Galactic Civilizations

"Barely noteworthy"

Galactic Civilizations is noteworthy only because its launch coincided with the brutally disappointed Master of Orion 3. Otherwise, this is a mediocre game at best - it goes through the motions of a 4X game but doesn't raise the bar at all.

Graphics and sound: Eye candy and sound effects are possibly the least important aspects of a game of this type. Galactic Civilization's graphics are well-done, at the very least; clean and attractive. I can't say the same for the sound. The music is bland and unappealing; synthesized new age tracks evoke the feeling of the first Star Trek movie. The sound effects are weak - occasional zips and blips accompany combat, but that's about it.

Interface: The interface is your standard 4X interface; status bar on the right, empire buttons along the bottom. However, the lack of right-click context menus is extremely disappointing - the user is forced to use keyboard shortcuts. While some people like keyboard shortcuts, I don't, and after the robust context menus of games like Alpha Centauri, I was very surprised. There are other minor functionalities that are missing: for example, you cannot browse the tech tree from inside the research window. If you want to see what your current research can lead to, you need a printed copy of the tech tree. You cannot queue colony improvements or ships, so managing a large empire gets really annoying really quickly. The icons that indicate what ships are stationed on a planet are tiny, making it difficult to manage a large fleet. Overall, the interface looks like a half-baked effort.

Gameplay: Again, standard 4X fare. The lack of tactical combat is sad. While I understand that Stardock was trying to go for the feeling of Civilization ''in space,'' I don't think that their game was improved by leaving tactical combat out. The lack of multiplayer support is likewise disappointing. I could overlook these if the game offered an exemplary single-player experience, but it doesn't. There's nothing here that wasn't already done (often better) in MOO2, Civ 2/3, or Alpha Centauri. (I admit I'm a little biased: I'm still waiting for a good 4X game in space with a 3D universe. Galactic Civilization's is, disappointingly, 2D.)

Story & Universe: Here's where the game really breaks down. First, you cannot choose your race - you're locked into playing the humans. That would be like Civilization where you can only play the Americans. The rival races are bland and uninteresting - you have your standard furry warrior race (Bulrathi... oops, I mean Klingon... oops, I mean Drengin), your standard sentient robots, and another race that looks just like humans. At least in MOO2 you had the feeling of really interesting archetypical races with different value systems and personalities fighting each other. This isn't helped by the dialogue, which is often so corny it makes me wince. ''So, the monkey boy has a backbone!'' and ''Bite me.'' aren't phrases I'd expect to hear from an intergalactic diplomat. There's no engrossing story like Alpha Centauri's, none of the epic history of Civilization, and none of the vastness of Master of Orion.

Stardock's endeavour was to create a decent adaptation of the original Civilization in space. They accomplished that. Of course, it begs the question: why not go play Civilization instead? Sid Meier did it better the first time around.

Reviewer's Score: 5/10, Originally Posted: 02/11/04