Sega semble très satisfait du lancement d’Humankind cet été, même si depuis les patchs mensuels s’enchaînent pour ajuster de nombreuses choses. Ce qui n’est pas très surprenant pour un jeu de cette profondeur, qui va nécessiter du temps pour mûrir un peu plus. Selon un directeur de Sega, Haruki Satomi, le jeu aurait eu, dixit, « a good start » (un bon début) et « on peut espérer en faire une série à l’avenir » (« we can expect to make this a series in the future »). Voilà qui n’est pas non plus surprenant, Humankind a effectivement un très fort potentiel, et qui fonction de la qualité des futurs contenus supplémentaires qui seront proposés est une bonne nouvelle pour les joueurs.
Si tant est que l’éditeur ne fasse pas du jeu une vache à lait, il faut rester attentif à cela aussi…
Parallèlement, les développeurs ont mis à disposition au début du mois une version bêta des outils de modification du jeu (utilisant entre autre le Unity editor). Outils encore en cours de test, mais qui permettent déjà de réaliser des cartes et divers mods (i.e nouvelles unités, etc. voir cette annonce). Et outils qui si ils ne sont pas trop compliqués à utiliser, pourraient nettement contribuer au succès du jeu à l’avenir, les mods étant un contenu majeur pour un jeu souhaitant, tant que faire se peut, simuler ludiquement « l’Humanité » et donc son parcours très riche, certes très chaotique par moment mais aussi très vaste en possibilités.
Vous pouvez consulter les plus de 600 mods disponibles pour l’instant sur le site humankind.mod.io.
Quoi qu’il en soit, on est curieux de voir quelles seront les futures évolutions de ce 4X ambitieux, et par la suite, quand au hasard tôt ou tard Civilization VII émergera, quelles leçons le fameux jeu de Sid Meier en tirera.
Pour plus d’informations sur Humankind, voyez cette page sur Steam ou le site officiel.
Au passage, voyez aussi la présentation vidéo suivante (et les autres de la série Music Making of sur la chaîne YouTube du jeu) qui explique bien le travail fourni pour la réalisation des très belles musiques du jeu, un autre élément plus important qu’il n’y parait pour de nombreux jeux vidéo, y compris de stratégie. Bravo au compositeur Arnaud Roy pour ses très belles envolées musicales qu’il a mis en oeuvre afin de susciter l’imaginaire créatif des joueurs.
Communiqués
Sega – Q2 results for Fiscal Year ending March 2022 (voir ce document)
Major Questions in Results Briefing for Analysts and Institutional Investors
Entertainment Contents Business
Q: For “HUMANKIND TM”, although the reviews at Steam, etc. are good, has it contributed to the Q2 results?
Also do you think you can make this IP a series in the future?
A: It was good start so that we can expect to make this a series in the future. We find potential in this title, and it has become an IP we want to nurture for a long time. Although we cannot disclose specific figures as the revenue from the business deal are also included, it is undoubtedly a title that contributed to the Q2 results.Try the Humankind Demo Now
Do you ever want to relive all of human history? Do you dream of leading your people from humble beginnings to lasting fame and greatness? Do you wish you could leave your mark on humankind? If your answer to any of the above was a resounding yes, then you may be interested in Amplitude Studios’ latest turn-based 4X strategy game, HUMANKIND™.
Explore a world beautifully rendered on a fully 3D map, expand your empire territory by territory, exploit the resources of the land through your cities, and exterminate your enemies if necessary. Guide your civilization from its beginnings as a small Neolithic tribe to the great opportunities and dangers of the Contemporary era. As you move through history, you may adopt a new culture in each era to adapt to your changing situations and face your challenges. Yet each culture leaves a legacy on your people, and with 60 different cultures to choose from, over a million different possible combinations let you create a civilization as unique as you are by the time you reach the modern days.
Yet it is not the last remaining empire, the largest, nor the first to reach Mars who will emerge victorious at the end of the game, because HUMANKIND™ is all about the history of your people, the mark they left, and what they will be remembered for. All your great deeds, from growing a large population or building great cities full of wonders to founding a religion or inventing key technologies, will earn you Fame, and it is the most famous culture who is considered the winner in HUMANKIND™, even if they may no longer exist.
Still, if you are a great general who prefers to command their troops on the battlefield, Humankind offers you an engaging tactical experience integrated with the strategic management of your empire and armies. From small skirmishes of warriors, spearmen, and archers in the ancient era, to the gunlines, trenches, and even aerial bombardment of modern warfare, the clever use of terrain, unit abilities, and reinforcements can turn the tide of battle. Face charging knights by taking the high ground with your pikemen, hide your musketeers in forests to ambush your enemy and take cover from the return fire, and remember to bring a trebuchet or some cannons to bring down the enemy walls. And if your enemy still seems too strong, outflank them and bring your reinforcements to bear from behind their ranks, or simply bring your biggest guns and shell them from a safe distance.
If any of this has piqued your interest, but you’re not quite sure if you’ll like the game, you can experience the first 100 turns for yourself, playing from the Neolithic to the end of the classical era and combining up to two of fourteen different cultures cultures. Pick up the free demo on Steam, and try the early game before you continue your journey in the full game (yes, the save files are compatible, so you can just keep playing!)
How far will you push Humankind?
Grab the demo on Steam
Mod Tools Beta Available Now
Since the release of Humankind, many of our players have been eagerly waiting for modding support to be added to Humankind. With the Fabius Maximus Update, we are taking the first step for this: We are releasing a beta version of the mod tools, and have integrated mod.io into the game to make mod management easy. Please keep in mind that these tools are unfinished and we are still testing them, so not all functionalities are available yet, and you may into errors while making mods or playing with them.
How do you go about either, though?
Playing with Mods and Custom Maps
Thanks to mod.io integration in Humankind, finding, managing, and playing with mods is easy!
If you’re looking for new mods or maps to try, just use your Steam or mod.io account to connect to mod.io from the Mods or Map Editor screens. Then you can pull up a mod browser right there in the game, and subscribe to any mod that strikes your fancy. If you are already subscribed to many mods or maps, you can switch that browser to your collection view to easily manage which mods you are subscribed to (And even rate them from here. Don’t forget to let modders know you liked their work by giving it a thumbs up!)
Once you’ve subscribed to a couple of mods, you can activate them from the Mod Screen by simply ticking the checkbox in front of their name, and they will be added to the list at the top of the screen. However, please be careful about using multiple mods that affect the same game elements (e.g. modifying the same culture), as their changes my conflict and the game does not check compatibility between mods. Additionally, the game does not save mod loadout after quitting, so you will need to manually turn your mods back on before you start or load a game.
Making Mods
If you are more interested in making your own mods than playing with them, you may want to take a look at our dedicated tools. Everyone who owns Humankind on Steam will now find the Humankind Mod Tools in the Tools category of their Steam library. These tools use the Unity Editor, so when you launch them for the first time, they will walk you through installing the Unity Hub and Editor and activating a (free) unity license. Once all that is set up, you’re good to go, though you should always start your Humankind modding projects through the Tools in your Steam Library so that your project will provide you with the tools to easily import game data and upload your mod to mod.io.
For more on how to use the modding tools, please check out the Modding Guidelines and the Modding Tools Basics blog.
Looking forward to seeing all the mods you make,
– The Amplitude Team
À remarquer qu’il est en promo en ce moment.