zircon

I do believe the MP involves simultaneous turns - you don't go and then wait for the computer to go, stuff happens all at once.

I agree that Creative is overpowered. It is, in my opinion, the single best pick out there, and the combination of Creative/Democracy is absolutely lethal. It seems to me that on the highest difficulty settings (Hard, Impossible) your only hope at winning is to plunge into research ASAP. Get Research Labs + Planetary Supercomputer, tech up, and then win with superior fleets later. That being said, the real secret of Creative is that it also makes your diplomacy way better, because you always have TONS of 'useless' techs (Death Spores, ground combat stuff, bombs) to give away, thus improving your standing with other races. On the other hand, a Tolerant/Unification setup is very good too. This maximizes your industrial production from the start. A Creative Democracy can virtually catch up later, but early on, it allows for faster expansion and creation of labs/computers to tech quickly. Of course, you miss out on a lot of advancements along the way. The single most effective strategy I've found for repelling attacks early on (when the CPU still has an impossible production advantage or is Repulsive and hates you) is creating a fleet of Frigates (smallest ships) with your best missile equipped. These ships will probably die with one shot or two at best, but you can strip them of their computer making them easy to build (1 turn even w/o major production improvements.) A small fleet of 8-9 such ships can cause serious damage, as missiles basically always hit and tend to hurt quite a bit. Generally, the computer will run when presented with 9-18 incoming missiles, unless they have a HIGHLY superior fleet (which rarely happens.) On the Impossible setting, you're almost guaranteed to face fleets of 40-50+ teched-out enemy ships by the endgame if the computer has a lot of planets, and the only way to deal with them is pure technology and good ship design. Structural Analyzer + Achilles Targeting Unit with heavy mount/shield piercing/autofire Phasors is pretty much the best ship-to-ship weapon around. Add Hyper-X Capacitors and High Energy Focus and you have some serious power. Ideally you'll be punching through 2-4 ships per turn with EACH of your ships. You can supplement this design with ships carrying Emissions Guidance missiles, which are among the most powerful weapons (a single hit destroys almost any ship.) However, even these weapons can be ineffective against certain ship designs, and against heavily-fortified planets (Barrier Shields), so you NEED Stellar Converters to just obliterate these defenses. 2 Stellar Converters mounted on a Titan or Doom Star will basically destroy ALL planet-based defenses is a single shot - so this includes the Missile Base, Ground Batteries and Fighter Garrison all in one.

I'm a hardcore fan of this game (at least, the single player - haven't played multiplayer), which is considered to be one of the best turn-based strategy games of all time, and certainly one of the best space sim games around. I used to play it all the time (since getting it in 1998) but was dismayed about a year ago when I couldn't find a version that ran on 64bit Windows. Much to my delight, I've found that it's available on GOG for just $4, including the first MoO; http://www.gog.com/en/gamecard/master_of_orion_1_2 This version runs on 64bit OSes via DOSbox, and plays just like it did back in the day. Having played a handful of recent sim games, including Galactic Civilizations 2, I have to say that MOO2 still beats them all in my mind as a top sim. Suffice it to say, I highly recommend it! It might not have the most flashy 3D graphics around, but the features and depth are unparalleled. Any other fans here? Share your stories, strategies, etc.! I've been able to beat the game on Impossible in a Huge galaxy with 6 computer opponents, which is my proudest accomplishment, though it took about 6 hours. VERY epic ending too.

Zebra 2 is extremely powerful and flexible, plus it's very easy to program. Definitely my go-to.

Glad you all are liking it! Hopefully we should have some reviews of the game up soon (includng one from Mirby)

Even though Anso is super-busy these days actually SCORING (rather than remixing) tons of indie soundtracks, I'm glad he was able to participate in the RAR remix contest and create this awesome arrangement. It's as bizarre and quirky as the game itself, and the whole development team got a big kick out of it. Very creative, perfect dub groove. Go Anso!

One of my favorite RAR! remixes; I've always loved Radiowar's style, and was really hoping he'd participate in the contest. Something about his beats and synths reminds me of artists like Zero 7 and Massive Attack, two of my favorite downtempo electronica artists. They really suit the icy source tune perfectly, and if we ever do an expansion or sequel, I want this one *ingame*

Shreddage is superior to all other rhythm guitar libraries - I guarantee it. And it's cheaper.

Return All Robots!: http://returnallrobots.com Return All Robots! Original Soundtrack: http://ocremix.org/events/returnallrobots/ Return All Robots! developed by Space Whale Studios (http://spacewhalestudios.com) for Xbox LIVE Indie Games (Xbox 360) & Windows Artwork by Diane Pizzuto of PZZT! Design (http://dianepizzuto.com) Track 1-01 composed and produced by Andrew Aversa (a.k.a. zircon) and Mike Worth Tracks 1-02 through 1-18 composed and produced by Andrew Aversa (a.k.a. zircon) Contact: admin@zirconstudios.com PURCHASE Return All Robots! Original Soundtrack, featuring exclusive bonus remixes: http://returnallrobots.com/media.php WATCH the trailer: PURCHASE Return All Robots! for Xbox 360: http://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/Product/Return-All-Robots/66acd000-77fe-1000-9115-d8025855073c PURCHASE Return All Robots! for Windows: http://store.cipherprime.com TRACKLIST Soundtrack: 1-01 Main Theme of Return All Robots! (4:14) 1-02 Lobby Bossa (1:16) 1-03 Eye of the Intern (1:10) 1-04 Training Montage (4:24) 1-05 Looks Like Trouble (2:04) 1-06 You've Got the Power (0:33) 1-07 Roboballad (5:51) 1-08 Biosludge Groover (0:37) 1-09 Jamaican Cyberturtle (3:55) 1-10 Out of the Refrigerator, Into the Icebox (0:46) 1-11 Deep Freeze (4:04) 1-12 Cryomorph (3:39) 1-13 Prelude to Danger (1:14) 1-14 Dr. Von Groove (4:35) 1-15 Megalomania Mentoria (1:21) 1-16 Credits Acapella (1:07) 1-17 Fantastic Robotique (5:04) 1-18 Smash Those Robots (2:23) Remixes: NOTE: Remixes are only available as MP3s. 2-01 Biologica Robotica (4:12) - arranged by Flexstyle, arrangement of "Jamaican Cyberturtle" 2-02 Quicksilver (3:25) - arranged by Radiowar, arrangement of "Deep Freeze" 2-03 Robo-182 (3:28) - arranged by Sbeast, arrangement of "Roboballad" 2-04 WillRocky (3:35) - arranged by WillRock, arrangement of "Training Montage" 2-05 You Mean, I Can Dodge Robots? (2:16) - arranged by Nutritious, arrangement of "Deep Freeze" 2-06 Robotastic Dub-o-Matic Genetic Lab (4:00) - arranged by Mattias Häggström Gerdt, arrangement of "Main Theme of Return All Robots!" & "Jamaican Cyberturtle" 2-07 Cryogenic Dubstep (2:37) - arranged by O. Keitel, arrangement of "Deep Freeze" 2-08 Trial by Fire (4:00) - arranged by Nutritious, arrangement of "Training Montage" 2-09 Electrobattle (3:31) - arranged by [VIAN], arrangement of "Smash Those Robots" 2-10 Training Grounds (5:12) - arranged by Joshua Morse, arrangement of "Training Montage" 2-11 Cryography (3:39) - arranged by prophetik, arrangement of "Deep Freeze" 2-12 Do That Thing (3:31) - arranged by HeaT Flare, arrangement of "Training Montage" 2-13 Kold Kraft (4:04) - arranged by [VIAN], arrangement of "Deep Freeze" 2-14 Oily Robot Lovin' (2:15) - arranged by Xenon Odyssey, arrangement of "Main Theme of Return All Robots!"

They're not going to remove the piano roll, he was joking. As for blocks, I like 'em, but if you just use a lock-to-content track template, clips work the EXACT same way (except with more functionality.) You click once on a locked track and it adds the clip from that track. Exactly like blocks.

Bump, we're now at 44% off!!! Check http://www.impactsoundworks.com/group-buy/ to see how low the prices are!

I think a far better example of gameplay-as-narrative would be "Don't Look Back." Not a single line of dialog, but very emotional stuff - not ambiguous at all. No one can play the game through and not "get" it. http://www.kongregate.com/games/TerryCavanagh/dont-look-back Play it and you'll see what I mean.

I liked this video, and it definitely made me think. However, I believe Missile Command was a poor example because, based on the Escapist comments, the overwhelming majority of people did NOT pick up any of this just by playing the game. If the game needs a 7 minute video to explain its narrative, then I'd say that's a pretty big failure of gameplay-as-narrative.

I'll be bringing my latest album, Return All Robots! Original Soundtrack, which features a number of guest artists as well. Since I'll be going with the rest of the Space Whale Studios crew we'll have a dealer table with our game as well (on a download card, to save money.)

I used to futz about with Reaktor a bit back in version 3. It's definitely insanely complex if you want it to be!

This should have been a direct post! Jordan's production quality is always absolutely ABSURD, and easily on par with the best trance and house artists in the world. What I love about his sound design in general is that it's full of little details, interesting synth choices and organic sounds. In particular, this mix has a really nice 'enveloping' and atmospheric feel. As for the arrangement, which takes a rather minimal VG source and expands it across the mix, it's excellent. A resounding YES

First of all, this is extremely quiet. Please make sure you normalize your remixes before submitting them. Even normalized, it's still pretty quiet and could use some very light transparent limiting, so regardless I would want to see this happen before it's posted. I agree that the piano tone itself could use some work - it has almost no stereo width at all, and sounds completely dry. I would recommend applying some light stereo reverb and using some kind of stereo enhancer/shaper to give it more width. You should also try to boost the low-end of the piano to give that more power. As it is, it sounds too lo-fi to post. The arrangement and playing however, are quite good, especially as the piece develops. Very good stuff there. I would give this a YES-C but there are too many production things that are not necessarily one-click fixes. I'd like to see a resub. NO, resub

It's true, this theme really doesn't get much love outside of rock. Props for taking a new approach. From a production standpoint this one is a little weak; the drums sound completely mono with no spaciousness at all, and a very dull/weak tone. Those really need to be replaced or at least re-mixed and re-processed (ride is quite loud for instance.) The whole mix could use some compression to boost up the average volume as it's hard to make out some of the parts without turning up my volume. The bass IS a bit on the boomy side but it's not that big of a deal. I would recommend more verb on the guitars as well. When the mix ended, I was really surprised. No soloing? No B-section? No rhythmic changes? You had a pretty nice groove going, but then it just stopped. I would definitely take this concept and really expand on it; pick up the pace of the rhythms at some point in the track, add some solos, vary up the chords (you stuck very closely to the original chords), etc. There's a lot of under-utilized potential here. NO, resub

Orchestral stuff is pretty basic and thin-sounding (too much high-end), and the xylo is pretty mechanical. The drums, organ and wah guitar come in and sound pretty out of place. Not very cohesive, though as the mix goes on I get that it's supposed to be sort of a rock mix. The playing isn't very tight overall and it just sounds like it's not geling very well. There's a distinct lack of energy, with the whole mix basically being carried by the lead guitar, which has a pretty plain and unwavering tone. I actually liked the idea of the synth lead when it showed up, as I thought it added interest. Still, it was pretty thin and the vibrato was a little overdone. This mix to me just doesn't have a lot of dynamics or energy. It's plodding and it doesn't really go anywhere. The arrangement is OK, and certainly passable, but just wasn't that interesting overall. Lots of noodling, not many creative variations or original sections to speak of. Not a bad mix overall but too lackluster to pass, IMO. NO

Yeah, the store isn't quite where I want it to be yet... it works perfectly, but I need to organize it a bit better. And yea, the graphics are resized poorly - I gotta redo that! As for Bandcamp, I can see the argument for music discovery, but if people buy things through my own store I keep 100% of the money, as opposed to giving 25% of it to someone else. I have the space + bandwidth to host my own FLAC/MP3 stuff, so it's a bit painful to give up a cut like that. But it's something I'll think about, for sure.

Love you, spambot!

Thanks for the comments all! Yes, the RAR OST is technically out (as digital, iTunes and physical) but I haven't promoted it heavily yet because the game isn't out.

With Jill's help, I've redesigned and relaunched my personal website, zirconmusic.com! I invite you all to check it out (and, if you'd like, leave some feedback here.) It was challenging to settle on a design and layout that could incorporate all the content I have there, which now includes: Art, descriptions and links to all seven of my original albums and soundtracks A new music for media page featuring 14 previously unreleased tracks I've written for games/film/TV/ads Updated Tutorials page with 7 text guides and 13 categorized video tutorials/walkthroughs Updated web store which now includes all 7 of my albums, retagged as FLAC/MP3 (5.5+ hours of music) plus a collection of sample libraries + presets All of my ReMixes with new writeups, backstory and tidbits on each New Credits page and updated Services page Thanks to Larry, OA and Anso who have all been giving me feedback on the new look + layout. Enjoy!

We just hit the 33% off level, and still rising.

Then the only solution is, as you said, to load multiple patches.