H2H.. A Way Ahead

[Steelrain60]

I recently submitted my first scenario to H2H. I don't have a fear of criticism, as long as the criticism is constructive. I'm looking forward to the input. To all those who are currently in the process of testing my scenario, "Death Road at Oltarzew", I encourage you to send me emails reporting initial impressions and how things are going. My email address is [email protected].

I've read the comments on this thread and several others on the same topic with interest. I am hoping that the testers working in the H2H format can help me to construct a better product that, ultimately, is more balanced. While I want "Death Road" to be as historical as possible, I went into the process trying at all times to remember that JTCS is a game, and the purpose of playing games is to provide enjoyment. It's a tough balance, and like I said, I'm hoping that the H2H process will help me tweak the scenario in order to give future players the most enjoyment possible from the scenario.

I considered simply entering the scenario into the dbase, but ultimately decided to give H2H a try. My reasoning for this was the if I simply placed the scenario into the dbase, it might never get any play. I have limited time to pursue my hobby, and if I'm going to play a scenario against someone, I want to know that I won't waste my time with scenarios that are blatantly unbalanced. In short, I want bang for the buck. I have to admit that I am a little fanatical about this. I actually identified all the scenarios in EF/WF/RS that are recommended for Human vs. AI play only and put them in a separate folder so they don't show up when I open the game up. And for scenarios in the dbase, I typically am very reluctant to download scenarios that don't have a reputation for being good for H2H play. It's this factor that drove me to put my first attempt at scenario design into H2H. I hope that my experience with H2H validates that it is a decent way for designers to improve the quality of their products.

I'm of the opinion that H2H needs to exist, but players should also have the opportunity, if they so desire, to enter their scenarios directly into the dbase. But if a scenario comes thru the H2H approval process, Blitz players would have some measure of assurance that the scenario will likely give them "bang for the buck". My 2 cents.