Hey Garry
I haven't played with your industry for a long time, I tried and... I remembered why. I mainly tested AuzInd2, because the 6 was not yet released, and the number of problems I encountered there overwhelmed me a bit. I also saw the latest version but still most of the same bugs remain.
There are a lot of these problems, I will mention five of the most important ones
1. Terrible lags when changing view
Haven't seen it with any other set. The problem occurs even on small maps, when paused, where there are no vehicles. Especially when the view is far away. I don't know what is causing this, but I suppose the enterprise graphics may be encoded incorrectly. Perhaps they are too big.
2. The use of several completely different production models, from different sets.
Steel Mill production comes from SPI, Copper Ore Mine from FIRS, Forest and Oil Rig works like Manual Industries, OpenCut Iron Ore Mine is probably your idea (nice but doesn't work), Iron Ore Mine works, but it's completely different mechanics again (works like a factory in regular OTTD, transforming timber (crew) into iron ore) and Flour Mill like from yet another set.
GarryG wrote: ↑09 Oct 2021 11:47
I don't intend to make these complicated like other industry sets just nice and simple.
Using different mechanics in one set is not nice and simple.
I have the impression that you have not even made a decision on what mechanics the production and its growth should be based on, because it looks different everywhere.
3. The impact of the supply of raw materials in most of the enterprises are not working properly
In most cases, deliveries do not affect the level of production (e.g. Abattoirs, Sawmill on Water, Textile Mill). Of which:
- In one part of the enterprises, raw materials are collected, but they are not processed and do not disappear, which means that over time it becomes overcrowded and the player stops receiving payment for transport (e.g. Abattoirs, Textille Mill)
- In the second part of enterprises, the supplies of raw materials are not recorded at all (e.g. Lumber Yard, Sawmill on Water, Smelter, OpenCut Iron Ore Mine)
4. Extremely different levels of primary production
Some enterprises like Cattle Station, Agriculture Farm, Sheep Farm have a very high basic production of 500-1500, which continues to grow after the start of transportation. Meanwhile, the vast majority of other enterprises have this production much lower or even pathetic as in the case of Warf A, where the production is 6 and a maximum of... 36, provided that 224 units of other loads are delivered.
5. Too many similar companies and cargoes.
I understand your willingness to add more new enterprises, but please note that a large number of them causes numerous problems.
- It is difficult for a new player to find his place in this set because the number of possible connections is huge, especially since some cargoes are produced and collected by even a dozen companies.
- The world map becomes non-functional due to the oversized enterprise listing part
- The colors denoting enterprises are very often repeated or very similar, often the same color is shared by the enterprises that produce and accept the cargo, which is very problematic.
- The Industry chains window also loses its functionality because you cannot see all manufacturers or customers without scrolling the window.
- Probably a large number of graphics may be related to lags which completely spoils the fun of the game
6. No version designation in the add-on name.
Additionally, I have to mention a classic issue with all your add-ons.
For this set you used different markings each time. AuzInd, AuzInd160, AuzInd v3, AuzInd2... where AuzInd2 is the 2nd version and AuzInd170 is the 7th version. Players who have All Versions view turned on won't know which one is the most recent. Unfortunately, this cannot be undone, but I do ask that you choose some form of revision marking and use it consistently. Definitely preferably the same for all your add-ons. Then it will be much easier to spot the latest ones. The one used by Andy (FIRS, FISH, HEQS, ...) and many other authors is very good.
What I think you should do first is
determine what production mechanics you want your set to use. It should definitely be the same for all enterprises (if you want it to be simple and nice).
Second, you should
find out what is causing the lag problem otherwise all the further work will be pointless as the problem is too nagging.
Third, you should
determine if you really need all these enterprises and cargoes. In my opinion, it is definitely possible and it is worth limiting.
Fourthly, before adding more enterprises, you should
check and repair or adjust to the correct mechanics all the enterprises that are already in the set.
Fifthly, before you publish a new version,
decide how to mark the version so that you don't have to change it anymore and you can use it for your other add-ons as well.
It was just general. If you want, I can write also more detailed comments and ideas.