User Reviews (31 - 41 of 66)

Show these reviews first:

Highest Rated
Lowest Rated Newest
Oldest Most Helpful
Least Helpful

Yes, it's better than civ II.

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: August 15, 2000
Author: Amazon User

Civilization II was a good interm game and was one of the most addictive of 1996, but it was limited where it could go. Civilization III, unless it had intense graphics, would not add anything (other than a few new civs/technologies) over the second one.

So Sid Meier took the natural step and went to Alpha Centauri. It takes place after humans' take their first step into the unknown. However, the pod taking the pioneers breaks up and splits into several pieces, hence several factions are born, all with different abilities/talents and philosophies. However, all want to dominate the planet.

The factions are unique and contrived at the same time. To have them all completely different is alittle too convenient. However, it makes it easier to tell them apart. The game play is similar to CIV II, but there are more units, more technologies and more of everything. You can make over 60 different units, all with different strengths/weaknesses as well as cultivate the local alien creatures.

There are also a lot more technologies one can create, although there is no more direct control of which technologies you can create.

However, the best feature of the game is that once your empire gets big, you don't have to spend all this time micromanaging your empire.

Firstly, you can quene a long production line of up to 8 creations, so instead of creating a Recreation Commons and then coming back to create a Tree Farm, you can preprogram a colony to do it automatically.

Secondly, you can annoint a governor to control what goes on in an individual city. They will build stuff based on what criteria you set for that city. If you set it on build, it will build certain things, if you set it on conquer, it will build war machines, etc....

All in all another addicting game from the Meier camp...Rating: B

To the end of time, i will play this game

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: November 14, 2004
Author: Amazon User

This is one of my favorite games in the world, i am in my 20s and still play this game. it is so time consuming and fun that i go to sleep thinking of it after playing for hours. Sid Meier is a genius. i have a ps2 and play that as well but Alpha Centauri and Civilization are still the most fun.

Review of Alpha Centauri

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: June 16, 2005
Author: Amazon User

This is a really great game; you can design your own vehicles and ships by putting different types of armor and weapons onto the vehicles.Having all of the different factions to choose between was also pretty cool because each faction had its own unique advantages, for example Colonel Santiago's Spartans unique talent is that the military vehicles move farther and are a lot stronger. Another thing that is cool about this game is how your units develope morale everytime they win a fight with someone so that they do more damage against future opponents. Over all I think that this is a great game and that anyone who likes strategy games will love this game too.

All Time Best Turn Based Strategy Game

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: November 02, 2005
Author: Amazon User

I've played all the Civ games so far and SMAC, and I must say I find SMAC to be the best-of-breed. Sure, it's just Civ in space, but the game play is so much better and the options so much more limitless. Is it any wonder they decided to add elements in Civ IV that came pretty much straight from SMAC (like customizable governments and different classes of specialists - above and beyond the typical entertainer/taxman/scientist).

Sure, the alien tech is hard to get at first, but once you get the feel of it it's second nature.

The terraforming options are great and the ability to produce sea colonies is also awesome. Need more energy? Raise the terrain to hills to get more sunlight on a solar colector. You can remodel terrain until your heart is content.

I hated the fact in Civ III and IV that you lost full control of air units. I'm much happier with old Civ II and SMAC ability to fly the air units however you want, including suicide missions to get that pesky colony pod JUST out of range to stimey your oponent.

The customizable technology in units is also awesome, though it can be daunting at first, if it perplexes you, you can turn on auto prototyping and it's done for you.

I also still think SMAC offers the best of the CIV/SMAC interfaces in terms of informative, ease-of-use, and power to get done what you need.

I guess I just didn't enjoy the way Civ III seemed to get "dumbed-down." The micro-management is part of the game, sure, it can be annoying at times, but SMAC offers enough automation to help. The possibilities are simply endless with SMAC.

One of the best turn based strategy games

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: May 29, 2007
Author: Amazon User

This is a classic game. It is one of the definitive best turn based strategy games ever created.

Alpha Centauri is a Sid Meier game, although it was designed by Brian Reynolds. It takes a lot of what Civilization had at the time (like Civ3 or 2 was the last Civ game to come out before this) and added much more depth to the game world. Just the details like videos and quotes for technology advances. You could create your own units, so I had crazy stuff like troop transports that can make orbital insertions, or insanely expensive aircraft which can ignore all base defenses. I even upgraded the supply crawlers to move faster and be better than relying on terraformers to make a base more profitable.

The best thing this has over Civ is that it takes place after Civilization, in the future. So you are actually discovering new units and technologies instead of the same old, same old: start with cavemen, move to the Castle age, Industrial, and finally Modern age. Theres none of that nonsense. Its science fiction and even has a storyline which unfolds as the game progresses.

I CAN'T STOP PLAYING

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: April 28, 2000
Author: Amazon User

Being a huge sci-fi fan, I find this game to be the best thing I've ever played on a computer. There are so many ways to set AC up that you really can enjoy unlimited playability. Between the many game setting choices, the design workshop (where the real fun can be had), faction choices and military/sociolgical choices, this game will keep you interested for quite some time. The thrill of battle, building colonies up with improvements and the race to discover the next technological breakthrough will have you feeling like an Emperor in a matter of hours. I've owned the game for well over a year, and still haven't grown tired of it. If you like strategy games, then you NEED to own Alpha Centauri.

Excellent stopping point between Civ 2 & 3

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: December 26, 2003
Author: Amazon User

This game is just unique and quirky enough to get the coveted five stars. The whole idea (story) is a perfect lead-in for the game itself. And it does employ a few aspects found in Civ III - the automatic growth of cities, the fighting that is not quite to the death, the addition of new Wonders... Great game and lots of fun.

Good space simulator

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 3 / 5
Date: August 26, 2004
Author: Amazon User

This is a good space simulator. It allows you to control many different aspects of your people, including socio/economic model, resources, transportation, security, etc. It also allows you to design your own units based on what technologies you have researched. It is also a good macroscopic military strategy game. It is turn-based, so if you play only RTS don't play this. If you don't mind turn-based games, though, and you like space-based strategy games, you should play this. The graphics are second-rate, but that is just because it is old.

A Disappointment

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 5 / 14
Date: September 05, 2005
Author: Amazon User

The reviews of this game looked great and I've enjoyed Civ I, II, & III. Unfortunately, there was not anything new or interesting in this game. I found the "alien" technology difficult to understand and stragetise. Civ III is much better. I am very glad that I did not pay full price for this item. If you have already played Civ III, do not bother with this game.

The best strategy turn-based of the year.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 3
Date: February 16, 2000
Author: Amazon User

If you need action,war,and thought this is the game for you if you have start to play the alpha centauri just only for 1 hour and you are still in front of your computer monitor then you are one of the many people that they don't suffer from the alpha centauri maniac or syndrom call it what ever you like.But do this buy it!

Review Page: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Next 

Actions