Now for those Civilization influences I mentioned in the opening of this
review. Some are minor, such as the scientific anomalies that can be
studied to gain a random bonus (the "hut" sites in Civ) and space-based resource
points on which you can construct starbases (mines). Others are far more
overt. For example, as you make your way along the technology tree certain
galactic wonders will become available. These wonders bestow a large
benefit when built, but they are very expensive to construct and there can only
be one of each wonder in the galaxy. If another race completes a wonder
first, you're out of luck.
 |
| Space can get crowded pretty quickly. |
Another concept borrowed from Civilization is cultural influence. Each
of your worlds exerts a sphere of cultural influence that affects nearby
systems. The strength of your influence is determined by several factors
including the level of your technology, the presence of certain structures on
your planets, and your empire's size and strength in relation to that of the
other races. A colony far from home and near a strong cultural influence
is likely to revolt and align itself with the more influential empire.
The Civilization influences can also be seen in the available forms of
government which each have a trade off between production bonuses and the affect
of your actions on your popularity as a leader. Other Civilization
inspired touches abound from
the diplomatic to the planetary production screens.
The more than passing resemblance to Civilization is not necessarily a bad
thing, but the space-based setting is not necessarily a good fit either. In
Civilization you could build a city just about anywhere, and spend a lot of time
developing the infrastructure of your empire. You could also see the
changes that resulted from your work in things like road and rail networks and
growing cites. In GC each colony looks pretty much the same as completed
structures, wonders, and defenses just appear as items in a list without any
kind of graphical representation.
In addition, there aren't that many systems available and even if
you play on the largest map possible and set the habitable planet frequency to
the highest setting, you and your opponents will grab up the available planets
in a relatively short time. Exploration and colonization of new worlds is
always a big part of the fun in games like this, but in GC this phase seems to
always end too quickly and your left with looking at the same map for long
stretches at a time. Since all the races and their technologies are pretty
much the same in the game, success in GC comes down to the bonuses you can
secure for your race. Percentage point bonuses to production, diplomacy,
and weapons will give you the edge you need to come out ahead of the other
races. There is certainly a lot of strategy involved in determining which
areas to concentrate on and when, but those who love the exploration aspect of
space strategy games may feel that there's something missing from GC.
The above mentioned shortcomings aside, GC is not a bad game at all.
The AI can provide some stiff competition at the higher settings, so the game
can certainly be challenging. Also, it is often able to capture that
elusive "one more turn" hook that can keep you playing for hours past your
bedtime. GC can be fun in its own right, but those looking for the
ultimate space strategy game may be slightly disappointed that this one had the
potential to be even greater.
In The End, This Game Hath Been Rated:
80%. It's Civilization set in space, and the result is an enjoyable
strategy game but one that does not fully realize its potential.
System Requirements: Pentium III 600; 128 MB RAM; 8 MB
Video RAM; 8x CD-ROM; 540 MB Hard Drive
Space; Mouse.
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