SMAC and CTP, an honest fair judgement...

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Author Topic:   SMAC and CTP, an honest fair judgement...

PrinceBimz posted 04-02-99 02:31 AM ET
Ok people, I now have CTP in addition to SMAC and here is how the two games compare on a 1-10 from my opinions:
Graphics: SMAC-6 CTP-9
Sound/Music: SMAC-7 CTP-9
Interface: SMAC-7 CTP-8
Gameplay: SMAC-7 CTP-8
Depth: SMAC-10 CTP-9
Customizing: SMAC-9 CTP-6(as of now)
Editors: SMAC-7 CTP-(not yet released)
Strategy: SMAC-9 CTP-8
Combat: SMAC-7 CTP-9
AI: SMAC-8 CTP-8
Value: SMAC-10 CTP-10
Ok now let me explain how a rated these areas...Graphics in SMAC are kind of dark, uncolorful and not very impressive but it can be quite neat at times with the 3D looking terrain. Units are ok but are kind of hard to make out sometimes. CTP's bright colored and lively graphics with nice clear animating units are really pleasent to look at.
Sound in SMAC is not too much more impressive then its graphics, same sound attacks for all weapons. Music is there but only ok. CTP sound effects are very neat, you can hear the ships sailing the units talk when they are selected and also when they are moved. CTP music is nice and blends right into the setting.
Interface in SMAC is pretty good but sometimes the right-clicked menus and hot-keys can be a little aggravating. Slow to click on things at times also, but its ok. CTP interface is fast, simple to use and easy to read but the print can be just a little larger.
Overall gameplay is smoother and faster in CTP then what it is in SMAC. SMAC sometimes stalls a little when trying to move a units.
Depth in SMAC is a little more then CTP as it seems to me so far. I have still yet to see everything CTP has to offer in the form of depth though.
Customizing SMAC seems to be more due to the design workshop and the .txt files. I do believe CTP has similar .txt files but I am not sure how much can be edited yet.
Map/Scenario editor was in SMAC upon release and CTP is not there right now. This is still yet to be seen.
As for the strategies involved, I think SMAC has an edge here but I have more to learn about CTP.
Combat in SMAC is not bad but it is a whole lot more exciting in CTP due to the unit stacks and battlefield. Troops neal down and shoot, calvary takes out their guns and fires. All with very nice sound effects.
The AI in SMAC is really good with only some minor holes here and there. CTP is also setup with some really good AI, have not seen any holes yet but they might be there. All in all the AI in these to games are better then the past Civ2s.
As for the value, I highly recommend these games to ANYONE who is interested in strategy games. They are BOTH well worth the money and I bet you will get every dollars worth of the money you spent on them. I know I will be playing both of these games alot, probably too much. So anyone that has and likes Civ2 and SMAC should get CTP, trust me you won't be disappointed at all. These are the BEST games ever!!! Oh but I must warn you all, if you can't get any sleep or anything done with SMAC it will be even more so with CTP because then you have TWO games that will addict you to death.
Hope this gives some of you an idea of how these two heavy weight games compare. Also, this is ONLY MY opinions some people might feel different about them. In the meantime happy SMACing! Oh and Happy Easter also Almost forgot about that due to these two games!

MarkG posted 04-02-99 05:38 PM ET
On customizability, things we have discovered so far that can be done through text files: 32 civs in one game, change the colors of civs, change any civ's name, leaders, city names, etc, and increase the choices from 42 to 44, have more than 128 units(at least), have up to 64 wonders(it remains to be seen what exactly you can do with the new wonders), mess with the ai behaviour...
The map and scenario editors are coming soon and probably there will be a utility to change the unit/city/terrain graphics
Markos, Apolyton CS
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Author	Topic: SMAC and CTP, an honest fair judgement...
PrinceBimz	posted 04-02-99 02:31 AM ET Ok people, I now have CTP in addition to SMAC and here is how the two games compare on a 1-10 from my opinions: Graphics: SMAC-6 CTP-9 Sound/Music: SMAC-7 CTP-9 Interface: SMAC-7 CTP-8 Gameplay: SMAC-7 CTP-8 Depth: SMAC-10 CTP-9 Customizing: SMAC-9 CTP-6(as of now) Editors: SMAC-7 CTP-(not yet released) Strategy: SMAC-9 CTP-8 Combat: SMAC-7 CTP-9 AI: SMAC-8 CTP-8 Value: SMAC-10 CTP-10 Ok now let me explain how a rated these areas...Graphics in SMAC are kind of dark, uncolorful and not very impressive but it can be quite neat at times with the 3D looking terrain. Units are ok but are kind of hard to make out sometimes. CTP's bright colored and lively graphics with nice clear animating units are really pleasent to look at. Sound in SMAC is not too much more impressive then its graphics, same sound attacks for all weapons. Music is there but only ok. CTP sound effects are very neat, you can hear the ships sailing the units talk when they are selected and also when they are moved. CTP music is nice and blends right into the setting. Interface in SMAC is pretty good but sometimes the right-clicked menus and hot-keys can be a little aggravating. Slow to click on things at times also, but its ok. CTP interface is fast, simple to use and easy to read but the print can be just a little larger. Overall gameplay is smoother and faster in CTP then what it is in SMAC. SMAC sometimes stalls a little when trying to move a units. Depth in SMAC is a little more then CTP as it seems to me so far. I have still yet to see everything CTP has to offer in the form of depth though. Customizing SMAC seems to be more due to the design workshop and the .txt files. I do believe CTP has similar .txt files but I am not sure how much can be edited yet. Map/Scenario editor was in SMAC upon release and CTP is not there right now. This is still yet to be seen. As for the strategies involved, I think SMAC has an edge here but I have more to learn about CTP. Combat in SMAC is not bad but it is a whole lot more exciting in CTP due to the unit stacks and battlefield. Troops neal down and shoot, calvary takes out their guns and fires. All with very nice sound effects. The AI in SMAC is really good with only some minor holes here and there. CTP is also setup with some really good AI, have not seen any holes yet but they might be there. All in all the AI in these to games are better then the past Civ2s. As for the value, I highly recommend these games to ANYONE who is interested in strategy games. They are BOTH well worth the money and I bet you will get every dollars worth of the money you spent on them. I know I will be playing both of these games alot, probably too much. So anyone that has and likes Civ2 and SMAC should get CTP, trust me you won't be disappointed at all. These are the BEST games ever!!! Oh but I must warn you all, if you can't get any sleep or anything done with SMAC it will be even more so with CTP because then you have TWO games that will addict you to death. Hope this gives some of you an idea of how these two heavy weight games compare. Also, this is ONLY MY opinions some people might feel different about them. In the meantime happy SMACing! Oh and Happy Easter also Almost forgot about that due to these two games!
MarkG	posted 04-02-99 05:38 PM ET On customizability, things we have discovered so far that can be done through text files: 32 civs in one game, change the colors of civs, change any civ's name, leaders, city names, etc, and increase the choices from 42 to 44, have more than 128 units(at least), have up to 64 wonders(it remains to be seen what exactly you can do with the new wonders), mess with the ai behaviour... The map and scenario editors are coming soon and probably there will be a utility to change the unit/city/terrain graphics Markos, Apolyton CS