Re: [Rails-devel] Playtest: 4-player 1835 in Rails 1.2.2 - A dozen newbugs!

[Erik V. <eri...@xs...>]

Thanks for this extensive playtest report. 

I have a few answers now, see below, and will check out the other points
later. 
A file saved around the time that you quit would help a lot.

Please note that 1835 is still marked "Partly playable". As much
functionality has recently been added, it's close to being marked "Almost
playable".

Erik.

-----Original Message-----
From: John David Galt [mailto:jd...@di...] 
Sent: Sunday 18 April 2010 10:13
To: rai...@li...
Subject: [Rails-devel] Playtest: 4-player 1835 in Rails 1.2.2 - A dozen
newbugs!

<yet unanswered complaints stripped for now>

The program is still using annoying 3-letter abbrevs for most companies.

[EV] Will be fixed when 1835 development is considered finished, as this
change will invalidate all existing (test) saved files.

It's also still listing X-Y coordinates for par values as well as current
values (which is wrong in all games that have par values).

[EV] Don't see what is 'wrong' here. You might find it annoying to see these
never-changing coordinates, and I would sympathize with that. Perhaps I even
might do something about it.

Now the second stock round begins, and very annoyingly, the main window
(showing player holdings and company prices) disappears, leaving only the
"start round" window and the map, with no way to get the main window back
since the options menu disappeared with it, so we have to make our decisions
without knowing who owns what.  Never do this!!  No window EVER has business
disappearing unless a human explicitly orders it to close!!

[EV] I agree, but others have ruled differently in the past. I'm all for it
to keep all windows open.
Anyway, you can always raise a window from the Game Status Options menu.

At this point I notice a map error.  Hex G1 is missing.  In the actual game,
G1 is a preprinted brown (or, if you prefer, gray) hex with a sharp-turn
track connecting Dusseldorf and Essen.  Without it, most of the green XX
tiles become unplayable in Essen, and Dusseldorf can never upgrade to brown,
so I have to call this one a major error.

[EV] Correct, my oversight. Will be added.

When it's time for M6 to upgrade Kiel, I see my first tile error: the
program offers to place #12, #14, #15, and #206 in Kiel.  Only 12 is legal,
of course.

[EV] Right, but the tiles display logic currently only knows about the
upgrade chart. You'll see soon enough what happens if you attempt to lay a
non-fitting tile. This item might be addressed sometime in the future, but
it can't seriously be called an 'error'.

*  I am not allowed to nationalize By shares from other people even though
   I have 60%.
*  When somebody does sell By, I'm not allowed to buy them then either, so
   apparently the program still imposes a 60% holding limit in 1835.

Finally, M2 buys the first 4 train.  The 2 trains disappear and he is forced
to discard a train of his choosing, but he is NOT offered a chance to form
the Pr.

[EV] Nationalisation, PR formation and the 100% limit have been implemented
only very recently, and will be in the next version.