Alpha Centauri Review

You may have seen ads in gaming magazines for Civilization: Call to Power. What the ad doesn't mention is that the genius behind the game, Sid Meier, didn't design the game. You should know that although Call to Power is the official sequel to Civilization II, in a hardcore gamers mind, Alpha Centauri is the true sequel. Some have called SMAC (S.id M.eier's A.lpha C.entauri) Civilization II in space, but SMAC is more that that. SMAC brings strategy games to a whole new level. The game starts with a United Nations ship, Unity, sent to a planet that orbits the primary star of the Alpha Centauri system. The point of the mission is to save humanity by transplanting them from Earth, which is an overpopulated, polluted, deteriorating planet. On the way, the ship suffers a reactor failure which damamges it, and cuts off communication with Earth. Arguing about what to do, the crewmembers split into 7 factions, each following their own ideological line. Now, your job is to form an empire out of one of the factions and lead it to global dominance. Like Civilization II, in SMAC, you start with a base and a small amount of resources. To gain dominace, you must explore, expand, conquer, and discover. But SMAC isn't just some new units and a new interface, now you can win without churning out military units. Victory comes by cooperative, economical, or military dominance, diplomacy, and finally, through transcendence. Also important is a better diplomacy screen and AI. Computer opponents act and react more realistically, and with the addition of borders will no longer set up bases or wander aimlessly through your territory. Now there's a workshop where you can design your own units, by choosing a chassis, weapons, special features, and more. Making the game much more interesting is the United Nations charter, which makes "atrocities," such as nerve stapling to put down drone riots, hurt your reputation and place trade sanctions against you. The game also includes weather, which can affect terrain. Mountains can be raised, resulting in more rain on the western side, and dry areas to the east. This affects the resources you bases can collect. SMAC also includes multiplayer support, which allows great fun for up to 7 players. Although a turn based game may not sound like fun multiplayer, there are options to combat this, including timed turns, double movement and production, and more. SMAC is the best strategy game ever made. Sid Meier has managed to beat himself. Civilization II was one of the greatest games ever made, but Alpha Centauri beats it. SMAC refines the formula used for turn based strategy games, and will keep many glued to the computer overnight for just ooone more turn. I strongly recommend this game to any gamer, it counts as one of the best games of any category.

[Image/Sound Effect] from Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri. Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri copyright 1998 Firaxis Games, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.