Im not a massive fan of rts games, I played a few of the command and conquer series & homeworld that's about it, I have not touched an rts for years.

I have seen a few videos of dragon commander and I have the stuff on the ship looks good, I like the idea of having my own ship and trying to lead the empire and make decisions that effect the world as a gameplay mechanic (I was somewhat let down by being king fable3)

but even some of the rts fans say the gameplay in that respect is a bit of a letdown but it can be skipped.

Im just wondering if the rts elements are that bad ? how skipping the rts stuff works and if its still a deep game without it or should I be waiting for a pricedrop to try it out ?

edit:worth a mention I have no interest in the multiplayer.

thanks

Dragon Commander is the first RTS that I played more than 10 minutes of (not that I have tried that many), and I've picked up another couple RTS/TBS games in bundles recently that I'll eventually try out that I would have passed on otherwise. I don't find the RTS elements 'that bad' at all, though generally use the dragon (on easy) to compensate for my lack of skill. If I actually got the hang of controlling groups of units and using their abilities, it would be a much deeper experience. I'm planning on starting another game on normal, and see if I can manage; I think on hard I would probably have to stick to auto-resolving (which I do want to try to play against the best strategy map AI).

During a single player campaign or multiplayer (against people or AI) if 2 opposing factions move into the same country or section of the ocean, or one moves into an already occupied area, you can either fight in an RTS battle or auto-resolve the battle (either with the army alone or paying a general to lead, which improves their odds). In any particular turn you can only participate in one battle yourself, so any additional fights would need to be auto-resolved. Before starting you are shown an overview of where all battles are taking place, and can check your chances of winning each to determine where you want to fight yourself (if at all). You, or your opponent, can play cards with various bonuses or penalties for individual battles that can effect your chances of winning.

There should be a demo released eventually.

I'm not that good at strategy games (to not say "I suck" :D) and I enjoyed DC very much, probably because of the funny characters and the decisions you get to take. The strategy parts of the game were also fun, but I played the game on casual to get through as quickly as possible, so at least you'll be able to beat the game even if you should suck :P

So I'd say yes, go ahead and buy it! Watch some gameplay vids before, though :)
And if there's a demo coming, even better!

thanks for the responses.

I'm still curious how much of the game takes place on the ship are they just small sections just to break up the rts gameplay?

I did already watch a few videos but try to avoid them due to spoilers, I already ran into one so far.

also a demo would be awesome and help me make up my mind, probably get it at some point anyway as it seems somewhat interesting and unique.

thanks again

You're likely to spend at least as much time on the Raven as on the battlefield unless you REALLY like skipping over every dialogue and fighting every battle in intricate detail. I strongly advise not skipping the dialogue, at least the first time through, because much of it is hilarious.

Dragon Commander is a good game and definitely worth playing still I would not call it "RTS". Dragon Commander is an Hynrid and the dialogs that take place on the Raven take a good half of the gaming time.