Buying SMAX? [Archive] - Apolyton Civilization Site Forums

Hydro

October 11, 2003, 20:45

That depends on what you call inexpensive. As I recall, I purchased SMAX for ~$50 US in 1999. With at bit of inflation that would be between $55 and $60 now. I'm sure I saw SMAX at Amazon a week or two ago for $79. Considering how much I've used it, SMAX at $79 is quite a bargain. I've heard that e-bay copies are in the same range.

Good luck! If you find a place that is cheaper, I'm sure lots of folks would like to know!

Hydro

Googlie

October 15, 2003, 11:37

One of my PBEM partners mentioned a few days ago that e-bay had 19 copies for sale

G.

Minute Mirage

October 15, 2003, 11:53

I bought the planetary pack at the Finnish auction site Huuto.net for about 10€. There is also currently one planetary pack for sale there for 25€: http://www.huuto.net/fi/showitem.php3?itemid=5316228

Unfortunately, this is not very useful for people outside of Finland.

mucker

October 18, 2003, 00:50

I tried abandonware, but the game was unplayable. Tried the cracks, no good. It was a waste of time downloading it. I don't recommend it. I'm resigned to forever play SMAC.

Method

October 18, 2003, 01:36

Originally posted by Hydro
That depends on what you call inexpensive. As I recall, I purchased SMAX for ~$50 US in 1999. With at bit of inflation that would be between $55 and $60 now. I'm sure I saw SMAX at Amazon a week or two ago for $79. Considering how much I've used it, SMAX at $79 is quite a bargain. I've heard that e-bay copies are in the same range.
er, i got mine a few years ago for $10 :p
and it was hard to find then, i doubt you'll be able to buy it anywhere other than eBay.

TCO

October 19, 2003, 21:14

"abandonware" is bullshit. It is theft.

mucker

October 19, 2003, 23:09

So is paying over $50 for an expansion pack.

Kody

October 20, 2003, 01:55

I tried abandonware, but the game was unplayable. Tried the cracks, no good. It was a waste of time downloading it. I don't recommend it. I'm resigned to forever play SMAC.

I when playing SMAX you need to add a specific line into the settings file, something like "set volex algorithms=1"

Otherwise SMAX will always crash on many computers (computer newer than 3 years old).

TCO

October 23, 2003, 21:57

Originally posted by mucker
So is paying over $50 for an expansion pack.

Then don't buy it and just do without.

Hydro

October 24, 2003, 08:20

I frequently put things in ‘pizza equivalents’ to do my own reality check. By my estimation, SMAX at e-bay or Amazon is 4 pizza equivalents. So, if you can’t afford it then skip 4 pizzas and you’re all set. It is a big bargain, and you really don't need the extra calories anyway, right?

Hydro

P.S. - As with all 5-finger discounts, it is hard to complete with ‘free’, or the perception of ‘free’ (eg – I won’t get caught, so it’s all right).

cpbeller

October 24, 2003, 10:45

walmart now has them together....Alpha Centauri AND Alien Crossfire...in a package with 3 other games i believe....only 20 bucks...just bought it today

mucker

October 24, 2003, 23:10

What's the name of the pack?

cpbeller

October 25, 2003, 09:33

Laptop collection or soemthing like that....

it has a Tiger Woods game (or golf game), Red Alert 2, and Simcity 3000 unlimited....along with SMAC & SMAX

it was only 20 dollars, so I grabbed it....

dbotiger

October 25, 2003, 20:08

Looks like cpbeller is right. I found an EA Laptop collection listing on a couple of sites.

This link at AMAZON (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0000CE1L7/apolytonciviliza)

had some in stock (with NO description of what was in the collection) and I ordered one. Will inform if this isn't it.

dbotiger

edit by markg :)

bignickel

October 25, 2003, 20:49

http://service.bfast.com/bfast/click?bfmid=1375281&siteid=37805976&bfpid=645506&bfmtype=console

Yep, it has both SMAC and AXfire

edit by markg :)

jtsisyoda

October 25, 2003, 22:40

That is so awesome! Long live SMAX, the king of games! :D

Mead

October 26, 2003, 23:07

Originally posted by cpbeller
Laptop collection or soemthing like that....

it has a Tiger Woods game (or golf game), Red Alert 2, and Simcity 3000 unlimited....along with SMAC & SMAX

it was only 20 dollars, so I grabbed it....

Walmart does have SMAX.
I bought a copy this afternoon.

It is sold in "The Laptop Collection"

The collection includes Tiger Woods PGA Tour Collection, Red Alert 2, Sim City 3000, Alpha Centuri, and Alien Cross Fire Planetary Pack.

It is released by Electronic Arts.

The box is kinda grayish in color, 27cm x 19cm x 3cm.

It cost less than $20 U.S.

I'm glad I held off spending ~$70 to buy it on eBay.

Thanks, Thanks, Thanks

Mead

P.S.

I've already installed it and started a game on it. It works fine, although I have started to dislike those things called spore launchers.

cpbeller

October 27, 2003, 07:51

the ONLY thing i dislike is the colors.....that redish brownish greenish color scheme is just TOO ugly.....

dacole

October 27, 2003, 17:01

so no one is selling it in a jewel case or something seems odd to me, was such a popular game thought surley someone would be selling it that way. (sigh) Abandonware is stealing correct try not to do it. It might be possible to find it by doing a google search online will try that and let you know

MarkG

October 27, 2003, 18:11

many thanks for finding the links(and hopefully not minding for the edits to include apolyton affiliation code :))

it has been hard trying to find smax availiable anywhere the last years...

Datajack Franit

October 27, 2003, 19:24

I found great deals on Amazon and Ebay but be careful of scams, I bought a PS2 from Ebay and it broke out after 2 weeks, when I gave that user a red star (bad mark) he sent an e-mail to my local police station claiming I was a child-picture trader (sad, sad guy)

mucker

October 28, 2003, 16:09

Bummer. Not on the UK Amazon site.

thorwahl

October 28, 2003, 17:29

Sweet, i simply had to order the laptop collection just on the off chance my SMAX cd dies or something, hehe.. its alrdy pretty scratchy so i dont wanna take any chances:)

Thorwahl

Minute Mirage

October 28, 2003, 17:38

Originally posted by thorwahl
Sweet, i simply had to order the laptop collection just on the off chance my SMAX cd dies or something, hehe.. its alrdy pretty scratchy so i dont wanna take any chances:)

Thorwahl

Are you using the no-cd crack?

Hercules

October 28, 2003, 21:11

If it gets this side of the Atlantic I will buy a reserve pack.

Does the no- cd crack work

I just tend to keep the CD in the drive but it would be good to have some music or I might even try RoN sometime soon.

Petek

October 28, 2003, 21:35

Originally posted by Hercules
If it gets this side of the Atlantic I will buy a reserve pack.

Does the no- cd crack work

I've used the SMAX no-cd crack for more than 2 years and haven't noticed any problems.

Think I'll buy a copy or two of the laptop collection for backup and as a possible gift.

Chip_Buckner

October 28, 2003, 23:00

The Overland Park, Kansas Wal-Mart has two fewer copies of the "Laptop Collection" than it did an hour ago.

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

self biased

October 31, 2003, 06:20

wutang! i've been looking to get those again.. had them stolen before i moved back to NY. i know where i'll be stopping tomorrow, before work!

Lorrin

June 11, 2004, 13:03

I'm coming back to SMAC/SMAX after taking a break for a couple years and lo and behold back then I was a Windows user. Any ideas where I can find a Mac version?

livid imp

June 11, 2004, 13:46

SMAC for Mac is not easy to find. Keep your eye on ebay for people selling old games. Nothing on there today for Mac though. Welcome back to SMAC, and sorry to hear of your conversion ;)

MoNoLitH

June 11, 2004, 15:28

Originally posted by cpbeller
Laptop collection or soemthing like that....

it has a Tiger Woods game (or golf game), Red Alert 2, and Simcity 3000 unlimited....along with SMAC & SMAX

it was only 20 dollars, so I grabbed it....

That's the one I got, too. I had known for some time SMACX was no longer being made for PC, so I had prepared myself to go without. Then I found the Laptop Collection, and I basically danced right there. An old classic, no longer in production, for the equivalent of $4. :b:

smacksim

June 11, 2004, 16:42

Btw, the laptop collection comes with SMAC and SMAX on separate CDs. So, seeing as how Smax has Smac internally, it's really and extra Smac CD. Give it to a friend over holidays to PBEM!

I used to be more of a Mac user and have the original SMAC for mac, but havn't seen it in years! I have seen Smac for Linux though. I have a bad feeling it hasn't been re-released for a few years on the Mac.

-Smack

mucker

June 12, 2004, 00:37

Unfortunately, you still can't get the laptop collection, or SMAX legally in the UK. :(

Hydro

June 12, 2004, 00:44

Really? I bought my 3rd and 4th copy of SMAC (I gave them to friends in an effort to hook them - one took!)from a UK firm via mail order. It worked great, since at that time SMAC couldn't be found except in the rare bargain bin.

Have you tried Amazon? I'm sure they would be happy to take your cash and mail you the software. At $14 US and with a bit of shipping the cost can't be too high. Heck, that's the price of a single pizza!

Hydro

Enigma_Nova

June 12, 2004, 08:38

Geez, why don't I simply FTP the files over?
/me preparez the warez

kelvinhole

June 13, 2004, 00:42

Damn! Only in the U.S. :doitnow!:

Googlie

June 13, 2004, 00:57

And you can download the manual in pdf format here (http://googlie2.tripod.com/rynnsgallery/id13.html)

mucker

June 13, 2004, 22:59

SMAC isn't the problem. My local Game shop has 4 copies sitting on the shelf, and I've still got my original. I just can't get my hands on SMAX, and Amazon won't ship the Laptop Collection outside the US.

Blake

June 17, 2004, 03:15

Hurray I have a copy of SMAX again, but lets just say it fell of the back of a truck on the Information Superhighway. I'll keep an eye open for Laptop Collection becoming available here, but I strongly doubt the Linux version will ever become available again - even getting it 2nd hand would be pretty hard, and wouldn't give Firaxis any benefit.

Kody

June 17, 2004, 03:21

Oh! Which linux is it built for, and does it allow windows rather than fullscreen?

Blake

June 17, 2004, 04:38

It works on my custom Debian install (remarkably easy install), so I think it should work for any linux. It allows both windows and fullscreen.

Kody

June 17, 2004, 07:41

That would be great for writing notes and making screenshots while playing the game. I always hated how my screen would stuff up in windows.

Googlie

June 17, 2004, 08:37

Why not just alt/tab between the gamescreen and word or photoshop or other photoeditor program?

Is running in separeate windows that more convenient?

Kody

June 17, 2004, 09:13

I usually use a much larger screen size than what alpha centuari uses. So whenever I alt/tab I have a reduced space to type notes etc. I'm always making lots of notes.

Also being the geek I am I usually have multiple things I'm keeping an eye on.
I actually have a little window that has keeps tabs on all my communication channels that is always visible if I'm working in a windowed program.

Finally the way I make screenshots is with paintbrush. That means print screen, alt-tab, open paintbrush, paste, quit SMAC, paste again to get a color picture rather than a black screenshot, save, start SMAC again. For some reason you need to paste while SMAC is running so windows does the color conversion correctly. Then quit SMAC and paste again into paintbrush to get proper color (otherwise it uses 8-bit or 16-bit color I think).

Enigma_Nova

June 17, 2004, 09:40

Do what I do - set screen resolutin to 16 bit after SMAX boots up and leave it running in the background?
You get nice 16-bit screenies that way.

Kody

June 17, 2004, 10:13

I think my biggest complaint is actually the screen flicker as you alt-tab.

Having a windowed version also means I can quickly compare energy, minerals and nutrients, both produced and in production. I do that quite alot and the screen flashing whenever you switch starts giving me bad eyesore after 30 times. It usually takes 100 switches to compare an average midgame.

Enigma_Nova

June 17, 2004, 10:56

By having 2 instances of SMAC open at the same time...
how on earth do you do that, anyway? Is it a linux thing?

Anyhow, set the background res to 16 Bit.
SMAC changes it on startup, but not during the game.

Illuminatus

June 17, 2004, 12:58

NO-CD crack helps you to run two or more versions of SMAX.

Dis

June 17, 2004, 22:05

amazon.com

that's where I got it.

although it cost me $20

I got this other games.

I installed Sim City 3000. But I'm not sure if I like it. But I do like smacx.

kelvinhole

June 18, 2004, 07:48

amazon.com

that's where I got it.

although it cost me $20

I got this other games.

I installed Sim City 3000. But I'm not sure if I like it. But I do like smacx.

You should. I think it's a great game. Better than SimCity 4 in fact

Dis

June 18, 2004, 19:28

Originally posted by kelvinhole

You should. I think it's a great game. Better than SimCity 4 in fact

I'll try again. This time after reading the instructions :). It's one of those games where it's best to read the instructions first, so you know what the hell you are doing.

gbrut

September 8, 2004, 22:34

I loaned my Plantary Pack to a friend, who promptly destroyed it. I went to Gamestop and they had two Laptop Collections in the bin for $9.99! Needless to say that I scooped them up.

gbrut

September 8, 2004, 22:38

Once again, go to Game Stop. I picked up a copy of the Planetary Pack for under $10.00.

binTravkin

September 9, 2004, 04:10

SMAC/X is still available here FOR FREE:

http://smac.2be.cc

Mart

September 9, 2004, 04:40

Not so long ago I saw Laptop Collection in Shopko. I bought mine in MediaPlay over half a year ago, but I think they may no longer have it.
Laptop Collection has 4 games, or even 5, coz SMAC and SMAX are treated as one there. And there is an additional SMAC CD.

dunk

September 9, 2004, 07:40

The Laptop Collection includes:

SMAC
SMAX
Tiger Woods PGA Golf
Command and Conquer 2: Red Alert
SimCity 3000

My box contained two CDs for SMAC... the original, and then the "Planetary Pack" which I assume has both SMAC and SMAX on the same CD. Is that correct?

For our non-US friends... try looking for the Laptop Collection on eBay.

livid imp

September 9, 2004, 12:42

Lord Nword

September 9, 2004, 16:25

Originally posted by binTravkin
SMAC/X is still available here FOR FREE:

http://smac.2be.cc

Not that I see...

And thankfully, I already have SMAX