No, they can't. I mentioned this in the Battle Redesign thread, but it's not possible to fit the training grounds, the mercenary camp, all the combat related ancient wonders which the devs are assuming you have built when they scale your combat difficulty, and all the residences and workshops needed, even when every single expansion is unlocked on the map. Unless you buy premium culture buildings with population attached. Which.... I don't LIKE the way snails look. Even if I was willing to spend $30 on them.... which I am not.... if I'm going to spend $30 on a video game I'm buying WoW mounts.... I would hesitate at spending $30 on something that, in my opinion, isn't nearly as pretty as the Ponds of Recreation. Or the Weeping Willow/Wood Elves Habitat, which are also not premium buildings.
I play this game to build a pretty city. I can accept hauling my way through the ugly city of orcs because wood elf buildings are so gorgeous. I can accept the fact that I won't be able to have the rows and rows of manufactories (and related score) that the people who buy premium culture buildings have. What I can't accept is an inability to build and upgrade required buildings because there is not enough space on the map for them, without making my city into what I view is an ugly city.
I don't know if the devs want us to all only build one of each manufactory and then wait for days to save up the goods to unlock research or what, but I wish that they would realize that the way they play the game seems to be absolutely not the way we play the game.
Mods, could you perhaps provide screenshots of the devs' cities? They say they are playing the game. I want to see how they are playing it.
