Welcome to the first dev diary for The Long Century.
If you've played historical grand strategy games, you've already met the idea behind this project. It has some difference with existing games, but Paradox Games as an example sit on top of the same foundation, the Clausewitz engine. The map, the time loop, the save system, the scripting, its all shared. The games are the content layered on top with some tie-in code to sort it all out.
The Long Century starts from that same idea, but pushes it further. We want a world where the rules of politics, economics, diplomacy and war emerge from interacting simulations rather than from a pile of hand-written scripts. Fewer special cases, more systems that talk to each other.
What "generalizable" buys us
- Provinces, states and nations are described by data, not baked into bespoke code paths. A scenario is just a fully scripted starting state.
- Modders can create whole new scenarios that are built in the same game-data. This means that popular Alt-History scenarios can be hosted and shared without needing to restart the game or download mods. You can join the lobby and have it shared to you
- The mechanics are made as more than just a part of one game! They can be reused and moved across all sorts. For example, during map development, we had a multiplanetary map with launch sites working to see the possible restraining limits on this game.
- Game logic is exposed through embedded scripting, so the rules are something you can read and change, not a black box.
- Ability to support the game for years to come with updates, content, expansions, and modding support.
A lil development history
Did you know that the military system used to be completely scripted? Designers could completely change the battle decisions and calculations, and the game would be all the more for it. Any battle system the designer wished for, chosen by any arbitrary allowance.
Over the next diaries we'll go system by system: Military, Politics, Research, Migration, Jobs, Issues, Laws, the Map, types of buildings, upgrades, supply, mobilization, tactics, trade, and more. Take a look at our forum for more!