[jodokast]

Hello!

I've always been impressed by your work on Fate of the Galaxy (as well as the other FSO work). It's pretty awesome.

I'm pointing my social media followers to your website to check out the project and I wanted to note that a nice and simple Q&A on the About section could really help new people who know nothing (and care nothing) about Freespace and FSO and game modding...

So questions like this:

Q: What is Fate of the Galaxy?
A: Glad you asked! Fate of the Galaxy (FotG), also known as The Star Wars Conversion, is a singleplayer and multiplayer total conversion for the FreeSpace 2 Source Code Project (SCP) engine set in the Star Wars universe. The game is currently in development.

Q: What is FreeSpace 2 SCP?
A: Back in the late 90s Volition, Inc. Made a space sim game called FreeSpace 2. The game was great and as Star Wars fans we really wanted to see a game like it set in the Star Wars universe. Later the game developer closed down but released the source code for the game. This let the gaming community build amazing games and keep the game alive for years after it's demise. Fate of the Galaxy uses the FreeSpace 2 engine.

Q: When can I play it?
A: (I don't really know this answer) We are working hard to get this to players as soon as possible! Right now you can download these files and try a few thing..... or whatever the answer is.

Q: How much does it cost?
A: You just need to buy FreeSpace 2 (GoG.com is a great place to get it) and then follow this guild to install the FreeSpace Open (FSO) mod and so on....

Q: How can I help the project get finished?
A: We're casing voice actors and have some staff positions open now. Also, spreading the word in the gaming community and Star Wars community is a great way to get interest in the project.

Q: This isn't a question, but it looks awesome! Keep up the good work!
A: Thanks! We are super excited to live our Star Wars dreams Fate of the Galaxy!

[jodokast]

Also, I don't mean to be presumptuous as an outsider and all that. But I'll just say that it can take someone quite awhile to piece together all the info they need to understand FSO and FotG, so a Q&A could be really nice

[ngld]

You might want to take a look at their current FAQ. I guess you've already read that since a shorter version is on the website.

Disclaimer: I'm just another outsider.

Q: What is FreeSpace 2 SCP?
[...] Later the game developer closed down [...]

This might be nitpicking but Volition Inc. still exists. They've developed Saints Row and several other games. However, their publisher changed twice because of bankruptcy.

Q: How much does it cost?
A: You just need to buy FreeSpace 2 (GoG.com is a great place to get it) and then follow this guild to install the FreeSpace Open (FSO) mod and so on....

Since this is a total conversion you won't need to buy FS2. You'll just need the engine (FSO) and the mod files.

Q: How can I help the project get finished?
A: We're casing voice actors and have some staff positions open now. Also, spreading the word in the gaming community and Star Wars community is a great way to get interest in the project.

According to this thread they're only looking for a model converter.

[jodokast]

Good stuff man! Yeah, I wasn't trying to write it, just giving ideas.

I will say that that I didn't see that FAQ on the site . That's what makes it difficult for someone who knows nothing about this. (and obviously I don't know too much).

That FAQ is pretty good (but probably a bit testy to be good PR), but I didn't find it by going to FotG's website, I found it by another user directing me to it on the forum. The kind of person I'm telling about the game is totally uninterested in joining or reading a game modding forum to find info about an interesting Star Wars project. I don't think the website needs constant updating, or a redesign, I just think it needs a bit more info upfront to help the uninitiated to get excited about it.

Let's take a look at a really nice website that has a similar problem: http://www.planetcoaster.com/
Planet coaster looks like a cool game, fun design and snazzy website. You can already recorder different packages... but there is hardly no information about the actual game on the site. To find info on it I had to read press coverage of E3 and info about the Roller Coaster Tycoon series. If they had a nice Q&A on there or a gameplay trailer, then all my questions would be answered and I might pre-order the game.

So all that said, I just want to humbly suggest getting that FAQ (or a rework of it) up on the main site, in simple text. I'd be happy to help with suggested revisions as well. I'm not a writer, but an extra opinion to consider is never a bad thing right?

My thing is that I think Fate of the Galaxy is really really looking good and I want the work on it to get as much appreciation as it deserves. So yeah, I want to help market this thing (and I know it's not for money).

[CountBuggula]

I'm a little bit confused.  Are you looking at the old website or our new one? The current new website has a very clear "About" section and FAQ both linked to at the top level navigation.  Is this not clear enough?
http://fateofthegalaxy.net/about

[General Battuta]

It's not clear enough for a general audience. Start with simpler questions and keep it to shorter sentences. And get a higher-contrast font!

Look at this block of text, for instance:

Fate of the Galaxy (FotG), also known as The Star Wars Conversion, is a singleplayer and multiplayer total conversion for the FreeSpace 2 SCP engine set in the Star Wars universe. Instead of seeking to recreate the experience of some of the previous LucasArts X-Wing Space Simulation games, we're taking a slightly different approach in basing our mod almost entirely on the Original Trilogy (OT)

It starts with a name, goes to an acronym, goes to another name, uses jargon (total conversion), goes to an engine nobody will ever have heard of. You should open with:

Fate of the Galaxy is a first-person space combat game about the incredible starfighter battles of the Star Wars Original Trilogy. It's fan-made, not-for-profit, and totally free!

Writing copy for game publicity is a very tricky art.

[swashmebuckle]

Yeah, that's a lot better.

I would like to have a separate project history section though that's full of impenetrable jargon and gossip about former team members and for that to be our front page.

[CountBuggula]

Sure, I can dumb it down a bit for the introduction.  In my defense, I think I copied most of that directly from Chief's wording on the old website and what was previously available here in the forums.  But you're right, for the non FS2 crowd I can do better.  I'll try and make an update quickly.

[General Battuta]

It's not dumb to be clear, and writing critique isn't critique of the author. You're doing great!

[CountBuggula]

It's not dumb to be clear, and writing critique isn't critique of the author. You're doing great!

Quite alright, I didn't take it personally.  I've updated the page, let me know what you think.  I borrowed a few of your lines for it.

[wookieejedi]

It's not dumb to be clear, and writing critique isn't critique of the author. You're doing great!

Quite alright, I didn't take it personally.  I've updated the page, let me know what you think.  I borrowed a few of your lines for it.

The new overview sounds great!

[General Battuta]

 

[benklop]

I've gone through all the FAQs and re-worded a lot, added a few questions, and re-ordered things. Let me know what you think!

[jr2]

How about dark background, light grey (almost white) text?

Like this (just inverted colors in MS Paint after snipping):






EDIT: To clarify, the above is an image I copied and inverted the colors on.

[CountBuggula]

I think in general white on black has been established as bad website design.  That said, we could probably darken the grey text a bit to make it more readable.

edit: Ok, I darkened up the font considerably, let me know if that looks better.  I think it's an improvement.

[jr2]

Much better, thanks!