So far, I have to thank you all for your replies. I'm already planning on AI to be a standard part of the game, if no player is available (or interested) in covering another base. And I agree that there is reasonable risk that another player might have terrible ideas of how to help, like spending all their money on a line of tanks to be built, despite the surrounding area being swamp, and hovercrafts would be better.
What I'm hoping to get is information on Specific issues. For instance, what exactly might other players do to cause havoc? There is significant value to each player helping their team. If their team member loses their region, then the enemy will most likely take it over, and have more resources, and more foot hold in the area, which could cause you to lose the value and reward of winning the whole planet.
Possible problem Ideas.
1) Perhaps a player has a bunch of friends on the apposing side. They might allow the other team to win, and be handed rewards under the table, or for an agreement that their region will be left alone, they can sit their and ship as much resources back until their base is the last one standing.
2) Waiting for another player to be wiped out on purpose, then coming in with a larger squad and stealing it back so they own 2+ regions now, including any left over buildings.
3) Perhaps they just have terrible tactics, like building the wrong things, or attempting to spend to enhance the technology of a player, but neglect defenses and offenses.
4) Perhaps ALL of the players from one side are off line. It would have to be purely dependent on AI.
I want to figure out what issues might happen, and then figure out ways to resolve it.
Perhaps Backup military strategists. I.e. additional players for a particular side, who's skills reach a certain level will receive this status. Perhaps when a player goes off line, they will receive a message indicating it, and can choose to go help. Perhaps the rewards for this will be considerable.
Also, perhaps a player could create a list of features, for instance, only allow players with X experience or better take over, have a specified list of players, or limit it to a guild, or open it to any team player on the same map. Finally, by default go back to AI. A player can choose the form of AI, Aggressive Defensive, reactive, etc... and perhaps spend money for better AI's in the game. And have changing AI's. so if an AI does start to get recognized, and weaknesses found, a player's AI would still change from time to time. Perhaps even having events for it.
But how to react to individual player 2 player control issues?
- Bad choices. Perhaps other approved players can see what was done. (as a learning exercise as well) also that the owning/offline player can review the tactics chosen. and rate the helping player. Perhaps you can limit yourself to those with a higher approval rating. Perhaps (like Star Craft replay) other players can review tactics that were used to win a planet. and rank players by votes of good tactics or not, perhaps even classifying them. This could help people without rank get noticed and voted up.
Of course that also opens up the whole "I have 400 'friends' in my list, and we all vote each other up' replace friends with guilds or hack groups, etc...
Then we would need to see ways of tracking the economics for players voting each other just for voting each other.
This voting system could also help identify which tactics to study and possibly rebuild in AI. but this so far is still all chaotic thought on the issue and i will need to tune it up. I welcome more ideas, considerations and possible solutions.
