cypher50

I just got the game two days ago; I held off on initially buying a while ago because I looked at the graphics and thought "amateurs". After hearing about the Kickstarter story on Gamasutra, though, I bought it and now I am hooked on it...

If they ever make a sequel, I hope it is isometric but the gameplay is so good that I really can't see a huge graphical overhaul making a difference in how I feel about the game now.

I find myself reading more about games then playing them at 33 because of marriage and work; one thing that always cheered me up after a rough day, though, was listening to the Giant Bombcast with Jeff & Ryan. This hurts like losing a good friend...rest in peace.

@Andorski: For MS to promote gaming on touch screen Win8 devices their gaming division would have to get a game that developers would create for the 360 as well as PC (a la Skulls of the Shogun).

See, this is where MS is shooting themselves in the foot: before the Surface tablet project even made it to market, there should of already been a strong initiative to push 360 integration farther then just "Smart Glass" technology. If not 360 integration then what about actually investing some effort into Games For Windows and transitioning it into a Games For Surface portal?

First of all, I will gladly admit to being a casual gamer these days. At 32, I don't have the time & patience I once had to dedicate hours to playing the latest greatest AAA console games (my poor PS3 gathers dust unless I am streaming movies to it) and I read more fantasy then playing RPGs. However, just like in my childhood, I can still be tempted into hour long sessions of Civilization (currently addicted to Gods & Kings). And I am downright fiendin' for the new SimCity with its graphical data layers and ploppables and regional play...drool...

Games like Civ & SimCity are still games that you need the PC mouse & keyboard controls to really get the full experience; I have tried console versions like Civ: Rev but the missing depth of the PC game always leads me back to the original series. However, with the advent of tablets and the "post PC" hardware world, I've been waiting for a revolution to come where I would finally see not just simpler PC games but in-depth strategy games released from their desktop & laptop confines and come to the masses on devices like the Surface. So, when Microsoft finally released Surface RT & gave out the pricing/specs on Surface Pro then it came as a HUGE disappoint: the RT provides just a new OS flavor on the tablet scene that adds some more productivity aspects but doesn't have any deep support in regards to programming libraries or market support to game developers. And, while the Surface Pro will have an x86 architecture, the lack of power in the integrated 4000 GPU leads much to be desired for game developers.

I have heard of rumors regarding the XBox Surface but even this just sounds more like an addendum to the eventual XBox 720 then an actual push to recapture the glory days of PC gaming when 3D cards reinvigorated graphics and developers pushed the envelope regarding content in games. I would think that we would be getting new touch screen takes on games like Company Of Heroes, the Total War series, having MMOs designed for the Surface RT...why didn't Microsoft go for the PC game market that has been neglected for the last few years due to companies crying "piracy"? I would think with the simple DRM services like Steam/Origin out there, now would be the time to transition from a desktop based PC gaming market to making tablet hardware that courts gamers not interested in 99 cent games and wanting something of a little more substance without having to sit in front of a desk. No reason to limit these games to $1500 and higher laptops...time to embrace the tablet era...