free) patch

Honestly? As opposed to a patch that costs money?

[tfordp]

Honestly? As opposed to a patch that costs money?

C'mon SlickSlicer, you know perfectly well what he meant by that. It'll be in a patch and not an expansion.

He did it like that because there is always someone who comes and bleats 'yay, bet it's dlc, there [sic] only screwing us' and he was trying to stop that happening.

[SlickSlicer]

I know I'm nitpicking, but when a patch is announced (and stated to be a patch), I don't think anybody expects that it would cost money. If it did cost money, people would be pretty angry. If anybody actually expected it to cost money...I guess they don't play PC games? Or video games at all?

[dieffenbachj]

To be fair with the 'free' thing...

I don't know how it is now, but it used to be with Microsoft's XBox that if you provided a content + bugfix patch, the first patch was free, the future ones you would have to charge for unless you could prove that it provides ONLY bugfixes, and not new content. It annoyed Valve to no end being FORCED to charge money for their free patches and free content, to the point that they would save up their content for MONTHS so that they could send HUGE patches to XBox players, simply so that the $5 surcharge Microsoft required would be for as much content as possible.

While we in the PC gaming world sit on our free golden thrones sipping free wine and being fanned by a free servant with free breezes, it unfortunately DOESN'T go without saying in gamedom as a whole that patches are free.