Something that some other 4x games have that ES2 is sorely missing is the ability to view all explored systems and planets in a single pane. This idea is my suggestion on a way to simplify some of the more time-consuming aspects of Empire Management.
What is it?
This idea is to suggest a new screen or menu be added to the Empire Summary screen showing ONLY the systems, which you have discovered, that have no colony or enemy colonies in them. This new screen will NOT have the players colonized systems. The current Systems Management screen already shows YOUR colonies and this would not be changed (unless Amplitude wants to add features). From a GUI standpoint, the way the navigation to this would look is similar to the Economy Screen under the Marketplace tab with the Purchasable Items view. For an idea of what I mean take a look at the image below:
(Please forgive my very poor visual examples)
The name is not set in stone, just my suggestion placeholder. This new viewing option would be in addition to, not replacing, the current Systems Management menu.
What can you do with it?
Let's take a look at a very rough imagining of what this new screen might show:
(Please forgive my very poor visual examples)
As you can see there is a lot of information being presented here. The most important feature of this additional screen is the ability to sort and filter information. This ability would allow you to bring to the top of the list just the type of planet or system you wanted.
Let's look at a "real world" scenario. I create a new game playing as the Vaulters. One of their prime strengths is not being tied to a single area of the galaxy but being rather decentralized in their geography. As such, they can go for only those best systems that suit their needs. So, as a Vaulter, if I was looking for my next system to expand to and I wanted to get the system with the most "Large" or "Huge" planets then I would first filter the list by planet size then group them and sort by largest system size. The first filter would show only the largest planets and the second sort would bring the systems with the highest number of planets to the top of the list. In just a few clicks I would have the information I needed.
To break this down further, lets look at some applications for this new menu:
- When looking to expand the empire, another tab (see example pictures above) would list all of the systems and the planets the player has already explored but not yet colonized. This new list would allow you to:
- Sort and filter by various factors, including: system size (number of planets), planet size, planet type, whether or not it is currently colonizable (only those you have the available tech, not already colonized by another empire), anomaly present (positive or negative), FIDS levels, resources available, etc.
- Send the nearest available colony ship (in a fleet) to the selected planet and colonize it.
This list might also be useful to help determine conquest paths, using the sort and filter to only show those systems inhabited (already colonized or those with outposts) by empires with which you are at war.
- All of these new capabilities would have a similar visual style as the current summary screen but with some differences:
- Added drop-down filter or two at the top for showing only: uncolonized planets, unique planets, planets of your enemies, planets of a certain size or type, etc.
- Different table listings like: System Name, System Size, Planet Name, Planet Size, Planet Type, Default FIDSI, Resources, etc.
Why does this idea matter?
To do the simple search I just described above while playing today you have to scroll all around the visible galaxy and remember what you saw while comparing all the rest in your head. And that is if I only had 2 criteria. Imagine if I wanted to sort by any additional info like resources or anomalies or whether or not the planet is colonizable? To do that manually you would probably have to find the best systems first then go back and forth between to compare the two, and that assumes you don't get lost in all the scrolling (huge+ galaxies make this probable). For your point about time being limited in multiplayer, just remember that fewer clicks and almost no scrolling to get a simple view of the desired information is going to be much faster. In addition, if you have the ability (button at the end of the row) to automatically send the nearest colonizer (shows number of turns it would take in that column) then you just saved yourself a whole load of steps right there!
When would you use this?
At the start of the game, when you've explored a whole lot and have LOTS of colonization options, wouldn't it be easier to limit down your choices to just a select few with only a few clicks? On the flip side, toward the end of the game, wouldn't it be nice to know, with just a few clicks, which ones are still available without having to visually scan the whole galaxy while scrolling everywhere? Or when planning that impending war with.... anyone, how nice would it be to know the juiciest targets for your invasion fleet with just a few clicks of the mouse?
Why should this be added?
To sum up the reason for this new screen in one word: Simplicity. Going to a single screen to determine your next target for conquest, expansion, etc. with only a few clicks and almost no memorization or having to think about it would make each turn go that much faster and allow us to do more of the other fun stuff. On the other hand, having that much data in front of us would allow those of us so inclinde to equally consume our time in planning and creating all sorts of paths to building the greatest empire in the galaxy.
One more thought!
In addition to this new menu I would suggest a review of the current "Systems Management" menu to add one additional feature: Population Management
Having an additional ability to transfer colonists between systems, available as a new dropdown option when selecting a specific system, would go a long way to helping the player better maximize their Empires capabilities.
EDIT - 2018/03/06: Added a few visuals to help
EDIT - 2018/03/13: Change layout, added sections
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