Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri™ Planetary Pack

I bought this one when it came out a long time ago. Very addictive. When I saw it on GOG I wanted to play it again. And for your information: Good news! Alien Crossfire is included! Some people seem to think it is not, but it is!

This is essentially the answer to every gripe I've ever had with 4x games in one great package. It has a story, it has gameplay depth, and none of its weaknessess overcome its strengths. It's old, and the graphics are vague representations of a sci-fi world, but it's full to the brim with flavor. It has great automation that creates a seamless gameplay experience. If you want to focus on war, you can place governers to manage your cities, and visa versa. While it is fairly clunky it has some progressive ideas that modern 4x games have yet to latch on to. I love it.

This has to go down as the 4X game I spent most of my child-hood playing, and was also the first Sid Meier game I played (though, in fairness, Bryan Reynolds is responsible for much of what makes this game work). The hard sci-fi setting is fantastic, drawing inspiration from Frank Herbert's Pandora Sequence among others. Each of the factions and leaders oozes personality that's sorely lacking in Civilization: Beyond Earth, a more recent foray into spaceby the series. Exploring Planet and uncovering tis mysteries while shaping the direction your society grows is a wonder to behold. The only critique I'd level would be towards the unit creator, which can quickly feel overwhelming if you're first trying out this game. While not as deep as many of the Paradox grand strategy titles, this is a perfect sci-fi 4X gem that deserves to be available here.

19 years after release smac is still unsurpassed. The ai isn't quite up to some of its successors, but the flexibility of paths to victory, superb combat system and flawless immersive theme remain the pinnacle of 4x gaming. Each of the factions in the game has its own colorful well realized personality and the quotes with each new technology are masterfully chosen, written, and voiced. Eternity lies ahead of us, and behind. Have you drunk your fill?

This was one game that still has me coming back. The attempt to remake this game was horrible,( beyond earth), This game was/is outstanding fun, I miss games like this, even to this day I would call this game a triple a title, never had the expansion to this game until now and was introduced to a whole new experience. This game is worth the purchase.