I bought this game hoping to rekindle my interest in gaming, since it has waned somewhat recently.
I've been playing a game of Gal Civ 2 for over 5 hours now, and I can't help but feel a little disappointed. The game seems to me to play like a simplifed version of Alpha Centauri in space. It just feels like the gameplay mechanics are very similar to AC but Galactic Civilizations 2 seems to have far fewer options and things to do in general. This is partly due to the setting (space) which eliminates the need for terraforming (a big part of AC) and also gives fewer options for expansion (planets as opposed to flexible placement of cities). Many parts of AC also seem more fleshed out, for example combat. In AC factors like terrain type and elevation all make a difference to the outcome of battles, and when you add in elements like bombardment and special abilities, the options increase exponentially.
Also, so far i've noticed that there are numerous long stretches of gameplay where nothing much (of interest) happens. In AC it always seemed like there was something important to do, eg. scouting, finding pods, fighting (native lifeforms and other factions), terraforming, building secret projects, etc.
Another thing that is slightly disappointing for me is the tech tree. Each branch of the tech tree seems a little too isolated from the rest (eg, laser leads to laser 2 to laser 3 etc. AC tended to have a more organic feel to the path through the technologies.
Don't get me wrong, Gal Civ 2 is a good game, but i can't help feeling that I'm just playing AC with fewer options which makes me feel like i have no reason to play Gal Civ instead of AC.
Does anyone else feel the same way, or disagree?
Am i being a bit to hasty in reaching the conclusions above? Does the game change remarkably later in the game?
Please remember that these are just my opinions, I'm not attempting to be inflammatory.
I've been playing a game of Gal Civ 2 for over 5 hours now, and I can't help but feel a little disappointed. The game seems to me to play like a simplifed version of Alpha Centauri in space. It just feels like the gameplay mechanics are very similar to AC but Galactic Civilizations 2 seems to have far fewer options and things to do in general. This is partly due to the setting (space) which eliminates the need for terraforming (a big part of AC) and also gives fewer options for expansion (planets as opposed to flexible placement of cities). Many parts of AC also seem more fleshed out, for example combat. In AC factors like terrain type and elevation all make a difference to the outcome of battles, and when you add in elements like bombardment and special abilities, the options increase exponentially.
Also, so far i've noticed that there are numerous long stretches of gameplay where nothing much (of interest) happens. In AC it always seemed like there was something important to do, eg. scouting, finding pods, fighting (native lifeforms and other factions), terraforming, building secret projects, etc.
Another thing that is slightly disappointing for me is the tech tree. Each branch of the tech tree seems a little too isolated from the rest (eg, laser leads to laser 2 to laser 3 etc. AC tended to have a more organic feel to the path through the technologies.
Don't get me wrong, Gal Civ 2 is a good game, but i can't help feeling that I'm just playing AC with fewer options which makes me feel like i have no reason to play Gal Civ instead of AC.
Does anyone else feel the same way, or disagree?
Am i being a bit to hasty in reaching the conclusions above? Does the game change remarkably later in the game?
Please remember that these are just my opinions, I'm not attempting to be inflammatory.
