I originally owned this game way back in the 90s on CD-ROM and it was always one of my favorite games, in the same group as Warcraft 2, Age of Empires 2, Civilization 2, etc. You can imagine how happy I was when I found out that there was a Windows 10 compatible version. The game is a 4X strategy game but works in real time. That means you can't just sit there and think for too long - the days go by and things happen in the background. Unlike most modern space strategy games, you can travel to (and attack) any star system from anywhere on the map - no hyperlanes or anything like that. This adds a very interesting strategic element as you can't just fortify a choke point and call it a day. You have to CHOOSE which systems are important enough to defend. The game is also full of characters and Lore from the Original Star Wars Trilogy as well as a number of things from the Expanded Universe (including Admiral Thrawn from the Heir to the Empire trilogy - not the Post-Disney version of him). This opens up many opportunities for solo roleplay, so to speak :) Graphically, the game is rough. Obviouysly, it's a 90s game. The strategic graphics and interface remains decent, however, graphics and functionality in the 3D battle mode is EXTREMELY rough. Thankfully, it's also entirely optional as it's not very difficult to win the game by auto-resolving every battle. There is also no ground combat whatsoever, unlike games such as Empire At War. Invasions are thus simulated and the result calculated according to number and types of involved troops, defenses and RNG. Despite these few weaknesses, it's a must-have for any Star Wars and strategy games fan and promises to give a good many hours of fun for the price.
