作者：Stephen Dinehart

Kabam以在Google+平台发布的《Edgeworld》试水付费体验的大型多人战略游戏。游戏的外观和感觉像是基于子画面的第二代即时战略游戏，如暴雪的《星际争霸》和《魔兽争霸：人类与兽人》。

虽然游戏缺乏即时战斗元素，但着实为核心战略游戏玩家提供了令人满意的用户体验。

这款游戏与《Cityville》和《Farmville》之类的游戏完全不同，更像是《Empires and Allies》，但《Edgeworld》提供了更贴近于传统RTS游戏的玩法。

《Edgeworld》基本的攻击玩法(from gamasutra）

游戏有两种主要模式：建造基地和战争。游戏中有科技树，而且其结构设置使得玩家必须建造多个兵营、仓库和精炼厂等建筑才能升级和获得额外的资源。

乍看之下像是很简单的事情，然而，每个单位的建造所需的时间各不相同，从数分钟到数小时甚至数天不等。当然，玩家可以通过付费来加快速度。付费选项从9.9美元到399.9美元不等。玩家付费后可以获得对应数量的游戏内置货币（游戏邦注：在游戏中称为“白金”），可暂时改变建造时间、单位运输能力和经验值获取等内容。这些货币还可以用来购买新的单位和特殊道具，或者玩游戏中称为“Zoot’s Loot”的赌博机游戏，奖励的是《Edgeworld》中的特殊道具。

《Edgeworld》中的“白金”定价(from gamasutra)

我在研究中花了40美元，体验了部分奖励：基地更大、某些昂贵的单位变得更大和等级提升。我可以更加简单地在战斗中肆掠其他玩家的基地，只要在敌人的基地中放下25个单位即可。

游戏会向玩家反馈在掠夺中收获的资源、收到的提示信息和建筑及单位的建造完成。显然，游戏所采用的商业模式就是控制玩家的节奏。

这也是为何我将这款游戏称为“付费游戏”而不是“免费游戏”的原因。免费的成分相当缓慢，除了最初的基地建造外，吸引力并不高。要实现某些目标，玩家就需要花费金钱，但是一旦他们花费金钱达到期望中的目标，也毫无收获，只是需要花费更多的金钱，以期在回合制的战斗中摧毁更多对手的基地。

《Edgeworld》的战斗过程（游戏邦注：如下图所示）包括选择对手、攻击准备、单位选择和放置、非互动性战斗和结局。“Warp Gate”是可以用来从玩家的基地处派遣单位的传送门。每个玩家有3个“Warp Gate”，建造该建筑后玩家可以获得一次免费的传送机会，但Warp Gate功能的间歇时期很长。

《Edgeworld》攻击战斗回合(from gamasutra）

《Edgeworld》很有趣，而且吸引了许多粉丝。但是到最后，我发现自己在建造基地和某些我不关心的单位上浪费了金钱，而且对游戏的背景故事我也不是很感兴趣。

我试图寻找好友Relic的基地，这样我就能够去掠夺他。但是，最后我发现，只有知道他在游戏中的具体名称才能找到他。这对游戏的社交性有何帮助呢？我们甚至无法在地图上布置防守单位。所以，我只能去攻击AI玩家和其他陌生玩家，这让我感到很不满意。

游戏确实很具有吸引力，但是并没有传达出我期望中的体验。我必须承认，那些热衷于RTS和赌博的人可能会喜欢这款游戏，但务必要注意自己在游戏中的行为。我发现自己有时候控制不住花费金钱购买道具的冲动。现在，我已经将自己的账户删除，也就等同于放弃了这款游戏。

最后，我想把这款游戏称为高尚的实验。从表面上看，《Edgeworld》提供了富有吸引力的玩法，或许能够令社交网络上的广大游戏玩家感到满意，但是它却难以满足核心玩家的期望。付出金钱并不能换来更深层次的体验，这使游戏难以驱动玩家的购买力和参与度。

游戏中售价5美元的Terrakor（from gamasutra)

对于这款游戏的节奏和道具售价，我觉得玩家们必须重视和谨慎。在1周的时间内，我花了足以购买盒装游戏产品的金钱，这些钱足以购买《星际争霸2》或者《英雄连》全集。

这些盒装游戏都可以创造彻底击败第二代回合制付费游戏的第三代RTS游戏体验。奇怪的是，盒装游戏似乎更具“社交性”（游戏邦注：通过在线多人模式）。

游戏邦注：本文发稿于2012年3月1日，所涉时间、事件和数据均以此为准。（本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译，拒绝任何不保留版权的转载，如需转载请联系：游戏邦）

Kabam’s Edgeworld – Taking Hardcore Strategy to Social Networks

Stephen Dinehart

Kabam’s Edgeworld for Google Plus is an interesting foray into the potential massively multiplayer strategy games using a pay-to-play (PTP), let’s not call if free-to-play (FTP), model. It has the look and feel of sprite-based 2nd-generation real-time strategy games; think Blizzard’s “Starcraft” and “Warcraft: Orcs and Humans”.

Though missing real-time combat elements, it does provide a gratifying user experience for the core strategy game player. That said, I’m left asking why the design team didn’t take into account lessons learned from later generations of RTS games.

Bringing the play-patterns of RTS games to the social space was a smart move on part of Zynga and boy did they. They pulled in genre-defining talent like Louis Castle, Brian Reynolds, Mike Verdu, Mark Skaggs, and the list goes on.

Since, they’ve gone on to inspire a whole new generation of games based on the RTS experiments of Westwood’s early years. Rather than derivatives like Cityville and Farmville, very much like Zynga’s new Empires and Allies, Edgeworld provides a play space that is much more aligned with traditional RTS games.

The game exists in two primary modes, base building and battle. The tech tree is convoluted and the structures themselves feel disposal to the point where a player is forced to build multiple barracks, depots, refineries etc in order to gain levels and acquire additional resources.

While this may not sound too painful, it is, each unit takes varying amounts of time to build from minutes, to hours, even days. Unless of course a player wants to pay, and boy do they. The payment tiers start at $9.90 USD and go up to $399.90 USD. For this a player gets a range of in-game monies (“platinum”) and perks to temporally change things like build times, unit transfer capacities, experience gained, etc. They can also be used to purchase unit, special items, and to play a ‘slot machine’ of a chance game called “Zoot’s Loot” that awards special items from the Edgeworld shop.

In my research I spent $40 and felt little reward, a bigger base, some larger very expensive units and a rising level. I was able to more easily clear other player’s bases in battle, though dropping 25 units on a enemy base and watching the brutally uneventful battle was grueling.

The play flow calls the player back to base to harvest resources, receive notices and build additional structures/units. If 3rd and 4th-generation RTS games were click fests this is the Chinese water torture of a click fest. It’s really really slow and repetitive. The pacing, which is clearly part of the business model, kills the game.

This is why I call it PTP not FTP. The free components were very slow and not engaging beyond the initial base-building. To get anywhere the player is required to spend, and spend well, but once they get there nothing is left to do but buy more, and stomp out additional enemy bases in a very uneventful turn-based combat scenario.

Edgeworld’s combat round (see below) cosists of – Opponent Selection, Attack Initiation, Unit Selction/Placment, Non-interactive Combat and Outcome. A “Warp Gate” is used to move units from a player’s base. Each has three ‘warps’, after building the sturcture players begin with one complimentary warp that recharges at long intervals.

Edgeworld is fun and has some quality craft to it but in the end, for this player of a game maker, I felt like I wasted cash building a base and units I didn’t care about, in a story world whose back story I couldn’t care less about. In keeping with the games pressumed inspiration, a simple expository introduction with an inciting incident would help tremendously.

In the ultimate blow, I tried to find my one Relic buddy that plays, so I could mop-up his base of course. It ends up that without his game-specific user name I couldn’t. How’s that for social? We couldn’t even put our offensive units on the same map. So I was left to attack AI-players and anonymous users, that left me wondering how actual they were.

The game was compelling, but didn’t deliver on the experience I was expecting by the property’s set-up and branding. Though I must admit, if someone with an RTS-itch and a gambling problem gets a hold of this – watch out! I found myself thinking “Maybe if I just buy more…”. As of now, my account has been deleted, or should I say deactivated. Like Facebook I’m sure you can never really leave.

In the end, I’d call this a noble experiment. On the surface Edgeworld provides some compelling play that might satisfy the average game player on a social network but fails to satisfy core player expectations. The returns are not increasingly rewarding to deep play, and meaningful moments occur with little frequencey forcing the game to loose chances to drive player purchases, play and more importantly engagement.

Given the pace and pricing of this game I’d be really worried about serious players, and encourage them to get help (or to put their time and money toward more noble pursuits). In matter of a week I spent the same amount as any boxed product, and for the price I’d rather just grab Starcraft II or better yet, head over to Company of Heroes Complete Pack.

They both pack a lot more bang for your buck and deliver 3rd- generation RTS experiences that blow 2nd-generation turn-based PTP out of the water. Strangely enough the boxed products actually seem more ‘social’ (at least while playing online multiplayer modes). That said, give Kabam’s Edgeworld a look, it inspired me and is a sure indicator of things to come. (Source: Gamasutra)