Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri™ Planetary Pack

This game was awesome to begin with, AND they finally added the Alien Crossfire expansion! So amped on this!

This game, from a mechanical perspective, is basically sci-fi civ II, with a few wrinkles here and there. Civ II is one of my favorite games, and space/sci-fi is my favorite genre, so what's missing? Civ II CONSUMES me for periods of time in such a way that it is practically impossible to tear away from it, whereas Alpha Centauri is just very good. I think for me, what Alpha Centauri lacks is that sense of grand progress; that with each passing turn, you're unlocking new potentials, new history, radically new technology and new ways of playing the game. That's the addictive cycle which eggs on that "just one more turn" mentality. In Alpha Centauri, there is a progression, but the scale of the game is a smaller timeframe. The technologies you research don't alter the way you play the game moreso than provide additional tools to enhance you're existing strategies and goals. There are a LOT of techs, and the customization potential of every unit in the game busts my brain, but even so the game doesn't feel all that much different from turns 10-20 and turns 200+. The thing that Alpha centauri does really right is the environment. Managing the ecosystem at play, (the native fauna, the terrain, and the way the world functions around the various factions) makes it feel like a real place to explore and unlock its mysteries. It's really cool how each faction plays much differently from each other, giving them all a unique identity and style. However the downside to that is you are kind of locked into the playstyle of the faction you choose. Most importantly, the actual gameplay is great. Setting up colonies, exploring the planet, mixing unit types, engaging in diplomacy and battling the other factions, conquering or coexisting with the natives, etc. I think it's a very fun game to play, it just doesn't enthrall me the way some other civ games have. Still, It's a very good 4x. Worth getting if you like the genre.

One of my favorites. I actually liked Alpha Centauri better than all the Civilization games and I play it at least once a year for a couple of weeks. Hopefully we will get Alien Crossfire later on too.

This is one genre that I enjoy as well, so I'm fairly bias to it. This is great! It may be a while since it came out, but when it first did, nobody had successfully combined the addictive gameplay that the Civilization games (I believe it was up to Civ II at that stage) with a Sci-Fi theme to it. The AI in this is a little crazy. Yes, you have other factions who have values and attitudes of their own, and when they declare vendetta, blow them up, but you also have to be wary of the planet itself. To take a quote from inside the game, "The mind worms are ... white blood cells, if you like". Damage the planet too much by having a huge industrial base and having a lot of terraforming, as well as a low planet rating, and watch the mind worms march right to your door. Oh, and I failed to mention that with a few boreholes, you CAN cause global warming. Make sure you have some pressure domes ready! This is very interesting, because setting upon a world not on earth makes the game unique. The game itself is modelled on Civ, but it has a greater focus on unit customisation. Each time you discover new technology, you unlock weapons, armor or new stuff that enables you to have a greater range of discovering how to blow up your opponent's bases. The reason why I did not give this a 5-star rating is because I was disappointed that the expansion, Alien Crossfire, was not included. If it was, then I would give it a 5-star, because the expansion adds so much to an already vivid game. An already big game got a huge expansion (not in terms of file size), as there was just so much more to do! In short, if you love the gameplay of Civ's addictive "just one more turn" attitude, and/or if you enjoy reading sci-fi novels and always wanted to explore entirely new worlds, this is a great game for you.

I could play this every day. Forever. Until I die. There would be nothing to regret. Kind of wishing I didn't find this. I feel like an ex-heroin-addict jabbing that sweet sweet needle into my arm after so many years. I missed you, AC. Take me away from this place.