Sid Meiers Alpha Centauri?

[Burning Bridges]

Lately I have been deeply into science fiction and cause I completely missed out on AC, I just ordered some edition that comes bundled with Alien Crossfire expansion (available at amazon.co.uk for just 3.99 gbp).

Can you go wrong at this price point?

I am pretty sure there should be some people around who are very knowledgeable on this one. Any tips on how to start? Any mods, that I can use to pimp up the game to 2009 standards, especially the sound? Can the resolution be set to 1280*1024?

 

[kingcomrade]

Don't install the expansion.

Remember, genes are NOT blueprints. This means you can't, for example, insert "the genes for an elephant's trunk" into a giraffe and get a giraffe with a trunk. There -are- no genes for trunks. What you CAN do with genes is chemistry, since DNA codes for chemicals. For instance, we can in theory splice the native plants' talent for nitrogen fixation into a terran plant.

Flip flopper. We can't insert elephant trunks into giraffes, but we can insert plant bits into other plants.

 

[Burning Bridges]

Whats wrong with that?

 

[Monocause]

Lately I have been deeply into science fiction and cause I completely missed out on AC, I just ordered some edition that comes bundled with Alien Crossfire expansion (available at amazon.co.uk for just 3.99 gbp).

Can you go wrong at this price point?

I am pretty sure there should be some people around who are very knowledgeable on this one. Any tips on how to start? Any mods, that I can use to pimp up the game to 2009 standards, especially the sound? Can the resolution be set to 1280*1024?

You'll find your money spent very well, AC was - in my opinion - much better than any part of the Civilisation series.
I've always played either the university faction (with Prokhor Zakharov, the guy on my avatar) or the cyborg faction from Alien Crossfire which I felt was a bit overpowered but fun to play.
I think you won't need to boost the graphics. They aged rather well. And as to the resolution - yes, I think you can set it that high.
I don't remember if there were mods available. Don't think so.

 

[sqeecoo]

AC is perhaps the best computer strategy game I know, and certainly the best with regard to atmosphere and story.

I like the expansion, but it is not a huge improvement and some people (rightly) dislike the new factions. So play with the expansion using the old factions No mods needed.

You're in for a treat. The only drawback is the relatively poor AI compared to CivIV. But you won't notice that until you are close to becoming an expert at the game.

 

[headache]

I've only ever played with the expansion, but I don't let the alien factions play. I think that works. Is there something besides the added factions (some people don't like the human ones either) that is considered unbalancing?

EDIT:

I like the expansion, but it is not a huge improvement and some people (rightly) dislike the new factions. So play with the expansion using the old factions No mods needed.

Yeah, this. I was too slow.

 

[oldschool]

It's a great game. I recommend playing without the expansion first. The default factions are better balanced and make for an overall better game experience, especially if you are just getting into it. You can always install the expansion later if you want to see what it's all about.

Each of the factions have different strengths and weaknesses and I'm sure you'll find one that suits your playstyle. My favorite is the Spartans. Me and Colonel Santiago have conquered Alpha Centauri mor times than I can count.

Another cool thing is that you have access to a lot of the rules to customize the gameplay. Want a slower tech advancement? Want to look around before you establish your first base? Want to gain tech when you capture bases? You can set all that with the rules options.

Really a great game. You won't be disappointed.

 

[Burning Bridges]

Hm interesting. Balance is one of the most important things so I'll stay clear of the expansion. Any recommendations on the starting difficulty? I'd prefer rather a bit too difficult over a bit too easy ... And what about planet size / type?

I remember having tried the demo and there was an abundance monoliths / mindworms. Struck me as repetitive, from the start. Is there more variety in the full game?

Are there different tilesets, or is Alpha Centauri always a red planet?

 

[oldschool]

I would start out with the Map of Planet on medium difficulty. Probably as the Gaians the first time through. The Map of Planet is the canonical map and has the landmarks well placed.

There is an optional rule to reduce mindworms, but I would play with the default rules to get the full flavor of the game the first time through.

There is a lot of depth to the game. Research, special projects, unit building, and different building strategies. A medium difficulty will give you time to get a feel for all that without feeling rushed.

Like any 4x game, once you hit critical mass, the game is effectively over, but it's sure a lot more fun getting there than any other game in that genre that I've played.

Edit:
It is a red planet, but you can make it green. My favorite building strategy is to use forests exclusively. You give up nutrients (and thus growth) at the beginning, but you make up for that as you discover technologies and build stuctures to take advantage of the forests.

Anyway(s). Just experiment and have fun.

 

[Ashery]

I'll add another recommendation to play it without the expansion initially. I've only played the expansion briefly, but I definitely prefer the original factions...You just have to love the Gaian and abundant lifeform abuse. A setting that helps me and hinders my opponents while providing me with a 25% score bonus, why not? ;p

The game definitely has an early critical mass level, so I'd recommend playing on a smaller map (Small is ideal, standard if you want a longer game). Don't even think about playing a huge map unless you don't mind spending an hour on a single turn.

Some of the projects are definitely borderline overpowered, though...The Hunter-Seeker Algorithm is one and the Cloning Vats / Space Elevator combination is another (Hello perpetual population boom that has no restrictions on satellite use. Combine that with a city with massive food production and congratulations, you've now broken SM:AC's research (Actually, you don't need the SE for that latter part; the SE is mainly useful for new expansions and it helps in mass producing satellites))...It's always fun getting five future techs in a single turn XD

I should play through a map again on the highest difficulty...Played it a couple months back on the third hardest difficulty and the only real challenge was the first war, but even then I had already built around 70-80% of the early projects (Normally it'd be around 0-20% early on and steadily increase as the game progressed).

Hmm...Should try a new faction as well...Believers? Morgan?

LP?

 

[Flux_Capacitor]

Generally speaking, expansions have more powerful offerings than in the original. Its a way to help boost sales.

While the factions are pretty well-balanced, a lot of the other stuff really isn't. As has been mentioned already, some of the Secret Projects are extremely overpowered, particularly if you know what you're doing. As I recall, the Weather Paradigm gives you a *significant* boost to your faction's ability to modify terrain, and used properly, the rest of the game is mostly just mop up. Oh, and its usually around the third one you'll be able to access. A lot of the techs, while they don't provide quite the same level of imbalance, still can cause a problems.

That being said, the game is still a lot of fun. The atmosphere, especially the quotes, are extremely cool. There's also several different ways to win the game, although your route is more or less dictated by your faction. And, there's just a ton of options available. I wish the combat was a little more tactical (although that probably would greatly increase an already long game), but that's mostly just a nitpick.

 

[scient]

If you're interested in doing some testing while you play, pm on Apolyton SMAC/SMAX board since I've been working on an unofficial patch. So far I've fixed roughly 20 bugs/exploits including some nasty ones like crashes to desktop and broken features. At the moment I'm only patching SMAX exe but I plan on porting the fixes over to SMAC at some point. Currently, the patch is semi-private (transfered via PM) until Apolyton folks hear back from someone at EA. They want the "ok" to host it since I have to use sans Safedisc exe (ie. no cd). I do ask that it's not posted anyplace until I've got this all sorted but anyone can get a copy if they PM me so long as you're an active/long standing member on Codex (ie. not 2 posts, registered yesterday). Once that's sorted I'll start posting it publicly as I originally planned. If EA says no, fuck em because I already have been offered hosting from someone who doesn't care what EA thinks. I will start releasing it publicly in next few weeks one way or another. This will never be like Team Gizka's vaporware, I mean patch. No fanatical user base that will do scient's bidding.

There are some other mods on Apolyton but I'd avoid them if you're playing it for the first time. The only one I use besides my patches is an unofficial update to datalinks which fixes mistakes and typos.

The bad AI is something on my ever growing list of things to fix. Since it will require a lot of work it isn't a top priority until I get some extended free time. However, I am working on fixing combat related bugs which there are a lot of.

In the FAQ on Apolyton, there are details on how to play the game at other resolutions. Some res's I think you can get away with just ini edits otherwise you'll have to use this craptastic half translated Japanese hooking program that lets you set the game to any resolution.

 

[Lightknight]

Why dont we call it by its real name : Brian Reynolds Alpha Centauri.

 

[Dmitron]

Don't install the expansion.

Whats wrong with that?

because like the rest of this shit forum he can't enjoy playing games

 

[Trash]

Any game that let me melt the polar ice to flood my sworn enemies coastal cities is fine by my book.

However a game that lets me launch weapons so powerfull that they create craters the size of an inland see is just awesome. Get this game and never look back.

 

[Satori (original)]

Don't install the expansion.

Whats wrong with that?

because like the rest of this shit forum he can't enjoy playing games

Sounds like someone needs a nerve staple.

 

[Catalina]

Haha, look at all of the AC avatars this thread's attracted. Count me in as another vote for "play with out the expansion at first". The vanilla game is well balanced and complete; the expansion pack is more enjoyable as a bunch of add ons to add variety to the gameplay.

Obviously, my favorite faction to play is the Gaians. You WILL live in harmony with the planet or we'll destory you.

 

[Sodomy]

Add yet another vote to "play without the expansion". The new races are rather imbalanced (plus, I don't like the whole "alien races disable diplomatic victory" thing), and I REALLY, REALLY, REALLY HATE THE FUCKING RANGED MINDWORMS! ARGH! It's especially bad when an Isle of the Deep carries one up near your coastline before you have Doctrine: Flexibility.

My faction of choice is the Spartans. That morale bonus is wicked, especially for dealing with mindworms in the early game, and the police bonus helps to offset their industry penalty, since you'll need fewer doctors/empaths.

 

[Burning Bridges]

Fuck, my AC still hasnt arrived. I need this game badly. Thats the downside of ordering from the uk, I often wait in excess of 1 week.

But the tips are welcome!!

P.S. To answer my own question about 1280*1024, from experimentation with the demo it seems not possible. You can force it to run an Windows resolution but then everything, menus etc, will be fucked up.

 

[scient]

For changing resolution in AC, try here. Even though it says window mode, you can set the resolution to whatever you want. However, with AX you can just set a value in ini and it will use desktop res without messing up menu's and such, see here.


There is an interview someplace with Sid Meiers where he admits that he had almost next to nothing to do with Alpha Centauri project and was more of publisher marketing thing.

Inside the exe there a number references to Mr. Reynolds.

Oh, such serious danger, William Robinson!!!
The version of the JACKAL library you (Brian Reynolds) are attempting to use is out of sync with the library headers! Please rebuild JACKAL.LIB...Bye!

 

[sqeecoo]

I dunno, once you play with the expansion, you can't go back. All the little stuff is not really game-making or breaking, but it's nice enough to miss if you play without it. And it doesn't really have any unbalancing elements other than some factions. So I'd recommend getting the expansion pack but playing with the original factions.

Two more things: I suggest turning blind research off. It's a completely different game with that option on. On the other hand, having it on makes thing more interesting on your first playthrough, perhaps. But it eliminates a lot of strategy, and can be frustrating when you have to stumble blindly for a key tech.

The other thing is to read the Journey to Centauri here: http://www.firaxis.com/smac/story.cfm

It's an excellent intro story and it sheds a more complete light on the factions (and it's the reason I have Miriam as my avatar - she is pretty cool for a fundie in that story).

 

[L'ennui]

I just finished a game. Victory by conquest. Resistance to the Human Hive was, ultimately, pointless. The University was the last faction to go, props to Zakharov.

Also, nerve stapling, chemical warfare and planet busters are your friends. Assimilating your helpless neighbors > Fear of UN sanctions. THE CHAIRMAN SAYS SO.

I think I'll try a new game on a harder difficulty, I was only at "librarian" level.

What does the expansion add, other than the new factions? What gampeplay changes are there?

 

[Satori (original)]

New units and new techs.

 

[L'ennui]

Thanks for the info, I might look into it.

Also, I just finished reading "Journey to Centauri". Very interesting stuff!

"This ship is a prison. That Planet is a prison. Your freedom exists in your mind only. Your thoughts are your only escape." -Yang

I love that guy! lol

 

[IdaGno]

re the SMAX expansion: is possible to play w/just ONE Alien Race = good riddance to the original faction of your choice (I'm lookin' at you, Sister Miriam Godwinson!)