Good Old Reviews: Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri

LadyRhian

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IanDavis said:
Good Old Reviews: Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri
I had a really easy time getting back into SMAC, but it might not be quite as smooth to the pallet for those weaned on later Civ titles.
Palate, not "pallet". Sigh.
 

carpathic

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I am not really capable of enumerating the number of hours of my life I spent playing this game. It really tapped into my desire to explore a new planet and build something from nothing.

I would love to see a re-release because my Civ fix has been civ revolutions on my xbox lately and that game just doesn't cut it. (If I could make my own maps, maybe, but I am mostly done with that game for now).

Here's hoping.
 

Jburton9

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Adept Mechanicus said:
Alpha Centauri was such a great game. My brother played it back when I was a kid, but I only picked it up last year on GOG. It's rare that I play something that causes me to stop what I'm doing, just to think about the philosophical implications. It's a great example of how to make a game story that feels extremely satisfying even when it's kept to the background. It's like AC4's Critical Intel said: a good game can have a good story with cutscenes and dialogue, but a great game creates story and atmosphere using the rule set. I tried playing Civilization V after Alpha Centauri, and I couldn't do it. In SMAC, I felt like I was creating my own civilization, while Civilization just felt like I was aping a past one.

Also, they never tell you what nerve stapling is, only that it's considered an atrocity. Any theories?


Man Alpha Centauri I am so glad it was saved by GOG, even so I have held on to my original cd +expansion like it is gold. There are so many things that I love about this game, random maps, the philosophical pondering dialog, the ability to customize units, etc.

I feel the same about Civ, yes it is definitely good but you nailed it when saying "aping a past one.." I always feel like I am running down the same cart path ruts of the prior civilizations , am I making the same mistakes? Is this the only way that a civ can develop?

Considering what happened with MOO3 I would like to stay with the safe bet and hope they release a HD version of Alpha Centauri : ) Maybe after that consider developing SMAC2 :p
 

Mahoshonen

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I love the shit out of Alpha Centauri. Sadly, the franchise is stuck in Distribution Rights Purgatory.

What makes AC stand out from Civilization is that AC has character. The leaders in Civ are just sort of there, occasionally acting bizarrely but otherwise unnotable. By contrast, the faction leaders had personalities that went beyond their ideologies.
 

Zer0Saber

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Still better than the CIV games. I go back to play it from time to time. I have never been able to recreate my perfect game. I had a large center continent all to myself. I managed to send spys to sabotage other leaders and blame it on someone else, and I was allies with everyone while they where all at war with each other and the only reason they never went against me for being allies with their enemies is because I would loan money to fund their war. They couldn't even kill each other because of their crippling debt to me. I orchestrated a world war and bankrupted everyone. I didn't even have to put money in my military, it all when to advancement and keeping the population happy. I love that game so much.
 

theKunz

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Ah man I remember this game. Heck, the game disk still sits right next to me. What I really loved about this that set it apart from say, CIV 3 was the application of political idealologies and their various effects on your faction. Also what was interesting was the way you could terraform and manipulate the enviornment. "Oh dear, is that global warming? I guess I'll just have to put up some solar mirrors" "What's this? My cities are in a dry desert? I guess I'll just have to induce some wetness". And the third and final thing I liked was the customizable units, which gave a much more diverse and interesting aspect to strategy. Though admitably, once you got the singularity weapons, fuel cell, and hovercraft chassis, it's pretty much GG for your opponents XD
 

Wilco86

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tmande2nd said:
I played it cause I got Civ 3, and Alpha Centauri from a friend for Christmas
I still recall dropping a planet buster on Sister Miriam as the Spartans.

"PREACH IN HELL!" BOOOOOOOOOOOM!

Ah good times.
The Peacekeepers got the same treatment after crying about atrocities - their HQ got a real nice lake with my planet buster, and...

...

...darn, that game really shows the dark side of humanity...
 

Bostur

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dunam said:
Bostur said:
lacktheknack said:
Adept Mechanicus said:
Also, they never tell you what nerve stapling is, only that it's considered an atrocity. Any theories?
From the icon, I've assumed it's reducing their sensory perception to the point of uselessness.

Other theories include "A device that inflicts (potentially extreme) sensations at will". Think "Push Button of Pain".
I always assumed that nerve stapling was a form of high-tech lobotomy, turning the subjects into mindless but productive zombies.
This seems to be a source with comprehensive details:

http://everything2.com/node/1941714 [http://everything2.com/node/1941714]

To summarize: It is never exactly defined. It permanently changes people (drones) to a docile and "shuffling, slow speaking, looking with unfocused slowness" that seems to suggest a similar result of drugs giving to serious psychiatric patients. Only, this is a permanent change for nerve stapling.

It's also clear that even it's supporters are ashamed of it to a certain degree.
Thats some really good background info there. It's lacking sources though. Is it from Alien Crossfire? I never played that, only a mod for Civ4 that included it.

Whenever a leader is defeated there is a painful looking video. I wonder if that depicts nerve stapling.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFuHv_wPfO4
 

mrpollio

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blackrave said:
lacktheknack said:
Adept Mechanicus said:
Also, they never tell you what nerve stapling is, only that it's considered an atrocity. Any theories?
From the icon, I've assumed it's reducing their sensory perception to the point of uselessness.

Other theories include "A device that inflicts (potentially extreme) sensations at will". Think "Push Button of Pain".
I never could understand why suppressing riots with nerve stapling was so bad thing
We aren't talking about peaceful protests here after all
Nerve stapling is basically taser with larger area effect
Nobody gets killed after all and if taking into consideration that I often got into cockfights with Hive and Sparta, I feel it was justified

P.S. We scientist are men of peace after all. Except times when someone dares to claim otherwise >:)

This is one of the few games I read the books for, and they are fantastic and very cheap to get used.

Nerve stapling was described in the third novel Dragon Sun as basically "stapling" (as in a staple gun) a metal disk between vertebra in the back of the neck using some sort of harness that allowed the person to keep living and being productive but it turned them into mindless zombies of people with no personalities.

The role playing game had an excerpt: (This one was Google Fu, never played it)

A device originally designed for psychotherapy, but often applied on both Earth and Planet to deal with social dissension. When strapped to a patient's head and upper back, the nerve stapler extrudes hair-fine probes into his brain and spinal column. A psychotherapist can then use the device to inflict extreme sensations (not necessarily pain) on the patient, subjecting him to a rapid course of psychological conditioning.
 

DSK-

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Brilliant game. I absolutely loved putting hilarious custom titles and greetings to my faction leader, only to errupt in laughter once an AI leader contacted me. Brilliant memories of this game.

"Please don't go, the drones need you. They look up to you".
 

tmande2nd

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Wilco86 said:
tmande2nd said:
I played it cause I got Civ 3, and Alpha Centauri from a friend for Christmas
I still recall dropping a planet buster on Sister Miriam as the Spartans.

"PREACH IN HELL!" BOOOOOOOOOOOM!

Ah good times.
The Peacekeepers got the same treatment after crying about atrocities - their HQ got a real nice lake with my planet buster, and...

...

...darn, that game really shows the dark side of humanity...
That is nothing.

I sent an army of Mind Worms after the Spartans and laughed....like the Oprah of Mind Worms that game.
YOU GET A MIND WORM YOU GET A MIND WORM HE GETS A MIND WORM YOU ALL GET MIND WORMS!