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Its been said already in the last nine pages but I'll chime in on that side of the opnion. MoO2 created a galactic civilisation that could be run single handedly by a fairly competent person with one eye and half a brain. You could play and watch TV, chat to your partner or generally hop up and down from the PC without risking losing the plot in the game. It was heaven for micromanagers because every single task was a no-brainer but there were lots of them to do, just like in the Civ games that so inspired MoO2. You could be deeply absorbed by it if you had the opportunity, but it wasn't important to do so.
Would I have liked another classic simple easy to manage space combat game? Well, sure. I've got at least a dozen of those of varying quality and playability in the cupboard however. What I don't have is a game that actually makes me feel like I really am the supreme ruler of the galaxy with hundreds of planets and fleets at my command. Why? Because I've got to get off of my Imperial throne every two seconds to play the flunky's flunky who twiddles with crop management on planet Plik and industrial output on planet Dweeb because there's absolutely nobody else who will do it for me.
I want the chance to experience a truly BIG game. The way things currently stand that only happens at wargame conventions when you get thirty a side games of playing the high command, and there only one of the thirty can be the man in the big seat ultimately responsible for the big decisions plus a few on his immediate staff get to hear all the reports and offer advice. The rest are only there to interpret and report on their sector and apply whatever orders come down from above.
This is the first computer game that attempts to take that game approach and apply it to the "civilisation" genre. Not long ago Combat Mission did it for wargames and it proved pretty popular. You can't move the men individually there, you cant dictate to them exactly when to fire each shot or override their decisions about whether to advance in the advance of fire or cower in their foxholes, and this AI is praised.
I'm looking forward to accepting the challenge of MoO3 by picking up the reins of power and yanking on them hard. My job is to learn how to be the best Supreme Overlord, not to discover how many cherry pickers is optimum for each individual planet in my domain and order them buit on the optimum turn before moving on to consider the perfect weapons and electronics combination for my next generation destroyer. Do the President and the Prime Minister know the technical specifications of the warships or tanks they are ordering about, or just that they are the forces their generals think can get the job done? I think I know the answer to that one. If the generals screw up, I'm the one who gets to choose the manner of their unpleasant death. Now that's a decision befitting a Supreme Overlord!
Would I have liked another classic simple easy to manage space combat game? Well, sure. I've got at least a dozen of those of varying quality and playability in the cupboard however. What I don't have is a game that actually makes me feel like I really am the supreme ruler of the galaxy with hundreds of planets and fleets at my command. Why? Because I've got to get off of my Imperial throne every two seconds to play the flunky's flunky who twiddles with crop management on planet Plik and industrial output on planet Dweeb because there's absolutely nobody else who will do it for me.
I want the chance to experience a truly BIG game. The way things currently stand that only happens at wargame conventions when you get thirty a side games of playing the high command, and there only one of the thirty can be the man in the big seat ultimately responsible for the big decisions plus a few on his immediate staff get to hear all the reports and offer advice. The rest are only there to interpret and report on their sector and apply whatever orders come down from above.
This is the first computer game that attempts to take that game approach and apply it to the "civilisation" genre. Not long ago Combat Mission did it for wargames and it proved pretty popular. You can't move the men individually there, you cant dictate to them exactly when to fire each shot or override their decisions about whether to advance in the advance of fire or cower in their foxholes, and this AI is praised.
I'm looking forward to accepting the challenge of MoO3 by picking up the reins of power and yanking on them hard. My job is to learn how to be the best Supreme Overlord, not to discover how many cherry pickers is optimum for each individual planet in my domain and order them buit on the optimum turn before moving on to consider the perfect weapons and electronics combination for my next generation destroyer. Do the President and the Prime Minister know the technical specifications of the warships or tanks they are ordering about, or just that they are the forces their generals think can get the job done? I think I know the answer to that one. If the generals screw up, I'm the one who gets to choose the manner of their unpleasant death. Now that's a decision befitting a Supreme Overlord!
that's right, I'm bored!
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