Well, well, well...it appears that interest has re-arisen and this project can get rolling at a faster speed. There are of course issues that need to be addressed in regard to game play, I would never say that didn't exist. However, let me begin with the one of the more popular questions that has been voiced about why we chose to create an SMAC scenario and not the other way around? The simplicity of the civ engine is often thought of as too limited...but it reality it is actually very powerful. True, there are of course things built into SMAC that are not in Civ but that doesn't mean that you need an entirely new game engine to play Alpha Centauri. Hence, the purpose of this project is to bring Alpha Centauri to anyone who feels a bit of closure is in order for Civ II. Think about it; there are numerous scenarios that exist that are historical, fantasy, sci-fi, etc...but none that really follow the natural progression of the game (well, technically there are a couple out there that purport to playing beyond 2200 A.D. but I mean as Sid Meier's ending of the game really suggests as the colonization of a planet after winning). So, SMAC on Civ II could work. It should have been one of the first scenarios, but somehow it didn't quite sink, I think, with all the other nifty possibilities and excitements of the game.
Secondly, simulating the ENTIRE variety of units simply isn't possible UNLESS multiple units files are used. This is something that is probably NOT going to be done, and I will tell you why.
A) That's the same amount of work as making a scenario for each faction.
B) There isn't a significant difference in gameplay anyway because it is a scenario- unless you make a scenario for each faction (hmmm...future upgades maybe?)
C) This scenario will require TwEaKs on a scale of tweaking that is currently only rarely practiced in the rules.txt and game.txt. Graphics are not the problem, but I am going places in these files that give you nasty errors if you type in a value string that is not acceptable and will sometimes interfere with things. It's not much of a scenario if it doesn't run smoothly, so we are looking at gamma before beta and this is why things are so slow.
D) I'm a perfectionist- (sorry, it's something I've had since birth)
There are some great things here and I will spend more time answering questions soon. I've been working full-time, so it has hampered my promptness which is a shame because I do have a lot say about the project.
Special thanks to Andrew for his continued support on this thread as well as all others who have posted. Feel free to add to this at your earliest convenience and will reply as well.
