To you who already have the game....

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Author Topic:   To you who already have the game....

Joe Average posted 02-09-99 02:38 PM ET
I'm just wondering how the endgame plays, does it bog down horribly, with all the building-management tasks and unit moving becoming overwhelming? This was what disgusted me in MOO2, and to a lesser degree MOM.....are the autogovernors good enough that you trust them to manage your cities WELL?
I'm only talking about standard maps and above, of course...the smaller maps don't have these kinds of problems...
Worldwalker posted 02-09-99 04:29 PM ET
I'm still not over this cold, so I'm not going to answer in great detail, but I can tell you this: The endgame is *MUCH* better than Civ, MOO2, etc. The governors do a fair job, and the build queues make things much smoother.
In MOO2, I used to blow up conquered planets so I didn't have to *build* stuff on 'em. I don't have the same problem in SMAC.
-- WW
Wen_Amon posted 02-09-99 05:12 PM ET
Ya that blow up planet thing was cool. So many empty systems... so many memories!
Chris Pine FIRAXIS posted 02-09-99 08:52 PM ET
In Civ 2 I used to play until I got railroads or so, but then I'd usually quit. By then you knew who was going to win, anyway.
In SMAC, though, the endgame is my favorite part! There are so many ways to win... Should I turn four of Yang's bases into a giant crater? Should I take a few for myself? Or should I take them, blow them up (a very cool option for those size 2 bases you don't want to mess with), and save my planetbuster for Santiago?
Another thing that Brian did really well was the victory conditions. Once there is a clear winner, the winner can actually win pretty soon, either by a buyout or by Transcendence or a vote or whatever. Because of this, endgames are often really intense, because things are still well balanced! Have you ever had a heart-pounding, forehead-beading tech race? Or a planetbusterfest?
Actually, I think that the endgames in multiplayer are just the coolest things, because during a game the humans tend to gang up on the leader, making things pretty even for the big crater-a-thon.
If you haven't dropped a singularity planetbuster on your best friend, you have not lived.
Seely posted 02-10-99 11:39 AM ET
I actually found the endgame pretty similar to Civ. I found myself obliterating bases after cutting into Miriam's territory (she had something like 25 bases-- and no tech!). I was well justified in doing so, as I was playing The Hive and had eliminated all the other factions-- so it was free-for-all. But so many bases and so much non-essential movement! Even with quick moves turned on, it still took a while to get through turns. I guess the governor AI is better than what Civ offered, but I remember the length that turns extended to in the endgame from Civ, and noticed that it was comparable in SMAC.
Not a criticism, mind you. This game is a quality piece of workmanship through and through...
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Author	Topic: To you who already have the game....
Joe Average	posted 02-09-99 02:38 PM ET I'm just wondering how the endgame plays, does it bog down horribly, with all the building-management tasks and unit moving becoming overwhelming? This was what disgusted me in MOO2, and to a lesser degree MOM.....are the autogovernors good enough that you trust them to manage your cities WELL? I'm only talking about standard maps and above, of course...the smaller maps don't have these kinds of problems...
Worldwalker	posted 02-09-99 04:29 PM ET I'm still not over this cold, so I'm not going to answer in great detail, but I can tell you this: The endgame is MUCH better than Civ, MOO2, etc. The governors do a fair job, and the build queues make things much smoother. In MOO2, I used to blow up conquered planets so I didn't have to build stuff on 'em. I don't have the same problem in SMAC. -- WW
Wen_Amon	posted 02-09-99 05:12 PM ET Ya that blow up planet thing was cool. So many empty systems... so many memories!
Chris Pine FIRAXIS	posted 02-09-99 08:52 PM ET In Civ 2 I used to play until I got railroads or so, but then I'd usually quit. By then you knew who was going to win, anyway. In SMAC, though, the endgame is my favorite part! There are so many ways to win... Should I turn four of Yang's bases into a giant crater? Should I take a few for myself? Or should I take them, blow them up (a very cool option for those size 2 bases you don't want to mess with), and save my planetbuster for Santiago? Another thing that Brian did really well was the victory conditions. Once there is a clear winner, the winner can actually win pretty soon, either by a buyout or by Transcendence or a vote or whatever. Because of this, endgames are often really intense, because things are still well balanced! Have you ever had a heart-pounding, forehead-beading tech race? Or a planetbusterfest? Actually, I think that the endgames in multiplayer are just the coolest things, because during a game the humans tend to gang up on the leader, making things pretty even for the big crater-a-thon. If you haven't dropped a singularity planetbuster on your best friend, you have not lived.
Seely	posted 02-10-99 11:39 AM ET I actually found the endgame pretty similar to Civ. I found myself obliterating bases after cutting into Miriam's territory (she had something like 25 bases-- and no tech!). I was well justified in doing so, as I was playing The Hive and had eliminated all the other factions-- so it was free-for-all. But so many bases and so much non-essential movement! Even with quick moves turned on, it still took a while to get through turns. I guess the governor AI is better than what Civ offered, but I remember the length that turns extended to in the endgame from Civ, and noticed that it was comparable in SMAC. Not a criticism, mind you. This game is a quality piece of workmanship through and through...