ANNOUNCING: Xpace - The New Frontier From: Tony Hamilton <xofty@xoftware.com> Date: Fri, 08 Nov 1996 00:00:00 +0000 *********************************************************** * New Multi-Player Space/Strategy Turn-Based Game !!! * *********************************************************** November 8th, 1996 Xoftware Innovations <http://www.xoftware.com/> is pleased to announce the immediate, public availability of a PRE-RELEASE, BETA version of... *** Xpace - The New Frontier(tm) *** * Up to 200 players per game! * 50,000+ star systems * Virtually unlimited numbers of ship and stations * Fully-configurable ship, station and facility designs * Delayed communications * Fleet battles * Open-ended play * Empire management automation * Turn-based play (typically through E-mail) * Computer players * Much, much more... Xpace - The New Frontier is a totally new experience in multi-player space/strategy games. Key features combine to make this game unlike ANY other: -> Many factors contribute to placing you IN the game. These include the representation of the player as an actual Emperor. Move the Emperor, and you move the center of your empire - "Homeworld is where you hang your Emperor". Communications between YOU and the rest of the empire are NOT instant! No one else has dared to attempt this functionality, rationalizing that it would be "too complex". We've done it, and turned it into an exciting, strategic element of the game! -> This game is BIG. Others are not. Why? Design and performance. We designed this game to be large in scope from the start. Up to 200 players in a game, and a HUGE universe to use as your playground. Performance is DEFINITELY an issue when hosting games with large numbers of players. Instead of worrying about it, we decided to let YOU decide how long is too long to process turns. If it's too long, don't host large games. If your new Pentium system has time to spare, then go for it! :-) -> Open-ended play. Yes, we know some of you play solely for the thrill of victory. However, if you've ever played games where: - The galaxy gets crowded too quickly - There's no room to grow (or run!) - One or two players quickly dominate and the rest of the game is just a formality - You always wanted to find out what would happen if the game lasted longer, or new players joined mid-game... ... then this game is for you! Xpace - The New Frontier is destined to become the vehicle for space sagas of epic proportions... where many empires grow to mammoth proportions, and small "start-ups" quietly grow on the fringes, planning and plotting... where Emperors grapple with issues of morale and technology infrastructure. Xoftware Innovations never set out to build the "perfect game". Far from it, Xpace - The New Frontier won't appeal to everyone. It isn't as flashy and polished as some of the other well-respected games in this market. Our goal was, instead, to develop an entirely new gaming experience to appeal to those who are looking for something fundamentally different. If enough people take a liking to the game, there's always time for 3D graphics and celebrity voice-overs in Version 2... ;-) *** THIS IS A BETA RELEASE *** Over 100 testers from around the world have been helping us stabilize and refine the game for months. It has finally arrived at a state where it is playable and enjoyable. However, there are still many features missing, and certainly many flaws left uncorrected (most of these are documented on our web site). More importantly, the documentation is still rough. So what are we getting at? We felt it was important for everyone to get a chance to experience first-hand what we're working on (this is not a demo version - it really works, save for the missing features and known bugs). However, we cannot officially support this pre-release, beta version. At our web site, however, you will find information on how to: - Obtain access to our private mailing list where the beta-testers hang out and discuss the game - Gain access to limited e-mail support ... and most importantly ... - How to get involved in large scale (100+ players!) games Xoftware Innovations will be hosting. Nothing is stopping you from hosting games on your own, but it does take time and effort to host large-scale games. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Xpace - The New Frontier is compatible with Windows 3.1, Windows for Workgroups, Windows 95 and Windows NT. 8MB of RAM and 8MB of hard drive space is requiremed. Recommended configuration is a Pentium-class system and 16MB or more of RAM. AVAILABLE FOR IMMEDIATE DOWNLOAD: <http://www.xoftware.com/> (other download sites coming, including international) (NOTE: be sure to read the Known Bugs section on our web-site, as there is a potential problem with installation. We've documented a simple work-around). FOR MORE INFORMATION: Visit our web-site: <http://www.xoftware.com/> Send us e-mail: info@xoftware.com Write to us (if anyone still does this!): Xoftware Innovations P.O.Box 4227 Citrus Heights, CA 95611 Up