I owned these games when they first came out for Windows and they are brilliant. Hours and hours of game time. You can custom build your fleet, face them against enemies in tactical battle screens, conquer worlds, and colonize new systems. Make alliances, trade agreements, spy, espionage, and research technology to get the edge over other races as you vie for power. There are a lot of interesting decisions to make. Do I colonize this planet or that one? Will I defend them with missile bases, battle stations or fleets? You'll have to decide what technologies are important to research. They will be the ones you will use to expand your empire. Focus too much on industry/science/population, sacrificing ship production, and you'll only make wonderful planets to be ransacked by your neighbors. Diplomacy and spy networks grant a significant edge to the cunning player. Trade agreements can bolster the treasury or give bonuses to research. Neutralizing an opponent by allying with them can be more effective than war, especially when it is solidified by annihilating a common enemy! Create spies to surveillance and carry out missions against them. Use sabotage to destroy industries or espionage to steal research, and even frame another race. Many interesting races to choose from, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. This with randomly generated galaxies and opponents makes the game playable over and over again. All in all, great games. Definitely worth having in any strategy buff's collection!
