Gamers Review (Long Post)

Orionsol

Join Date 12/2006

Gamers Review (Long Post)

Let me first state I was a huge fan of the Master of Orion series until MoOO3. I like the Civ games 1-4 and LOVE the Total War Series.

With that said I want to give you my review and first impressions of the game topic by topic and one game mechanic at a time.

Setup: Cool and fun, I like setting up my race and all the attributes. This was fun and interesting and I can see many options to choose from for variation.

Story: Humans gave hyperdrive to everyone and yet they all start out on home world, with nearly 20th century tech? Umm... okaay. Lame.

Galaxy Map: I like the coloring and "spacey" feel of the map, but some things stand out like a sore thumb.
Who's idea was it to place the planets on the main galaxy map? And it most cases...PARSECS away from the home star. In some cases with my hyperdrive it takes more time to go intrasolar than to go to another star system. This is just plain idiotic. I hate this to the point I can't play for longer than an hour at a time because this is so stupid to me.
Range of ships and speeds/time. Being able to travel 30 parsecs from home in 16 weeks, but cant go any farher? That is stupid. The weeks system is absolutely lame. Space travel even at faster than light speeds takes YEARS. YEARS! Now years would restrict range...but weeks?

Technology: I really like the amount of technology and how you are restricted on its use. This is great.
My spacefaring race, with hyperdrive...doesn't know how to focus on more than one thing at a time? Researching one tech at a time is LAME, unrealistic and boring. At this point I started to get the feel that like alot of THIS companies games...they go for the simple is better application.

Fleets and Fighting: I LOVE spending an hour designing my own ship! And the way it looks! This was GREAT!
But to then not be able to handle them in tacticle fighting is no fun! To simply watch them fight and not get into the fight (like in MoO / Total War Games) I was severely disappointed.
Ohh, and I can travel faster than light...but I can't figure out how to travel in a "fleet" until I research that? HUH? Give me a break - Now I am getting anoyed.

Diplomacy & Spying: Ok, nothing good or bad really... but nothing ground breaking either.

All in all, this game has been a pretty big disappointment. Mainly because it is nothing any better than what was produced 15 years ago in this game style. Not Impressed and feel like I wasted $30.

I guess I'll try Space Empires 5 to see if that company got it any better...

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Philocthetes

Join Date 10/2003

+153

One of my best friends and first victims of my passing the PC Civ bug also really liked MoO1. But he was lukewarm about MoO2 exactly because it had abandoned the occasionally campy stuff in MoO1.

I liked the "more serious" take from MoO2, but the fact that the GC series likes silly bits in the game UI has never seriously distracted me from what's most important: how the bits work.

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Lame.

This is just plain idiotic

this is so stupid to me

That is stupid.

LAME, unrealistic and boring.

You can't expect to come in here and spout abuse and insults and expect to be treated with sweetness and light. No matter what you may think, there are people here who care about your opinions; just look at Kryo's and Zoomba's posts. (I swear that Stardockians have the patience of Job.) Posting your ideas with at least a modicum of respect and humility will get a far more constructive response. I am reminded of a quote of Wilde's: "In these modern days to be vulgar, illiterate, common and vicious, seems to give a man a marvellous infinity of rights that his father never dreamed of".

THIS companies games...they go for the simple is better application.

There is a game called chess. I mean, what about that Queen? She can travel on foot anywhere on the board in one move- even mounted knights can't do that. This is just plain idiotic. Castles that can move and fight? This is so stupid to me. And what about those pawns? They can only move forward, not back, or any other way. This is LAME, unrealistic and boring.

Enjoy your game

Thank you; I have, and will continue to do so.

sorry you can't take the heat.

Son, there is more heat in a mouse's fart than anything that you can bring.

Pathetic is pathetic and not only the game but your comments show the community may be as well.

The first part of this statement I will not address; it is just too easy- but as far as the second part...*cracks knuckles, then decides to count to ten and think about his answer* spend some time lurking on these forums. Read the posts, and the replies to them. I think that you will find that this is the best community of gamers that you will ever come across. There is no free ride here. You will be called on your mistakes, and most every idea you have to improve gameplay will be debated at length- but always with the best intentions.

Funny how people get all bent out of shape when you are honest about your opinion.

One of these days you may have a wife/girlfriend, and this won't be funny anymore.

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Son, there is more heat in a mouse's fart than anything that you can bring.

That's the best line I've heard in a week!

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One of these days you may have a wife/girlfriend, and this won't be funny anymore.

OUCH.

Realism in a game sucks. I need to get away from realism... far, far away.

I wonder why this desire for realism was put aside in regards to MOO, Civ, and TW? MOOs research wasn't any more realistic if I remember right, and the planet battles in MOO2 with 20 little sprites running in straight lines like Lemmings didn't even vaguely resemble a world-wide battle involving millions.

Civilization 4 is more realistic? Uhm... no. I don't think a 1900s destroyer has ever been sunk by a 1400s sloop before... maybe I'm wrong, I'm no expert, this is just a hunch. Seems sort of unrealistic to me.

Hell, look at the Total War series, nothing like the battles that took place in history. A village with a population of 1000 holding out with enough food to survive a siege for 8 years? What? There wasn't even a "cut off the penises of the dead to present to the pharaoh" button. What's up with that?

I think they are all great games, I even liked MOO3 (but not as much as GCI). GCII is the best space-based TBS without doubt (according to awards, sales, and reviews). It's not perfect, but nobody has come out with anything better.

I don't like the humor in GCII either... I prefer a somber "Imperium" feel for this type of game. I would like a lot of features added, sure, they've been discussed here to death.

However, you won't find anything better, this is as good as it gets. Go buy SEV and you'll be back here with your tail between your legs weeping and ashamed. I did.

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Ugh. SEV -- yet another game that I wanted to like. I swear, the more I want a game the more it sucks. I should just stop getting psyched for games and maybe they'll get better. So that Halo 3 thing, whatever. Who cares. I'm certainly waiting for it.

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...there is more heat in a mouse's fart than anything that you can bring.

Mistralok, I think we owe you free drinks for the rest of the night for that one.

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Mistralok, I think we owe you free drinks for the rest of the night for that one.

Not as nasty as I would have been but brilliant! I second the free drinks for Mistralok. Bravo sir, bravo!

And the part on chess, I loved it. What a way to smack someone into perspective with regards to "realism" for a game.

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Yeah, it's a game. If I want realistic....i'll go to work or school, but after those things I want my fantasy. If I want to play a game for it's realism....i'll go play rainbow six.

As for the battles....how tactical can you be in space? Weapons on 360 degree rotating turrets, and sheilds and armour and the likes make attacking from a flank sorta' pointless. It's space, not the ocean.

Above all else, scale is always off in TBS games. Look at civ4, you have a single guy that's bigger than an entire city! I'm sorry, did I miss something? Are people getting taller or are our cities shirnking?

Look, feel how you want about the game. Just don't come on here bashing it and then expect a warm welcome. You don't like the game? Stop playing, but don't come here complaining....it won't get you anywhere.

There, that's my two cents for right now.

-Spencer

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Ashbery76

Join Date 02/2002

+36

Your missing the point about realism, it is perceived realism like you get on BSG,Star trek,Starwars ect.I would class the GalCiv games as Spaceballs,Futurama,with all the cheese the game has.Games like MOO,SpaceEmpires try to model more mature perceived realism and immersion.

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Your missing the point about realism, it is perceived realism

I think you're all missing the point that this is a game. The bottom line is: the game is what it is, period. I believe this game has enough of everything to be accepted by just about any gamer with an interest in the genre. Sure, "realism" may be lacking, but that's what makes GC2 well, GC2. I don't recall the packaging stating anywhere on it that you would be in for some of the most gripping space battles ever to hit the PC, or claims that this game would bring out the armchair general within you. I've had some nasty stuff to say about this game from time to time, but it was usually over updates/patches and the internet access crap. Aside from that, the devs are the best, especially when it comes to listening to the player/consumer and customer support seems to care as well. If you don't like the game, just say that you don't. Don't drag up every last thing that you can think of to slam it because frankly, around here, you won't get any sympathy. I happen to think it's a great game, that should be enough said. You don't see me logging every little thing I like about it into this post do you? No, you don't. Why? Because your opinion should be as simple as that. Either you like it... or you don't.

Let the realism crap die, okay?

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Not as nasty as I would have been but brilliant!

Thanks, Evil. Coming from you this is high praise indeed.

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Thanks, Evil. Coming from you this is high praise indeed.

Nothing of the sort. I am the epitome of a fraktard so my praise means little. That was just one of the funniest, most "innocent" remarks I've read in quite some time. Never saw anyone put it like that, that's all.

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All in all, this game has been a pretty big disappointment. Mainly because it is nothing any better than what was produced 15 years ago in this game style. Not Impressed and feel like I wasted $30.

I guess I'll try Space Empires 5 to see if that company got it any better...

A fool and his money are soon parted...

Seriously there is a demo available which would have shown you that this was perhaps not the game for you.

Be sure to run straight out and throw your money away on SEV without playing the demo or doing any research whatsoever first.

Everyone is of course entitled to their opinions, but what kind of idiot goes to a place where everyone is of the oposite opinion and starts mouthing off to the regulars...

Are you a moron or just a troll?

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Mumblefratz

Join Date 07/2006

+139

It's awful hard not to respond to these kinds of threads. I mean, how can someone come onto a game site, start bashing the game and *not* expect to be slammed. The only rational explaination is it's the OP's purpose to cause disruption with the intent of provoking a reaction from others. If you look up Troll (Internet) on the Wiki this is the precise definition used.

In a perfect world the OP would simply be ignored and the thread would wither on the vine. But as I said it's awful hard *not* to respond to these threads as many good people already have, and I apparently can't resist either.

Plus, I've not seen as many words out of Kryo in any ten other posts he's made. That in itself speaks volumes.

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