We told you before about the new Kickstarter from Civilization vet Jon Shafer - At the Gates. Well now you can learn more of Shafer's design behind the game and his comparison's to working on Civ V. It's really an interesting read.

One of the latest updates basically deals with how one goes about designing a 4X game. For Shafer, who was the Lead Designer on Civilization V, a starting point was to compare his upcoming game, to his previous work on the Civ series. He freely admits that Civilization V had its flaws, and explains how he sets out to do better in At the Gates.

Shafer discusses the interface, the economy, combat, diplomacy and in more, in what is quite a beefy update. His overall goal seems to be making a 4X game that is at once streamlined, but complex. He cites a want to make resources more important, as well as global trade and talks about management on a strategic rather than tactical level. All in all, his changes to what he made in Civ V seem to sound like steps in the right direction, to creating an awesome 4X game. Read the post linked above to get more details.

The Kickstarter itself originally asked for $40K and is currently sitting pretty with $55K, from 1,6K backers. Pretty good going!