Cut my chops on CivIII. SMAC pretty cool, too?

[Aramis]

I'm in my forties, and I've got more free time than I've ever had before or dreamed I would. Have hobbies, interests, sports, but I love the hell outta CivIII/PtW.
First computer game I got was Sid Meier's Gettysburg. Still love it. Got SimCity3UL(fun!) and 4(waste o' cash).

Been curious. SMAC seems beloved by Apolytonians. Good investment? Are their XPs I should be aware of?

And what about MoO3. Sounds like a game about dairy farming in space. Worth the 50 bucks or so it costs?

I post a bit here about CivIII, and nothing will ever replace the great joy I had when I installed it and played the first time, tossing the 220+pp manual aside and trying to play like it was Risk. Diety level--game was over in minutes.

I've really enjoyed CivIII, even more so /PtW. Ya think an old guy can get into SMAC and get that same rush? What XPs should I know about?

--Rob

"What's so funny about peace, love, and understanding?"

(edited 2 slight grammatical errors--former English teacher, y'know)

[alva]

Just go to smac forum and shout ;

V E L !!! and all will become clear.

just a warning, be prepared to include reading as one of your hobbies when asking for some help from him. Sometimes he has a slightly tendency to overdo it

[Aramis]

VEL, eh?
But what's YOUR opinion? And what about this cows in space game (Moo!)

[badams52]

Hard to say Rob, to each his own. I played SMAC maybe twice. Civ has always been my fav. The cows in space series is like Civ but with planets and you make your own units a la SMAC. I liked MoO better than SMAC.

[Aramis]

Originally posted by Tassadar5000
SMAC is superior to every TBS thats come on the market.............

........
.........
.......

EVER.

Cool. Explain, please. I really want to know before I put 40 bucks and a lot of drive space into it.

[Rasbelin]

This thread belongs in Other Games or Civilization Games General/Future.

[Jon Shafer]

Originally posted by Rob_S
Cool. Explain, please. I really want to know before I put 40 bucks and a lot of drive space into it.

Don't mind him, he just hates Civ 3 and needs somewhere to vent.

I personally have never played SMAC or MOO3, so I can't give you my first-hand opinion on them. From what I've heard in my year here though is that SMAC is a pretty good game, and whether or not you like it better than Civ depends on your taste. There are many people upset with MOO3 for various reasons, so I would say that one is a crap shoot. A lot of the people upset with the status of MOO3 have played the previous MOO games, and have issues with how MOO3 is different, so you may not even notice most of what they're complaining about.

[Jamski]

Hmm, the reasons people love SMAC :
The government system
The unit workshop
The wonder movies
The diplomacy
The feeling of improvement over Civ2 (which many people don't get with Civ3)

And much more. This game is great.

And there is an XP, called Alien Crossfire, which is worth having, but pretty rare these days.

I'd buy SMAC over MoO3, even though its getting a bit old now.

-Jam

[FrustratedPoet]

SMAC is a few years older than Civ3, but quite a few people around here prefer it. It has more advanced diplomatic options than Civ3 and has a Unit Workshop where you can research and create unit designs yourself - pretty cool stuff.

SMAC introduced the concept of national borders, which was a great innovation. Your borders only expand when you build more cities in SMAC, there is no equivalent to the Culture of Civ3 - some people prefer it like this.

The graphics are very dated these days, but I doubt you care much about that.

You should definitely try and get your hands on the expansion pack for SMAC - Alien Crossfire - but as has already been mentioned it can be hard to find these days.

[FrustratedPoet]

Some links you might find useful in giving you more information:

Review of SMAC:

http://www.gamesdomain.com/gdreview/zones/reviews/pc/mar99/smac.html

Review of Alien Crossfire:

http://www.gamesdomain.com/gdreview/zones/reviews/pc/dec99/smacx.html

Apolyton database of more reviews:

http://www.apolyton.net/links/Alpha_Centauri/Reviews/

[Dis]

As long as you don't insist on top notch graphics and sound, SMAC is a very good TBS game.

Also you have to not be turned off by the futuristic techs and units. They seem confusing for a while, but you get used to them.

But the level of depth is greater than any other TBS game that I know of.

[DrSpike]

SMAC and Civ2 are better than PTW, despite their age. You can get both for a meagre amount.

[Lemmy]

If you love Civ3, then you'll probably like GalCiv a lot better then MOO3, and as the name suggest, GalCiv can be described as civilization in space.

[Aramis]

GalCiv. Have not heard of it. Must look into it.
AC I'll definately get, based on comments here.